A Little Late, or Day 118 in Muscat

I made plans to meet up with Ian and Wayne, my new accented friends, between 7-8 this morning.

I hoped really hard they would still be there when I got to their hotel at 9am... whoops.

Thankfully, they were stirring and ready to head out shortly. I was expecting the city to be pretty closed, and thinking I would just spend the day at the beach, but when I was walking to their place, the Mutrah Souq was bustling, and it didn't feel much like a Friday, so we decided to check that out instead.

After the souq, we split up. Ian and I headed to Qurm, a beach town that looks a lot smaller on the map than it actually is. After half an hour of walking down the beach, we got to a Starbucks. Very local, right? But it had "air con" and we got to rest up a bit.

We were supposed to meet at the Grand Hyatt at 12:30. Around 12:15, Ian and I realized that we really weren't close at all. We asked some teenagers for directions, and they offered us a ride. One of them was fluent in English, and we chatted about where he wanted to go to uni next year. We asked what they were up to, and they said they had been skipping Friday prayers to hang out and smoke. Maybe because they helped us out, Allah will forgive them?

We found Wayne outside the hotel, having a cigarette (like he is prone to do). He is a scuba diver, so has been trying to find a place to set up a dive. There was, supposedly, a dive shop at the Grand Hyatt, so he went directly there... but no luck. It had closed down.

After a failed attempt to just wander in and use their swimming pool, we took a taxi to Mumtaz Mahal, a fancier Indian place. It was delcious, and filling, and nearly 12 dollars! (That's quite a bit for food, but it was pretty darn delicious.)

They called a cab after our leisurely 2.5 hour meal, and we scooted back to Mutrah and the hotel. It was hot, so time for a siesta for Ian and me as Wayne, once again, tried to get to a dive shop.

He came back successful, I booked my room for the night for half the price of last night, and we headed out for a sunset stroll. I found some fort I wanted to climb up to, and they gamely followed along. There was a bit of a rock climb at the bottom, but we made it to an abandoned staircase that just went up the side of the cliff. It was probably my favorite experience of the day.

We continued on to a park (Al Riyam or something) with had an amusement park, as well as what I guessed was the watchtower. The road to it looked closed, but all the people around were fun to see.

We are going to a rooftop bar because they were feeling "a bit parched." More beautiful Muscat to see tomorrow!

Lucky, or Day 117 in Doha, Dubai, and Muscat

Late last night, I called Karwa, the primary taxi service in Doha, and asked for a cab at 6:30am this morning for my 8:30am flight. They said they couldn't take reservations until 9. I took this as "Call us in the morning, and we'll send someone over." It was actually, "We are fully booked." So, this morning, I rang them up and was on hold for 15 minutes (all that phone credit!). I finally pretended I was Arabic and pressed 1, and got a response... that said they were fully booked.

I was a bit panicked at this point (it was 6:30), so I found another taxi company's number, called them up, and they said they would have one there before 7. I sat outside, and waited, and, miraculous, a Karwa taxi came by 15 minutes later, having just dropped someone else off. Someone was watching out for me, and I got to the desk just minutes before the "one hour cut-off" (which is hardly ever a strict cut-off around here).

I had a few hours to kill once I got to Dubai, so I told my taxi driver to take me to the Creekside Park. He overshot it, so I ended up on the other side of the creek, but had a little adventure in the "Children's Park." Well, when I wasn't sitting in the shade recovering from the heat.

I got to the bus stand, met up with an English "bloke" and an Australian "mate", and set off to find a bite to eat with them. It is a good thing too, because I didn't reset my watch forward one hour, and would've missed the bus!

It was about a 7-hour bus ride, all said and done. We had three different border crossings (an exit, a bag check, and an entry) then dropped people off at random places until we got to Al Ruwi, one of the towns that makes up Muscat. On the way... there were mountains! Hills of the rough and rugged type, and higher than anything I've seen lately.

I didn't want to go get food by myself, so I went to the (much cheaper) hotel they were staying at to check it out (and will probably stay there tomorrow).

We also walked a bit along the corniche and had dinner. Well, food, and not very much of it. The Omani rial is 10:1 with the Qatari riyal, so everything that is 1 rial is 10 riyals is $2.70. You wouldn't think a 1-note would be worth so much!

But tonight, I'm in posh accommodations with A/C and an internet place across the street. After a sweaty day like today, I'll enjoy it.

One Short Day, or Day 116 in Doha

I look back on today, and I guess I did a lot... but it wasn't broken up by classes, so it just felt like time was slipping away... (And I had the song from Wicked stuck in my head all day.)

This morning was my last final of my junior year and my last final in Qatar. It has a most impressive title: "Formal Languages, Automata, and Complexity Theory" or FLAC for short. I've learned a lot of this stuff before (though I always forget whether to reduce B to A or A to B...) and the final went smoothly. Especially since it had 120 points, but is graded out of 100.

I got the fabulous news that Keghani was going to Pittsburgh for graduation yesterday, and I convinced her (somehow) to take my suitcase with her to Pittsburgh. So we packed that up.

Today was also my last day at the RAEL (Reach Out to Asia Adult English Literacy) program. We gave them their final tests, then got to sit and chat for a bit. I taught them a new word, "pen-pal", and we'll see if they ever e-mail me. And, finally, I have my own pictures of me and the RAEL gang (well, what's left of it). We have an Egyptian, a Moroccan, an Indian... I do stand out a bit, don't I? Abid (center back), Arti, and I have been working with these guys for seven weeks now. Next week will be their in-class celebration (while I'm in Bahrain) and then they have a Al Jaedah Company certificate ceremony as well.

After class, Tessa and I went to have dinner with Profs. Nael and Khaled, who both teach networks, which she TAs for. I TA for Nael and Andreas (who couldn't make it) for Technical Communications for Computer Scientists. So basically, they were taking out the Pittsburgh CS TAs. And at the fancy InterCon Fish Market as well! We got to pick out our fish (I finally tried hammour, the local catch), and I ate way too much.

I'm headed out in just a few hours (well, four to be exact) to get to the airport, fly to Dubai, then take a bus to Oman. Jessica did this just a few days ago, so I got all the details from her. I just need to throw a few things in my backpack (including some books I borrowed... I'm excited to read on the bus!) and I'll be ready to grab a cab to the airport at 0630. Wish me luck, and I'll talk to you tomorrow from a (supposedly) beautiful Oman!

MoM, or Day 115 in Doha

Sorry, Madre, this one isn't about you. (Though I did appreciate the e-mail you sent, and I'm glad you and Zoe did well in the talent show.)

Carnegie Mellon, here and in Pittsburgh (I think...), lets their students strut their stuff at a poster competition and presentation session called "Meeting of the Minds." Somehow I got roped into doing a poster based on my final project for my Community Service Learning course. Two guys from Cornell, two ladies from Cornell and CMU, and me, we all joined forces on a poster to show our skills. We changed the curriculum of the program to better suit the students' needs, and the girls made a handbook to give to potential teachers telling them about the program. And to be honest, it was a great class and everything, and I'm glad we could share it with people, but it was not a research poster presentation like everyone else's, so when they asked us about our empirical methods... yeah, we only go for the touchy-feely stuff.

Anyway, I got to see a bunch of my friends presenting. Over the lunch hour, I saw one of the three senior thesis presentations by Aysha, Rishav, and Kaleem. And, wonder of wonders, I saw them all again at MoM later that day!

Speaking of seniors, I met with Tessa and the two professors for Networks this morning to go through my code and talk about the class, and I was very happy when I got praises... but mostly I'm happy to have passed that class!

And I was super proud of her this afternoon when she and her partner swept the Meeting of the Minds awards, winning best CS, best poster, and best overall. She had more goody bags than she could carry by the end of it.

And, for those of you who are starting to get sensitive about me leaving (I know I am!), I'm going to talk about goodbyes now, so you should probably stop reading...

I have my last exam and last project tomorrow, then I'll only be in Qatar for four days out of the next nine, so I've been trying to network and find the people I need to say goodbye and thank you to before its too late.

And just in general, thank you! I'm tearing up a bit already, and I still have over a week to go! But soon, my blogposts are going to get re-numbered to "Day 1 of my May Adventure" and then, after that... this blog will be done. It'll be in stasis, for me to come back and read and reminisce, like my Eurotrip blog from two years ago, except a lot more bittersweet. Can you remember the first day I was in Doha? Everything was so new!

Not Even Close to Midnight, or Day 114 in Doha

So we can ignore that weird middle part of my day... that part where I took a 4-hour nap, ran errands and had a group meeting.

That just leaves the beginning and the end.

The day dawned early. Too early. I was the opposite of bright-eyed and bushy-tailed when I got up at 7:30am. (Blurry-eyed and un-bushy-tailed?) Abdalla and I were going to check out the post office, which I've been curious about since I got here, before heading to the Turkish Embassy for a visa.

There is only one post office in Qatar, from what I've been told (though I have seen other ones in strip malls...). Everyone has their own PO box number, so you never actually put a street address on letters and packages going through the post to Qatar. Personally, it doesn't quite seem like there were enough post office boxes for every person in Qatar.

Architecturally, it resembles a pigeon roost, which is what the website says it is supposed to look like. Something about letters being like roosting pigeons or something. It just reminded me of the Pigeonhole Principle. I'm such a nerd.

In addition to a bunch of post office boxes, there was also a QNB branch (a bank), a few random windows to purchase stamps or exchange money, and a little food shop where we got breakfast. Carack and a spiced cheese roll...

The Embassy took no time at all (since we were told there was visa-on-arrival for both of us) and I was back home... for my nap.

Tonight was a wonderful CMU tradition.

The day before Reading Day (the day with no tests in the middle of finals week), the faculty and staff of the Pittsburgh CMU campus stay up until the ungodly hour of 9:00pm to cook omelets for the students during the annual "Almost Midnight Breakfast."

Rachelle, one of the CMU alums who currently works here in Qatar, has advocated for this event, and I loved it. At CMU-P, it is held in one of the largest spaces on campus, and I don't really know who is making my omelet (if I even decide to get an omelet with the huge lines). Here, I knew every faculty and staff member, at least by face if not by name. In addition, I could wander among all the different groups of people, since I knew most of them too.

It's the little things, such as attending an event for two hours and feeling like it breezed by.

Also, just to clarify, 9:00pm is not "almost midnight." Not if you've ever had a project due at midnight...

Not Particularly Interesting (For You), or Day 113 in Doha

It's definitely not like I didn't do anything today. I had a final test for Networks (that class is officially over!) I had a final presentation for Design for Service (look here to see our beautifully designed slides). I had a final paper for Islamic Feminism (about how activists are not effective... having a bad economy, being in a war, and having a weak government are all ways to forward female rights, however). I had a final project for Community Service Learning (where I made materials to use in the classroom, as well as guides for the teachers).

But, for all of you that weren't in my frantically busy shoes this morning, this blogpost is going to look pretty lame. No picture (sorry... I guess I could do one of those DailyBooth ones where I just look lame, sitting in front of a computer, but that wouldn't be fun for any of us.)

So basically, I feel like I'm done. (There is only a Tuesday group project documentation and a Wednesday test left.)

And I definitely acted like I was done. After turning in the last thing at 6:30pm, I wandered CMU for an hour and a half, checking in on the IPL cricket finals (then leaving, pretty quickly), then chatting with Samreen and Aysha in the undergraduate robotics lab.

When I got home, Sara had the TV turned on. So I sucked my brains out for a few (quite, quite a few) hours, watching movies, putting some things in a box to try to ship tomorrow, and buying yet more tickets for this epic May journey... that isn't quite long enough for everything!

Vignettes, or Day 112 in Doha

I have discovered I will be in eight different countries in May; nine if you count a two-hour layover in London. In order of travel: Oman, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, (UK,) USA.

I was going to take a picture of the French toast I had for lunch today. Then I ate it all.

The French call French toast "lost bread," since you often use stale bread for it. My roommate was from France last semester. This semester, my roommate is from Qatar (though her roots are in Yemen.)

I have one project, one paper, one presentation, and one test tomorrow. After that, I'll only have one test left.

I have a pen I brought from the U.S. that has "Student Dormitory Council" on it. Somehow, I haven't lost it. It will be one well-traveled pen.

It was Earth Day (or day after Earth Day, or something), so I went around and collected all the papers that only had printing on one side so I could print on the other side the slides I need to study.

I split a "Crown Pizza" with Abdalla while studying. Like the McArabia, it was something new... and we also ate all of it before I thought about getting a picture. (Ours only had meatballs in the crust.)

While writing my post yesterday, I feel asleep a few times. That is why it might have said something along the lines of "Sara's dad was waiting feedback And then picked me later then 8pm. Qatari time." I apologize. I meant to say that Sara was thinking she was going to pick me up at 5:30pm, but actually ended up arriving (after a few text message exchanges) at 8pm.

I didn't leave the house until it was already dark today. Sometimes, weekends are just sad.

A Very Long Engagement, or Day 111 in Doha

My wonderful, lovely roommate (who sometimes might not clean up all her dishes, and sometimes might not take out the trash, and sometimes might leave all the lights and her stuff everywhere) redeemed herself by inviting me to her uncle's engagement party tonight.

I was scrambling around for a dress, and never did end up getting a fancier one than the one I already had. I knew that these things were pretty lavish and pretty glittery, which is not me at all... but I made do.

So the deal around here is that first, a marriage is arranged by the parents; often the mother goes and proposes to the other mother, then the men get involved, and then the potential bride and groom are (usually) given veto rights.

This happens before the couple really knows each other, however. I've heard that the couple can "go on dates", but sometimes chaperoned (that part is unclear and dependent on the family), sometimes after the engagement, sometimes after signing the wedding papers.

Around here, again according to some, the papers are signed before the wedding so that the couple can get to know each other, and then possibly divorce before the wedding if they aren't compatible.

Well, what I went to was the engagement party (the wedding is sometime in July), and basically everything you see in an American wedding reception happened at this engagement party - with a twist.

First, the people gathered. I think people had been trickling in for at least two hours when I got there at 8:00, and people continued coming in until 9 or later.

At about 9, the bride came in. There was much pomp and circumstance, and the doors opened, and there she was, with her long, intricate, pink dress, her hair that must have taken hours and weighed a ton from all the hairspray, and her make-up that, again, must have taken quite a while.

She looked like she was going to cry, though. A bit of an overwhelming day, I would think. She had to walk very slowly, since at each three steps, her long dress would start catching under her heels, and the attendants would have to rearrange it for her.

Another different thing: these attendants were like the maids or the staff of the banquet hall. In the U.S., they would be the bridesmaids or her sisters or something.

She got up on the long, platform, then up on the throne-couch after it, and sat a looked pretty for quite a while as the cameras were rolling and the photographer was snapping away.

I began seeing women starting to cover up. An abaya here, a shayla there, until I went into the back room (off to one side was actually a bedroom!) to put on the abaya I borrowed from Sara.

If I hadn't have been wearing a dress that bared my shoulders and knees, I probably wouldn't have bothered, but since I would wear this dress out in public, I decided to join in on the modesty.

Seconds before Sara's uncle (the groom) entered the room, all of Sara's immediate family unveiled. Since it was just him, and he was a close family member, they uncovered to take better pictures with him.

He walked in, got up on the dancing platform, then joined his wife-to-be on the couch-throne.

Now, all the traditions started. First was the ring... and the necklace, and the bracelet, and the earrings. Not just one piece of jewelry, but a whole set!

Next they drank out of separate goblets of apple juice, then stuck both their straws into one of them, possibly symbolizing the unity of marriage.

Cutting and eating the cake was next. Cutting was easy, but I didn't get to see how the feeding went. There was not cake over their faces, so I would guess that this part is more tame than its America counterpart.

Then Sara and I and her family covered so that the bride's father and brother could come in as well. Sara's grandfather accompanied them in, and more pictures were taken.

Off to the side, a portable photography studio was set up. Sara and I got a portrait of the two of us (which I basically can't show anyone, because she's not covered). All of the highly-dressed up women would go over and vamp it up for a few minutes to show off all the hard work.

Once the groom and men left, it was a mad rush for the buffet. The food disappeared basically before I got my hands on a plate, and there was no queuing involved. I managed to grab some chicken (which tasted exactly like barbecue-sauce-soaked chicken), as well as different salads, pita (bread) and rice.

It was a good thing I got up to dance quite a few times over the course of the night. First off, I was nibbling at the desserts all night, so it was a good calorie burner. It also was an activity that didn't require a shared language: everyone could laugh at my strange attempt at an Arab dance. It was also one of the few entertainment activities (with the others being eating, being photographed,or people-watching).

Close to the end of the night, Sara's older sister (who had also been "taking care" of me throughout the night) requested English songs from the DJ. This had started when the DJ randomly played Shakkira's "Hips Don't Lie" then spun out from there.

We continued dancing until half past midnight, when Sara's father came to pick us all up (and return me to EC).

Well, we stuck around, asked for a few more pictures, and generally were just late getting to the car. We were some of the last ones to leave at 1:00am. I was pretty physically exhausted from dancing (especially since they were teaching me how to use my hips a bunch! It felt like Latin American dancing sometimes, with all the pelvic movements...) but very mentally happy. Another cultural experience that I won't forget!

CS Community, or Day 110 in Doha

People are trying to get me to stop talking about leaving... but it is what's on my mind these days. Sadly, taking the place of studying and projects that need to get done!

Today I spent the day helping Khaled, Samreen, and Keghani with planning the CS End-of-Year Banquet. I sat by a card that people were signing for Dean Thorpe; I got very craft-y and cut out and glued together placecards; and I designed and cut the name tags.

Basically, I sat at a table and had fun while Khaled ran around like a chicken with its head cut off, Keghani kept mentioning things that Khaled needed to do, and Samreen was upstairs exhausting herself with another project.

But, the event was a success! Samreen and I started by making the Computer Science Pictionary words into slips of paper, then attempting to print from the stubbornest printer ever. So I missed the opening, which included a geeky facts quiz about the professors that Keghani put together.

Janahi and Ahmed, a pair of guys that seem attached at the hip, helped with a slideshow of nerdy quotes (including some good Chuck Norris ones) and customized pick-up lines for each professor. These lines might have included jokes about hard- and software, shortest path algorithms, optimizations, and single hops... a computer science love-fest.

We had good food, some music provided by Kaleem... and then the skits.

This is totally something only CMU-Q can do. (I take that back... there are some professors and students at CMU-P that are distinctive enough to do this with.) First go the students: we pick a few professors with some quirks and create skits revolving around them.

My favorite was Khaled-as-Majd, a bipolar, marker-throwing tyrant who cares. Janahi-as-Khaled-Harras (my networks professor) had some nice moments too.

Next, the professors to get to jab at the students that are perpetually falling asleep in class, that ask a lot of questions, and that are just very distinctive in their walking or talking. "Janahi" and "Ahmed" were in a few different skits; "Khaled" had a in one as well.

We were all cracking up; it was like all of SCS was in one, great joke.

I didn't want to leave! It is an "end-of-year" thing, so everyone was talking about the future or the past. I still can't focus on the "now" of finals next week.

I can, however, focus on the "now" of finding people to hang out with. While on my way out, I ran into Fatima, Maria, Waleed, Hira, Zaid, and others playing charades on the cut with movie titles (a popular game around here). So, of course, I sat and gave my two cents, making Waleed act out John Tucker Must Die. (He didn't succeed, just for the record.)

I saw them again as Abdalla and I were headed out of EC. There were four of them that were very close to jumping into the car and heading to City Center, but they were smarter than we were and went off to prepare for finals week.

There is always tomorrow...

Beginning of the End, or Day 109 in Doha

Wow, my last day of classes... how fitting was it that I got to drop in on the "Marhaba Tartans" event for the admitted students? One door closes, another door opens.

I got to mingle with some of the high-schoolers (one of which knew me through my roommate, another one's brother is in a class I TA for) and do my duty advocating Carnegie Mellon. I mean, I love this school to death (even when it is the death of me) so I want the right people to come and love it too.

(Note: none of the people in the picture are high-schoolers ... we are all loud and proud CMU students.)

And, like almost every other Wednesday this semester, I went to the RAEL (it is a nested acronym, so bear with me... ROTA (Reach Out to Asia) Adult English Literacy) program to teach English. This week and last week, it has been just a handful of students. I think our break three weeks ago messed with their schedules.

But today, it was good, since out of the three volunteers, I was the only one that could make it.

(This is an old picture of Arti teaching while Abid and I assist from the front row.)

Next week is the last week I can make it, since I'm thinking I'll be in Bahrain (if I can't find a reason not to go) the week after. It is weird, even though classes ended, I'll be around for another two weeks.

I guess that is a good thing, since in those two weeks, I have two tests, three projects, four days in Dubai/Muscat, and seniors that I need to see graduate!

Let's Get Physical, or Day 108 in Doha

My final networks project is over. So you will only be hearing me complain about the final test until Sunday, then, khallas (done, in Arabic), I will be free of that class!

I'm kind of disappointed that I choose this semester to blog, because now when I look back, I will realize how awful it really was. It is one of those things that I will be happy to have just fade back into the past...

Anyway, due to my new-found freedom, I was able to work-out today! It reminded me a lot of freshman year at CMU; the boys and I would finish our 251 (Great Theoretical Ideas in Computer Science, or GTI around here) homework, turn it in at midnight, then go down to the work-out room in the dorm and watch an hour of Power Rangers while on the treadmill.

Just subtract the dorm, the boys, the treadmill, and the Power Rangers, and that's what I did tonight.

But I didn't just want to talk about exercising...

Khaled and I had a conversation while coding today (one of our last ones... while coding that is) about toilet manners here versus in the West. It's funny because I recently read a blogpost by a Qatari woman about that very same topic. And you know I've mentioned bathrooms before.

Now, let me lay it out for those Western types. Every bathroom around here (that I've been in... sorry, guys, don't have data for you, though Khaled did bring it up, so I'm assuming) has, attached to the toilet, a hose to be used to wash yourself after doing your business. There is also a bidet next to the toilet; if you are still curious, wikiHow can walk you through the steps.

If you are really, really interested, I found an interesting article about the eco-benefits of bidets versus toilet paper (not as simple as you'd think). And there are some small health benefits as well.

So with all of this, you'd think I'd be a convert, right? I mean, as you can see, I have both the hose and the bidet in all of the bathrooms in my apartment.

There is one "con" to bidets; I have not been to a public bathroom that has managed to keep its floors dry. Pretty gross to wade in to el baño (that's bathroom in Spanish) with your pants turned up to keep them from getting soggy.

And... Let's just say it is amazing how culture ingrains things in us. But maybe I should be more adventurous!

Geeky Tourism, or Day 107 in Doha

Wow, today has been such a nerdy day.

So in networks, we got a grand tour of the CMU-Q network by one of the engineers. We first got a diagram basically showing how we connect to the world and to CMU-Pittsburgh.

Then, it was time to visit the one of the rooms that connect part of the building to the server room. It was pretty chilly, pretty stark, but with ropes of wires everywhere.

We were also in the presence of equipment that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Then we went downstairs.

It was large and in charge... of all of the internet and telecommunications within the building.

The Data Control Room.

The wires and switches (of the virtual variety) were pretty cool.

But I guess I'm just not into that stuff, because what I thought was fascinating was the cooling system and the UPS (uninterrupted power supply) system.

In the Data Control Room, they had these holes in the ground which made it look like an air hockey table. Cool air circulated up through there, and hot air went out the back. There were also fans in each individual unit, as well as ceiling-based air conditioning.

For the UPS, there were reportedly three full rooms in the basement (that we didn't get to see) that were basically huge batteries.

We looked at a couple million dollars of infrastructure at work. I will never take the Internet for granted again. (Except, that I'm kind of doing that right now...)

Anyway, to finish off a nerdy day, I watched part of the ASCII Star Wars. Don't judge, just click and you'll see why I was pretty amazed and a little disturbed.

Good Intentions (and a Story), or Day 106 in Doha

So I had this grand idea earlier today of looking at how my opinions have changed since I've been here. I was going to compare and contrast my thoughts on polygamy, arranged marriages, young adult pregnancy, expats outnumbering locals, and a myriad of other great, dense topics that would be super educational for all my readers.

However, this is more like what happened.

He slept there for like half an hour.

That's right... networks strikes again! It is two days until the final is due, and we are trying to eek out every last point we can.

In addition, still have a few of those other projects lingering!

But, let me tell you a story of my wonderful fore-thought:

When I was in India, I had a pseudo-list of things I wanted to buy on the cheap. Among these was a new pair of sunglasses.

However, I still had my old pair. That's right, I bought a NEW pair of sunglasses before losing/breaking my OLD pair. Now isn't that something.

So, when we went dune bashing and were getting tossed around in the car, my sunglasses finally gave in and snapped.

However, with my forward thinking, I was back in operation in no time, putting on my new pair of slick shades and looking cool as ever. Now isn't THAT something.

Food for Thought, or Day 105 in Doha

After the desert safari yesterday, today's half of the conference was a bit more chill. The "Undergraduate Conference in Information Systems" concluded today with student presentations, poster presentations, and three speakers.

The two speakers that I made it to were a least fascinating and at most applicable.

I learned what SCADA systems are and how vulnerable they are to attack! The presenter went on to mention a few incidents of vengeful employees using their knowledge to compromise the sewage system. There goes the water supply...

The other talk was about consulting. Not best practices, but instead the "Three R's" that the present had picked up as the most important pieces: requirements, revenue, and relationships.

Varun and I got to chat over lunch and dinner about the conference, and about their hopes for its future. There were students from Bahrain and from Qatar University... but not that many from CMU. They'll have to work on that piece for next year...

Speaking of lunch, there was this delicious buffet with some great chocolate mousse that got mixed with cookies ("biscuits") and resurrected for dinner. Delicious free food...

And yesterday was the realization I had that I've gained weight since I've been here. I was trying on shorts that I brought from home, and haven't worn since I've gotten here (not quite appropriate). Well, they were always a bit tight... but I think two desserts a day and no walking has done them in.

So of course, at 10pm when it was snacktime, we go to Baskin-Robbins for some cotton candy ice cream for Sidra. I had the resistance to say no to that...

But had a "baby" shwarma instead. Fewer calories?... Maybe I should just start working out a bit more.

I See You Winding, Grinding..., or Day 104 in Doha

This weekend, I signed up for the "Undergraduate Conference for Information Systems."

The main reason? Because today they took us on a desert safari.

I believe the term more widely used around here is "dune-bashing."

There were about two dozen of us in eight Land Rovers, driven by guys who would do this on the weekend anyway. Our drive, Mahmoud, was probably enjoying getting his car full of girls (and Abdalla) to cheer as we bounced around in the sand.

After a little under an hour's drive to the Mesaieed area, all of the drivers got out, deflated their tires, and after that... no roads, just sand.

And, like always, the most thrilling part was coming up to the crest of a dune and only seeing sky in the windshield, until slowly it pivots down until all you can see is sand.

I didn't hurt that as soon as we started the real fun, he put on current pop music with some great pounding bass as a soundtrack.

We spent a good hour trundling around, stopping every so often to take pictures on the top of this or that dune, or overlooking the Saudi Arabia border (that's as close as I'm going to get to a country that's not very easy to enter as a tourist... a female one at that).

After the amazing dune-bashing session, we stopped at a camp alongside the Arabian Sea for our late lunch. They pulled out a volleyball, which we tossed around for quite a while. (It was clear that the drivers were way more practiced than the students). Then there was a bit of wading (my pants are still damp), a bit of posing with a camel (which stepped toward Allan every chance it got) before the call to dinner.

I had smelt the meat being grilled for a while, so it was easy to sit around, dig into the pita (that no one around here calls pita, they just call it bread) and dips and hotdogs and kabobs, and chat with the others around.

The way back had a few little hills and bumps, but the most fascinating part was seeing the amount of people around. As it was getting dark, we went down a dune to a flat area, where there was a Cruiser drifting with another dozen parked toward it, watching; right next to it, a steep hill that a half a dozen Land Cruisers were waiting to race up and coast (slide) down. There were little 4x4s and dune motorcycles and buggies doing their thing too.

Not to mention the vehicle every twenty meters along the beach having a family cook-out. I'm convinced that the half of Qatar that doesn't go picnic on the Corniche on Fridays after prayers goes to Sealine.

Guys in Dresses, or Day 103 in Doha

Happy International Day, everyone!

I got in the spirit by wearing "traditional" Pittsburgh clothing - a fleece, a hat, a scarf, and gloves... not many people noticed, in the sea of beautiful, multicolored traditional dress. The great part is, people weren't necessarily even wearing their own country's!

KayKay in Singaporean and Urmila in Indian garb (I think).

Varun, his Desi self.

The Student Affairs staff (in random travel wear)

Tessa in something I'm assuming is from Brunei.

My beautiful Sudanese girls!

Boys from the subcontinent (and Shaza still looking gorgeous). (Note Allen's wrap! Knees!)

Arash in eastern Iranian wear (because apparently they differ... and I'm not sure if I got the east versus west thing right; it actually might be western Iran).

Samreen in her pantsuit (and I'm wearing pant I got in India)!

Mathew just wore a dress shirt (boring) but Shahriar (front left) got in the spirit with his Bangladeshi clothes.

Jimmy wore something from a Middle Eastern country... can't remember which one, but he didn't have anything from Kenya to wear.

Some of my favorite traditional costumes, though, were the ones where the guys were allowed to wear shorter skirts than I am!

Besides just wandering around and taking pictures with people (and eating food), there was the International Day show that Fatima and Maria put together. Being on "Arabic Standard time", it was scheduled to start at 5:30. At 8:00pm, the first act (Mridula doing an awesome traditional Indian dance) was just finishing up.

There were other Indian dances, a Dominican song (sung by Melissa, our study abroad coordinator), an African dance, a Bangladeshi anthem, an English poem, a presentation about Azerbaijan, an impromptu salsa/latin dance session, more dabkeh, an Iranian dance (that was also performed at Coffeehouse), and I'm sure there are other performance I'm forgetting.

What I won't forget, though, it how people reacted to those performances. For a few of the dances, instead of just sitting and watching, people from the crowd stood up and joined in! The final dance, an encore performance of the "Desi Dancers", turned into a giant jumping mob. It was a bunch of fun.

As if that wasn't enough for a day, Abdalla gave me a ride to Ezadin Towers (yet another fancy hotel!) where Kelsey was throwing Ziad a surprise party! We weren't there for the actual surprising, but we were there for the cake.

When the cake was getting lit, the manager was having a hard time lighting them... so another guy with a lighter came up and started helping him. Then another guy. There were eventually half a dozen people gathered around these 20 candles trying to get them lit!

We sang "Happy Birthday" in English and Arabic, then he blew out the candles.

Then, the photo shoot started. Ziad was wearing a striped shirt, as were another two or three guys at the party. So after the group picture, all of them jumped in together... someone yelled "Arab picture", and all of a sudden the photo shoot got "racist."

They didn't leave anyone out... there was the Africans, the East Asians, those from the subcontinent, the Khaleejes, the "white people"... Just goes to show how diverse this place is!

After the final photos, a few of us ended up at the souq, enjoying some karak and sheesha. They kept flipping channels on the TV we could see, but on every channel, Fred knew exactly what was going on. And I think Ziad (the birthday boy) had a good time.

If it looks like I'm blowing away... I am! It was super windy and actually sprinkled a bit. (The waiters broke one of the large umbrellas trying to take it down, and some of the sheesha stands - that weren't being used thankfully - got knocked over.)