Det är öken

Ja, öken är det, mest hela Qatar. Den har sin charm den med! Speciellt vid stranden i glada vänners lag, god mat och månuppgång i havet. (ostkusten är kanske inte riktigt min grej - hade föredragit solnedgång i havet men en kan inte få allt)

It is a desert indeed! Almost all of Qatar. Also the desert has it's beauty. Especially when visiting the desert seaside with good friends, tasty food and moonrise in the sea. (Prefer sunset in the sea, Westcoast girl as I am but no one can have it all!)

Téet blir extra gott när det är tillagat ute!

Extra tasty tea when prepared outside!

Såhär ser det ut mest hela vägen längs motorvägen norr om Doha. Andra delar av öknen utanför staden är ännu mer karga - i princip utan någon växtlighet alls.

                   The views most of the time along the high way heading to the north of Qatar. Other parts of the desert outside the city are even more barren - practically without anything at all growing there.

 

Men ingen öken utan oaser!

But no desert without an Oasis!

Backelinskan i Stockholm

Efter en skön semester är vi nu tillbaka i Doha sedan några veckor. Nästa inlägg får det handla om Doha igen här men först lite bilder från dagarna i Stockholm där vi avslutade semestern i Sverige.

After a pleasant vacation, we are back in Doha since a few weeks. The next post will be on Doha but first few pictures from Stockholm where we ended our vacation. 

 

Efter en lång dags promenerande hamnade vi Vitabergsparken!

Feature from Vitabergsparken.

The Royal Palace in City

 Jajjemän, mitt i vaktavlösningsceremonin hamnade vi! Hästar, musik och mängder av uniformer.

We arrived to the palace just as it was time for changing of the guards. Horses, music and lots of uniforms!

Parliament Building

 Må de ta kloka beslut härinne.

May they take wise decisions in here.

Familjen Räv

En underbar skulptur där Gamla Stan möter Rosenbadsområdet.

A wonderful sculpture at the edge of  the Old City facing the Parliament Building.

 Ja, det kan konstateras - det finns många fina blommor även i Stockholm!

There are many nice flowers also in Stockholm!

Blomsteraffär i anslutning till T-Centralen

View from Djurgården to the City

 Oj! Fler blomsterbutiker som vi råkade hitta..! Dessa i Gamla Stan.

Ooops! We found more flower shops. What a coincidence! These ones from the Old City, Gamla Stan.

Och så en bild från Stockholms moské vid Medborgarplatsen. Intressant arkitektur och tillgängligt läge mitt i staden.

And finally, a picture from Stockholm's mosque. Interesting architecture and easy-to-reach location in the City.

Museum of Islamic Art/Islamisk konst

I torsdags var vi pa museet for islamisk konst. Antligen, ska jag kanske tillagga. Har ju bott har ett tag och beundrat byggnaden fran andra delar av staden och fran utsidan nar vi flera ganger besokt den tillhorande parken. For en hel ar sedan sag jag en dokumentar pa TV om arkitekten och sjalva byggnadsprojektet. Det sag intressant ut! Mycket att titta pa, annu mer att uppleva arkitekturen, utsikten och atmosfaren i sig. Nagra smakprov:

Last Thursday, we went to the Museum of Islamic Art. Finally, should I maybe add. After all, I have been living here for a while now. Have been admiring the building from outside, from other parts of the city at distance and from the attached surrounding park. A couple of years ago, I watched a documentary about the architect and his project to build this building. It caught my attention! So many interesting items to see and learn about, but even the architecture, the views and the atmosphere themselves, are worth the visit. A glimpse:

At night!

Blossoms fighting the heat!

Looong red carpet!

Parfym!

Guests on their way to coronation.

Indisk vaggbonad.

Akta allt!

Sweet!

Turkish lamp

Skyline of the Business and Trade area

Batar och stadssiluett

Gammal och nytt.

Besök på souq Waqif Visit at souq waqif

http://instagram.com/p/asBXDoRWud/

En tur på den gammaldags marknaden.
An evening visit at the local old style market.

Sweden in Qatar

Nu nar jag bor lite langt fran Sverige blir det att jag kollar efter och hajar till om jag ser nagot "svenskt".
Ibland tar jag dessutom kort pa det. En del kort ar inte sa vackra, andra ar mindre snygga.

Now since I live a bit far from Sweden, it often happens that I am keeping my eyes open for "Swedish stuff". Sometimes I also take a picture of it. Some pictures are not very beautiful, others are less lovely.

Svensk och qatarisk flagga utanfor IKEA

For nagra manader sedan oppnade IKEA i Qatar. Omradet runt omkring byggs for fullt, "Doha Festival City". Jag laste en artikel haromsistens, "Fifteen signs you have lived in Qatar too long" (10 tecken pa att du har bott i Qatar for lange). Ett av dem var att "du blir overexalterad av att IKEA oppnar". Och, ja, det far jag ju erkanna att det ar sant... Anda har jag inte bott har SA lange!
For ovrigt ar det en valdigt rolig lista med igenkanningsfaktor hos manga har... Se hela listan har:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/9990816/Fifteen-signs-you-have-lived-in-Qatar-too-long.html

A few months ago, IKEA opened in Qatar. The area "Doha Festival City" is growing every minute. I read and article a few weeks ago, "Fifteen signs you have lived in Qatar too long". One of them: "When you get unnaturally excited about Ikea opening" was spot on, I must admit that... Although l haven't been living here SO long! By the way, the list is quite fun (and true?) and lots of people here can tick many of the items of the list...

Vi kan val kalla SAAB och Volvo "svenska" bilar, da finns det svenska bilar i Qatar. De ar fa och Volvo ar vanligast. Nu skrev ag om bilar igen, detta ar inte bra. Vi fortsatter:

I guess we might call SAAB and Volvo "Swedish" cars. If so, there are some Swedish cars in Qatar. They are few and Volvo is the most common one. One more post mentioning cars, this is not good, let's move on:

Av allt gott svenskt godis sa ar det just Daim som saljs har. Det forstar jag inte riktigt. Sa det har jag inte kopt... Har daremot lyckats hitta FairTrade (tro det eller ej) mork choklad som far folja med hem och bli uppaten.

Of all nice Swedish sweets there is, it is only "Daim" being sold here. Can't really understand that. But believe it or not, I have found Fair Trade Dark Chocolate that (quite often) comes home with me.

Bilar och moskeer Cars and Mosques

I Qatar finns det som sagt inte sa mycket kollektivtrafik. Daremot finns det manga bilar. Stora bilar. Bensinen kostar tva kronor litern och det kors mycket bil. Speciellt pa sommaren nar det ar valdigt varmt och en helst vill stanna inne i bilens behagliga AC-klimat, da undviker en helst att ga, aven om det sa bara ar nagra meter. 

Nagot som det ocksa finns manga av i detta land ar moskeer. I princip 100 % av landets lokala befolkning qatarierna ar muslimer. Mer eller mindre praktiserande. Nagra exakta siffror ar svara att hitta. Den muslimska befolkningen blir ocksa vasentligt storre om vi aven lagger till alla muslimska gastarbetare. Manga muslimska araber fran Mellanostern och Nordafrika, manga indiska muslimska byggjobbare osv.

Dessa tva aspekter av Qatar forenas pa bensinstationernadar det gar att be i bensinstationsmosken medans servicepersonalen tar hand om bilen.

Vart annars om inte i Qatar?

Bensinstation med moske. Petrol station with Mosque facilities.

As mentioned earlier, there is not a lot of public transportation in Qatar. But, there are lots of cars. Big cars. The petrol/gas is cheap and there's a lot of car driving going on. Especially in summer time when it is very hot and you rather stay inside the comfy climate of the AC car than walking outside, even if it is only for a few meters. 

Something there's also a lot of in this country are mosques. Basically 100% of the local population the Qataris are Muslims. More or less practicing. Exact numbers are difficult to find. The Muslim population takes a much larger number if we add all the Muslim guest workers. Especially the Muslim Arabs from The Middle East, North Africa and the Muslim Indian laborers building this country.

These two aspects comes perfectly together in the Petrol stations where you may go for prayer as the service staff is taking care of your car.

Where else if not in Qatar?

Tradgardsdrommar Garden Dreams

En av fordelarna med att bo i denna delen av varlden ar att det ar ett (milt sagt) annorlunda klimat an hemma. Har har jag sett manga olika vaxter och blommor har som jag aldrig traffat pa forut. 

Vissa av dem kampar emot i varmen och vaxer dar de kanner for det (se bilden), andra ar importerade och far halla till godo med platsen de far (till exempel palmtraden).

One of the good things living in this part of the world is that it is, mildly speaking, a different climate than at home. I have seen many kind of flowers and plants that I have never seen before. Some of them are fighting the heat and grow where they feel like doing it, see the picture. Others are imported and has to grow where they are asked to do it (as the palm trees).

En uppstickare mitt i byggdammet. A brave one in  the construction dust.

 Vi gor aven forsok till att odla hemma. Melonkarnorna hann knappt komma i jorden fore de grodde och skjot ivag! Nu har jag lart mig att faglarna gillar spada tomatplantor sa de far komma in ett slag, plantorna alltsa...

We're also trying to grow some stuff at home. The seeds from the melon barely touched the soil until they eagerly came up. Also I have learnt that the birds like fresh tomato plants, so the pot had to come inside for a while.

Pigga melonskott! Only a few days old!

Doha singers!

Nar jag kom till Qatar hade jag hittat en kor som jag ville sjunga med. Sagt och gjort, den 21 januari var jag pa forsta ovningen och gillade det fran start!Vi har ovat i den amerikanska skolan (att ga in dar kanns som att kliva ratt in i en amerikansk high school film!). I torsdags hade vi var avslutning och konsert, aven den pa den amerikanska skolan. Det har gatt fort och varit valdigt roligt. Blir sa glad av att sjunga! Vissa sanger var riktigt utmanande och mitt sopranregister har utokats, hehe! Roligt var det och de lokala tidningarna har skrivit positiva recensioner.

When I arrived to Qatar, there was a choir which I wanted to join. And so it happened, the 21st of January was my first rehearsal and I liked it from the start! We have been rehearsing in the American School Doha (stepping inside feels like walking straight into an American High school movie!) Last Thursday was the final occasion and the concert for this semester, also that one in the American School. Time has flown and I have enjoyed a lot. Singing makes me happy! Some songs were especially challenging and I have sung soprano tunes I did not know I was able to ;-). But very fun and the local newspapers have written positive reviews.

You can find one of them here:

Har ar en av recensionerna, i nojesbilagan Qatar Tribune:

http://www.qatar-tribune.com/data/20130513/pdf/chillout.pdf

Pa jobbet 2 At Work 2

En liten uppfoljning av mitt forra inlagg angaende mitt jobb har i Doha. I dagarna har en intervju med mig publicerats pa Goteborgs universitets hemsida. Om mitt jobb, vad jag gor dar osv. Jag lankar sa kan ni kolla in hela artikeln. Bilden med nagra av "mina" studenter och mig - nu i hijabversion!!

En universitetskatt som skippar forelasningarna. A university cat which does not care to attend the lectures.

This post is a follow up from my previous one from work. An interview about me has been published by University of Gothenburg from where I graduated a few years ago. Questions about my work, what I do etc. I'm afraid it is only in Swedish but please check in the picture with the students and me - hijabi version!!

Klicka pa lanken for att hitta intervjun:
Click on the link to find the interview:

http://www.hum.gu.se/aktuellt/Nyheter/fulltext//studievagledare-i-qatar.cid1170062

I vantan pa sparvagnen Waiting the Tram

Ja, det tar en stund innan sparvagnen kommer. Narmare bestamt sisadar fyra till tio ar (svart att veta hur det gar) (Hallandsasen, host, host!). Det finns planer pa en metro som skall knyta samman Doha och aven i ett senare skede forlangas till den mindre orten Al Khor i norra delen av landet. Forhoppningen ar att det hela skall vara klart till VM i fotboll som planeras till 2022.

Yes, it will take a while until the tram is coming. Maybe four to ten years, difficult to say. There are plans for a metro system to connect the different parts of Doha and also later other parts of the country. As the small city Al Khor in the northern part of the country to be connected to the southern parts. The system is planned  to be in service in time for the Football World Cup 2022.

I vantan pa sparvagnen kan vi snegla mot "kusinen" Dubai. Dar finns redan ett metrosystem fran flygplatsen och till flera delar av staden. Nar jag var pa kort visit passade jag pa att ta bilder av metroskyltar och metrobanan. Jag saknar ju mina sparvagnar!

While waiting for the tram. we may have a look at the "cousin" Dubai. There is already a metro system in service from the airport to several parts of the city. I took some pictures of the metro signs and the metro system when I was in Dubai for a short visit. I do miss my trams at home!

Om en inte vill aka metron (av nagon outgrundlig anledning!) sa finns det aven taxi saklart. For damer finns det ladies taxi! Kolla in hur forarnas outfit matchar bilarna!

And if you, for any weird reason (!), don't want to use the metro, there is of course taxis. And there is Ladies Taxi for the Ladies! Check out how the ladies outfit matches the cars!

Ett litet horn av Kashmir A piece of Kashmir

I Qatar finns det manniskor och varor fran varldens alla horn. I en liten butik inte sa langt fran dar vi bor saljs det handgjorda saker producerade av kvinnor i Kashmir. Helt otroligt skickligt sytt, malat, snidit och snickrat. 

Om det ar nagot ni vill bestalla kan jag ordna med kop och transport. Skriv ett mail sa gar det att ordna! 

louisebackelin@gmail.com

People from all over the world are residing in Qatar. Also there are items and merchandise from near and far. In a small shop close to where we stay, well hand made products, skillfully sewn, decorated and carved by Kashmiri women are available.

If there is anything you would like to order, I can take care of the purchase and transportation. Send an email and  it can be arranged! 

louisebackelin@gmail.com

Ett smakprov pa varorna som finns:
A glimpse of what items are available:

Handmalade askar

Handbroderad sjal i ull

Lykta med mojligthet till elbelysning

Vaska modell storre

Ca 70 cm hogt bord

Dekorativt handmalat fat