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Sunday, June 20, 2010

What happens when lightning strikes the desert?

What happens when lightning strikes the Qatar desert?


Just as rain on the sea...


Brings oysters to receive the raindrops that will grow into pearls...


So does lightning on the desert give rise to the desert delicacies known as truffles.


At least, that's what the Qatar Bedouin say.


For more information, see Fran's latest article on Desert Truffles.

Images Attribution

Pearl Image by Feminist Julie
Rain at Sea by Shellorz
Stormy Sunset by Azglenn

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Sunday, June 06, 2010

Salukis in Qatar

Salukis lounge on cushions in a majelis.
Salukis: Son of the Desert, Wind Drinker, Daughter of the Tent and Desert Eye - just some of the names the Saluki has been called by its Bedouin masters. But is it being forgotten in Qatar? Yousra finds out in her latest article for QatarVisitor.com: Salukis: The forgotten dogs.

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Saturday, June 05, 2010

Keep those wheels straight - or else!


I was in line at the basement of the City Centre, waiting to pay my wife's parking fine.

(If you need to pay a fine, by the way, and are having problems doing it online, this is a quick and fairly hassle-free way to do it.)

I started chatting to the ladies in front of me, and told them about the fine.

"Ooh, you've got to be careful," one said. "Last time we were here the guys who wash the car said the police had come and booked every car which didn't have their wheels straight."

I was 90% sure this was rubbish, and the car washers had either been winding up the ladies or there had been a major failure of communication.

But I decided to ask some Qataris what they thought.

"Most police won't bother you," said Ahmed. "But you know, there are some crazy cops. If you don't park your car straight they will come and book you."

"Whaaat," said his friend, who was a copper. "That's not true. It doesn't happen like that."

The conversation quickly moved into rather lively Arabic - I suspect Ahmed may have been booked recently and was still feeling sore about it.

I remain sceptical about whether you would get a parking fine for not parking straight. But at QAR500 a pop, I'm not going to take any chances.


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