Souq Al Wakra

I can't decide which souq is better, the souq Waqif or souq Al Wakra. May be we can not compare the two,though the fact remains that souq Al Wakra is not totally bustling with stores to shop but has plenty of restaurants and cafe's. And the biggest plus is that it has a beach. I know, beach so close to city with water so clean and good will definitely give an edge to a place .Recently we visited  Al Wakra souq. It is quite different from souq wakif. First of all it has not established itself as a shopping destination ( wholesale or retail); second, I guess it has more cafe's and restaurants  then stores, third and the most important one is that it has a beach, A beach! :D Souq Al Wakra is slowing emerging as a favored destination for one and all. It is beautifully  landscaped and gives you a feel of life that our ancestors must have lived. It is designed such that you feel like you have come to a very old village with wooden logs and walls that look like they are made up of mud and sand and the rough texture vouch  for its authenticity. The whole beauty of that place lie in its rustic design and feel. Back home we have an ancestral house so i can totally understand and relate to it. It some how reminds me of 'home'.

It has a birds market with beautiful birds of all sizes.  They are all so adorable and breathtakingly beautiful. You can adopt fishes,  tortoise, lizards( like iguana and chameleon ), cute cats and dogs. They are all up for sale. There is a store called 'aqua art', I have never ever seen more beautiful designed and kept aquariums. They have even sting rays. Other fishes being the most common clown fish, we all know it as 'Nemo' , gold fishes, Siamese fighters, yellow tangs. They also have koi fishes and an amazing collection of live corals and sea plants. We were mesmerized and was convinced that we needed a fish tank, but soon we realized that our kids are too little to let the tank and fishes alone. So sadly we moved forward.

Souq Al Wakra also has an amazing sword market, one must check it out. Apart from that it has a carpet market, falcon market and spice market. The spice market is not fully occupied, there are hardly few stores now. After looking around and a bit of shopping we moved towards the sea side. Ahhhh.... it was beautiful. On one side it is bustling with restaurants and cafe's and on the other side it was the ocean. The sand was so clean and felt great on feet. The reason is that they are maintaining it so well plus BBQ is not allowed. We love to play in the sand, make castles or draw or whatever. You can go for a swim as well. Since it's quite cold now, we stayed away from the water and were too happy  to play in the  sand. But that did not stop us from getting our feet wet. It was chilling, but fun. It was nice to sit under the umbrella on the beach chaises that has been set up for public use for free. Just lying there in total bliss and watching the evening pass by is a beautiful experience on its own. There are so many good restaurants around that it is difficult to choose one from the other. After much thought we chose a lovely place to have a nice quite dinner before hitting back home.

It was a totally a different experience of shopping and relaxing at a same place.SOuq Al Wakra have definitely got itself on the top 10 spots in our list. So with that I say goodbye for now.

MIA Park

Museum Of Islamic Art Park

Museum of Islamic Art Park ( MIA Park) is part of  Museum of Islamic Art. It is one the most beautiful parks in Doha. It is beautifully landscaped and well maintained. It offers all residents of Qatar a lot of facilities. The park is 7 meters long with museum on one side and '7' sculpture on the other.

It has a spectacular view of Doha skyline. MIA park is one of my favorite parks, it has so much to offer, one can never get bored. It has something for everyone. Park is lush green with ocean view. From almost everywhere we can see water, it's soul soothing. What else can one ask for after a tiring week of work? A visit to this park is must while one is in Doha. We regularly go to this park, one weekend or the other, it's our favorite destination. One of the reason why we totally love this park is that it is right in the city and close by. We can almost spend all day in the park.
The best time to go is early morning as we can head back before it gets hot or go by 3 or 4 pm. Evening spent in MIA park is quite gratifying. It isn't so crowded in early hours. But on the weekends it attracts huge crowd as winter market is setup. It is also a nice way to relax  {read shopping ;) } The play ground is huge so don't forget to carry ball, Frisbee, kites, kids cycle or anything you prefer. My son loves to play football so we all play for an hour or two before going for a walk.

'7' Sculpture

It's a beautiful stroll from museum to the sculpture. Path going towards '7' Sculputer with greenery on one side and water on other, it's pretty lovely.Sometimes we can spot fishes too. Make sure  you reach the sculpture before sunset, as it is a site not to be missed. Though it's not an ideal site for watching sunset but one can not ask for more.  But if you are lucky and the sky is clear, you can witness beautiful sunset. It is astonishing to watch.  After taking in the last ray of the sun we head towards the park cafe. I must tell you, this cafe has one of the best locations. It faces Doha's skyline and it feels truly peaceful to sit there with a cup of tea. Doha's skyline all lit up, speedboats creating waves that splash so close and the endless ocean ahead of that. It all looks so surreal.  With  much difficulty we move forward as our kids want to play in the play area. MIA park has 3 different play area's. One for kids aging 1 to 3 years with small swings, sand pit, small slides and other things. One is for kids from 4 years and above , it has very good slides, some swings and  sand pit. The third one is for the whole family. It is huge and has lot of different slides and things for all. All the play areas have benches so the parents can sit and watch the kids enjoy.

       

Adding to that it has bungee trampolines for all the little adventure lovers. If you are in for some cycling then there is a cycle rental as well. The whole family can go for a little cycle ride around the park. The tickets for bungee trampolines can be bought near carousel at carousel portacabin. And bicycle can be rented from the same spot.
Apart from this there are lot of activities that are planned regularly at MIA park. In winters it hosts 'Park Bazars' every weekend. You will find vendors selling varied things, and also lot of food stalls are there. Park also host open air cinema, yoga sessions, guided kayaking, paddle boats, etc.

Overall it is one heck of a park. And I would say one must keep this park as once a month visit at least for all the residents of Qatar.

P.C : Tauseef Ali

Al Jassasiya Beach

Al Jassasiya Beach

         

It is one of the beaches in Qatar that promises crystal clear water. Al Jassasiya beach is one of the most beautiful beaches in Qatar. This beach is far less crowded and on the weekdays you may not find more then few souls. My experience with this beach was overwhelming. We went in mid December, the water was really cold and the forecast said it might rain. But I wanted to go irrespective of all the facts. And trust me, it was totally worth it.

Al Jassaiya is about 90kms and it should take 1 hour or so. There are quite a few petrol stations on the way so you can fuel up, freshen up and pick up some snack. Please make sure you follow map as the roads are quite confusing. A 4*4 is recommended as you need to drive off roads as there are none. Other cars may or may not go. 

We reached Al Jassasiya beach by lunch time, it was beautiful and not too cold. So we got the opportunity to sit and have our beach lunch. Having lunch with an ocean view is something I want to do everyday, but that can happen in another parallel universe. Anyways, so after that we got busy in building sand castles with the kids. The sand was clean { clean as in no coal from BBQ’s}, and I like that.  After that we went on to explore the beach and found some amazing shells, sea stones and dry corals.
Sun was shining high so the water also didn’t feel quite cold, but it was for a swim.  The water was clean, clear, and turquoise. The view looked right out of a beautiful poster. It was picture perfect. And a sight to behold.

As the forecast said it will rain that day, the cloud started to form by the evening over  the ocean and in the distance we could see that it was raining. Clouds formation above was mesmerizing. Soon the rainbow was visible and my son was rejoiced as he had never seen a rainbow before. And to add to his excitement, another rainbow came up and his excitement doubled. It was the most beautiful site we have ever seen, it was picturesque. All of us sat there enchanted for God knows how long.
Hot steaming tea was all we need then, and I did pack it in my picnic basket, yepiii. After that we decided that it was best to head home as it will start raining anytime soon. So with eyes full of bewitching surroundings and a heart with hope to come back soon we said farewell.

Facalities:

Restrooms : this beach has nothing, so you have to go to a nearest petrol station. You might have to go about 10-15 kms for it.

Shops : there are no shops around, so carry enough water and food.

Trash cans : there are some trash cans here and there to throw the garbage in.

Best time to visit this beach is around November and February/March. Rest of the time it’s either very hot so not a good idea as there aren’t any shade around or it’s too cold.




Photo Credit : Tauseef Ali

Qatar National Library

QATAR NATIONAL LIBRARY

P.C: QNL website

Qatar National Library (QNL) in Education city opened to one and all in 2018. It is one of best libraries I have seen. It is overwhelming to see such a huge collection under one roof. QNL is one of the places I love to go and I can spend my entire day there. It offers more then one million books; one million, that's right. It has special collections , QNL Heritage library, teen library, children's library periodicals and plenty of online resources available to its members.

Getting membership is quite easy, all you need is Qatar Id. One can either log on to www.qnl.qa and sign up or go to library and sign up. The staff is very friendly and helpful, this makes the whole experience wonderful. And once you are a member you can  borrow books from the vast collection. We can borrow upto four books at a time and children can borrow upto ten books at a time for twenty one days which can be renewed online twice if the book is not on hold.
The self borrowing station and  book returns station makes borrowing and returning books quite easy. All you need to do is swipe library card or enter bar code of your library card then enter password and scan the books, and your are good to go. In case you forgot to bring your library card, no problem, you can also log in with Qatar ID.

Self Borrowing Station

Book Return Station

            

Books of all types are available. It's like an endless resource of books that will last our life time. And I couldn't be more delighted. So, apart from borrowing books, you can access the online resources, book study rooms, innovation stations, writing centers, reserve meeting and event spaces  and lot more.  There are large screens installed  in the library that have some games, so the kids can also enjoy while your browse. Plenty of computers are installed to access the online resources.There is a small cafe in the library so you can grab a coffee or snack and enjoy a book.

Since the library is so big and it has so many books, one must think that it's impossible to locate a certain book. But on the contrary, its quite easy. All you need to do is access one of the computers and go to www.qnl.qa, and in the search engine type the name of the author or the book you want. It will show all the books and tell you if its available or due. If its available, click on the book it will show  which section , which row and which shelf the book is,and you can also take a picture of the map, it helps. Yes, it sends you right where the book is.

The children's library have more than  one hundred thousand books mostly in Arabic and English, but books in some other selective language is also available. Children's library collection includes picture books, story books, chapter books, informative books, magazines, early readers, databases, DVD's, audio books and much more. Your child can sit and read or borrow or play in a small play area when mom and dad are busy finding the next book to read.

Teen library focuses on the age group of 13 to 18 and offers more then thirty thousand books. It offers graphic novels, magazines, computer labs and study area, interactive learning tool and plenty of online data. Apart from this it also offers school curriculum and college books.

                                                                                                           
QNL has also dedicated space to preserve and display its heritage, The Heritage library. It is situated in the heart of the QNL building and its one floor below . We can see the library from up and it's beautiful. The Heritage library consists of some the valuable and rare manuscripts and texts from Arabic and Islamic Civilization. It also displays globes, maps, early photography and scientific instruments. One must go to Heritage library when they are in QNL.

Overall my experience with QNL was fantastic. I found all the books I want and my kids could not be happier as they got more exciting books to read. So, all those who haven't been to Qatar national library till date, I say it's high time. Guys, you really are missing something fantastic here. All I can say is go ASAP.



Photo Credit : Tauseef Ali

Fuwairit Beach and Jebel Fuwairit Beach

Fuwairit Beach

Jebel Fuwairit

Jebel Fuwairit

Fuwairit Beach

Qatar is my home for almost 4 years now and I can’t help feeling bad as I haven’t been to fuwairit beach until recently. When I first saw the beach, I was gobsmacked. I was like ‘why on earth we never came here?’  This beach is Mauritius. Now when I say Mauritius, we all know we are talking about clean turquoise water and that’s what fuwairit beach offers you. I have seen a lot of beaches in Qatar, trust me this beach beats them all. It’s a dream beach of all the people living in Qatar. After we visited fuwairit, I absolutely refused to go to any other beach is Qatar. Name a beach in Qatar apart from fuwairit and one or two beaches {which I will talk about later sometime}, my answer will be a straight on the face “NO” {yes, in shouty capitals}. I completely refuse to go to any other beach. How can I go to any other beach which is offering murky, weedy, stony and brownish water then to a serene blue-green paradise?

Fuwairit is basically divided in 3 parts. One is the fuwairit beach, two- jebel fuwairit and three- extended part of fuwairit. We go to jebel fuwairit and the other part as it is less crowded. The main part of the beach is mostly crowded so we go past them to the other side which is far less crowded.

Jabel fuwairit is a must visit. It’s best for running if you are going early. And hardly few people are there if you love peace. It’s hilly and the view is spectacular. Once we went to jebel fuwairit before dawn. Watching sunrise from jebel juwairit’s small hills was the best experience ever. The changing colour of the sky and water was spellbinding. And it’s awesome for clicking  pictures. And we went crazy clicking pictures. After all the crazy photo bombing we sat on a lovely hill overlooking the ocean and ate a small breakfast we packed with steaming hot tea.  Ahhh… the best breakfast ever. And I want to do it again and again and again.  

Note that this part of the beach is hill side so only stones and hills next to water, so it’s not very kids friendly. For the kids to have one awesome time we moved to the other side of jebel where kids can play in sand and water. You can also see little silver fishes swimming in the shallow water. I once went on a mission to catch some but offcourse they are faster in water ;) I can’t catch them bare hands and I had no intention of hurting and hooking them with a fishing rod which I did not have anyways.

Sunrise from Jebel Fuwarait

How to get there: 
So fuwairit beach is about 100 km or so. So it will take about an hour. People living all around Doha should reach in 1 or 1 and half hours max. The road is a bit tricky, but God bless Google, we have Google Maps. So navigate and get there.

Best time to visit: 
The best time to go to beaches in Qatar is before winter starts { mostly by November} and right after winter ends {mostly by February}. Rest of the time either it’s too hot or it’s too cold.

Facilities:

No restrooms:  there is a petrol station nearby that you can use.

No Garbage cans: So please take back all your trash.

No stores: there is nothing on the beach so get enough food and water.

So plan accordingly and take everything you will need.

I have read a lot about fuwairit on different blogs, all say the beach is very clean no garbage what so ever. But I found a lot of garbage in jebel fuwairit. So it is a myth buster here. But one must keep in mind that it is fairly clean so please, please carry the trash back, don’t throw garbage in a corner or anywhere. Please let’s keep this place beautiful for ourselves if not for anyone else.


Photo Credit : Tauseef ali