Images of Ramadan - Qatar Photo Competition Update

We've put together a few of the images submitted so far in our Ramadan Photography Competition. In our opinion all of these images contain some of the spirit of Ramadan.

Note - this list was not compiled by our judge, so the winning images may be quite different.

Moments of Prayer

by Bridge Alkayde

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Holy Book
by Eman Zainudeen

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Ramadhan Dove

Image by Alan Holden

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Prayer in the Mountains

by Anindya Prithwish

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Ramadan Profile

by Fatim Alalawi

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Prayer of Religion

by Isa Ebrahim

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Ibadah

by Hussain Khalaf

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Bedouins pray in the Desert.

by Aurelie Korady

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Aliens in Qatar Again???

Rumours of strange hobbit like creatures located in Qatar have been circulating round the blogosphere.

This picture was published by Cryptomondo:

This was not the first strange picture to have originated in Qatar, the blogger pointed out. On the same post was this strange creature, found on the camera of a semi-devoured caver:


As always there will be those who scoff, those who do not believe. Yet this is not the only strange thing to have come out of Qatar.

Last November, at the opening of the Islamic Museum, we noticed something strange about a Qatar photo, which we pointed out in our post famous visitors. Here's the picture again:

At first all appears normal in this photo by Ammar - but have a close look at the unusually large moon in the background...

Now it looks as if aliens are back again. We can only speculate that they are interested in Qatar's huge petrochemical reserves, which could easily be used to power a spaceship to the next galaxy.

Could this be the real reason for the huge American base here? To protect the world against an alien invasion?

Only time will tell...

A Sea Change in Qatar Transport Policy?

A sign at The Pearl gives a clue to how transport in Doha might develop in the future.

Also see: Qatar Transport.

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Qatar Photograph Competition: Second Update

With one week left of our photo competition we have provided a second selection of the photos submitted so far. You can also see our first photography update.

Remember that there is still time to enter the competition - we have some great prizes ranging from HDR software to an electronic cigarette kit and a handmade Kagura facemask.

Photographers may also be interested in our sponsor's photography competition: the topic is Smoking, and the prize is an electronic cigarette kit.

Doha Sky by Poppie Sharman

Islamic Museum HDR by Kalifa Al-Misnad

Cute Little Girl by Rajsekhar Paul

Aqua Velet by Shiva Sharma

Sunset by Sam Agnew

Camel Racing by Stuart Frizzel

Doha Road by Kenji Punzalan

Islamic Arts Museum by Kenji Punzalan

"Frame and Fortune... Doha!" by Angelino Bantay Jr.

Camel Market by George Lewis

Doha by Tammi Moe

Dhow by Thomas Watkins

Aspire Park By Mirna Mahjudin

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Wealthy Fish

In Oil and Gas rich Qatar even the fish are wealthy - in fact they even have their own wealth department, which is probably why this Lobster is so happy!

Original Lobster image by Sr Curran.

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Images of Qatar: Qatar Photo Comp Update

After the first week of our competition we have already had some excellent images submitted. Choosing the best will be a difficult job, and I am very glad that I am not the judge!

We have published a small selection of the images here. Remember that there is still plenty of time to enter the competition, and a great selection of prizes to be won - ranging from a free HDR download to a Japanese Kagura mask.

Also see our article on Desert Photography by our judge Abigail Harman

The Islamic Museum at night by Shabbir Husain

Al Kharrarah sunset by Roger Clark

Doha Port by Dwi Yudianto

Qatar Falconry by Faizal Duta

Qatar National Day by Ashish Balsawer

Qatar Cranes by Tevfik Oguzhan Yilmaz

Dune Tracks by Shabbir Husain

Trio for Comp by Jacquie Mecklenborg

You may also be interested in seeing how the Japan Visitor competition is panning out: Japan Photo Competition.

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Charming Foul Food

This brand of beans always gives me a laugh...

Also see: Pregnant Chicken | Private Palace | Sealine Sign | Moving Stationary | Construction Sign

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Islamic Arts Museum at Night

The Qatar Islamic Arts Museum is pictured here at night with the Qatar flag fluttering over a dhow in the foreground.

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Qatar National Day Celebrations

I expected things to be quiet this morning, it being a holiday, but the locals were out in force, purple flags fluttering from their cars and heads sticking out of car tops.

Huge TV screens flickered on the Corniche, Arabic music blared out in the pleasant balmy sun and a regatta made the most of the pleasant weather.

Later that night we passed aspire tower, once again lit up in a blaze of colours and with more huge tv screens, presumably featuring the special National Day TV channel set up for the days events.

At nine we pulled up on the waste ground close to the recently closed Rydges hotel. We waited for an hour, admired the laser show but were finally deciding it was time to call it a day when the huge fireworks display finally went off.


Also see: Qatar National Day on the website, or our photo stream on Flickr.

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The Islamic Museum: First Visit

Today I finally got to see the inside of the Doha Islamic Museum - and was seriously impressed. While I appreciate the exterior of the Museum and the interplay of the shadows on its complex geometric blocks, it doesn't really take my breath away.

The interior, on the other hand, is breathtaking, and must be a photographer's dream. As you enter, the atrium opens up high above you, with lines everywhere merging into each other, while a huge window offers a superb view of the Doha skyline.



We chose to limit our visit, viewing a selection of the artefacts rather than trying to take in everything in one go. We have the luxury of being able to make return visits!

Interactive Media

After entering the building, grab yourself an interactive media player. (You'll need to submit your id until you return it.) Along with an audio introduction, there are numbers to go with around 30 of the exhibits - when you enter these numbers you can hear the story behind it.

Exhibits

Ancient Quran

There were several exhibits that caught my eye on this first trip. One was an ancient Quran - thought to have been written only a few years after the death of Mohammed.
The survival of the manuscript was due to the nature of its parchment - vellum, made of animal skin scaped clean.

The Quran was not compiled until after the death of Mohammed, and this Quran must have been one of the first - perhaps compiled from the recitations of the Mohammed's followers. To be in the presence of such history felt awesome.

Christian Calligraphy

Another fascinating piece was a painting of the Virgin Mary with a young baby Jesus. This may seem like a strange exhibit for an Islamic Musuem, until you read the calligraphy: There is No God but God: the first part of the Muslim profession of faith. The painter had been a Christian, albeit one strongly influenced by Islamic calligraphy.

In adding the calligraphy, he expresses a core belief of both religions - that there is only one God.

The Book of Secrets

The third one which really intrigued me was the Book of Secrets - about the Results of Thoughts. This gives the lie to our belief that mechanical genius is a recent thing, with writer, Andluscian engineer Al-Muradi, describing more than 30 machines of ancient times, from war machines to water clocks. Much of the 11th century book has been decoded by a team of scientists, and an interactive digital version of the book is available for browsers. The book itself will be on exhibit until February 2009.



Also see:

The Book of Secrets: DecodingTheHeavens.com

Opening Hours

The Museum will be closed on the first day of Eid and Xmas.

Sunday: 10.30 - 17.30
Monday: 10.30 - 17.30
Tuesday: Closed
Wednesday: 10.30 - 17.30
Thursday: 10.30 - 17.30
Friday: 14:00 - 20:00
Saturday: 10:30 - 17:30


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Famous Visitors

It seems that Qatar is gaining more and more recognition, with a string of celebrities visiting the country. In addition to a lot of local royalty, the opening of the Islamic Museum also saw De Niro, who will be returning with a duplicate of the Tribeca Film Festival next November.

World Leaders are arriving for a major UN conference - including one Qatar probably won't be boasting about: Robert Mugabe. They will be rather more pleased that the top two tennis players in the world, Federer and Nadal, will be coming here in 2009 to battle out the Qatar Open. In fact, it is perhaps a mark of how much attention that Qatar - and the Islamic Museum - is getting at the moment that hardly anyone noticed the four famous visitors below.

Original Image By Amar

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