A is for Anthropomorphism? Oh, right....A is for Apple.

Well, I survived my first week of teaching Kindergarten, including parent/teacher night. My students are very young (most of them are still 4) and many of them have never been in preschool, so we are really starting from the beginning. I guess my secondary English books will remain unpacked for the time being. 

It’s starting to cool off a little bit in Doha. This means we are not hitting the 40 degree mark everyday (just 38 or 39 degrees). We are no longer reaching the “danger zone” at school so the children can have outside recess. It also means that Will and Ben are spending a bit more time outside at home. We still go to the pool everyday, but the boys can now get out on their scooters and play at the park (there are two playgrounds on our compound). 

It actually rained a couple of days ago! Well, a little bit. Nobody in Vancouver would even have noticed these rain drops, but the story was all over the news in Doha. People tweeted photos of rain from all over the city. Our neighbour who has lived here for 10 years said he has never seen rain at this time of year. The lightning, thunder and wind only lasted an hour or so and then the sky was blue again. 

spices at the souq

There are so many activities going on here. Andy has joined a touch rugby team - they are all kiwis and most of them are teachers (at other schools). There are drop in programs for all sports at the College nearby. And there is always a dinner or a party with friends. Most of the Canadians we’ve met are from Newfoundland, as their connection is with CNA-Q (College of the North Atlantic in Qatar); we have found everyone to be very friendly, like we’ve known them for years. 

For the past two Friday nights, we’ve gone to the Souq Waqif, the “standing market” near the waterfront. http://www.bbc.com/travel/feature/20110802-souq-waqif-dohas-resilient-labyrinthine-market  It’s described as a labyrinth of shops, stalls, restaurants and cafes. The site is a century old and is where locals and Bedouins bought and sold fish and livestock, but the Souq that we visit today is only five years old. It was rebuilt with cobbled streets and traditional architecture and so it has an “old” feel. The boys love looking in the shops and stalls and they seem to love the busy feel it has. We met one of Will’s classmates there last week and she spent a great deal of time teaching Will and Ben how the shisha pipe works! http://www.qatarvisitor.com/index.php?cID=412&pID=1430 

Chey teaching the boys how to smoke shisha

YVR -> DOH = 11729 kilometers or 7288 miles

After so much uncertainty with visas and flights before we left Canada, our experience so far in Doha has been fantastic. Our flights were great and the boys did really well; Benjy kept saying we were in “space” and he entertained the other passengers saying this was the “greatest day of his life.” He’s been on quite a few planes, but you never would’ve guessed it! We were met by a meet-and-greet service (highly recommended if flying into Doha), as the line ups are very long at the airport.

We had two nights in a hotel with an incredible buffet (Andy was happy!), but my favourite moment from the hotel is the boys being so tired and jet lagged that when they watched Disney Fairies (the only choice!), it took about 10 minutes before they realized it was in Arabic! After all the disappointment of late visas and flights, we were very pleasantly surprised by our villa on the Canadian compound. It's a big house with lots of living space, three big bedrooms, three bathrooms and nice furniture. We have a big outside courtyard area and we even have a tree! The clubhouse, playground, gym and pool are all excellent. There's even a little shop. Our compound is for families so there are lots of children, many of whom attend the same school as the Will and Ben. Everyone is very friendly and welcoming; there have already been several parties and dinners. The boys feel settled in their room especially now that our “soupcases” (Benjy) are all unpacked. 

                                                       The pool at our compound

Will loves his class and his Grade 1 teacher. His favourite subjects are art, music and Arabic. There is a great playground (although they can’t go on it after about 10am when it hits 40 degrees). Ben loves his Kindergarten teacher too and he has adjusted very well to school life. Andy and I have had a week at school and it has been challenging for us. We knew there had been a lot of recent upheaval in the administration offices, but the changes that have happened in the five days we’ve been at work are major. Andy’s timetable has changed several times, teaching assignments have changed, but I suppose my changes are most significant. Without going into the details, the school was not given approval to hire a second Kindergarten teacher which was needed. The class size was 20, which isn’t huge, but the classrooms are very small (about half the size of a regular classroom). The teacher had trouble moving around the tables and chairs to be able to help all of the kids. Obviously, this isn’t ideal for Ben, his classmates or the teacher....so....I volunteered to teach Kindergarten. Back to my primary training! My first day is tomorrow and I’m really looking forward to it.  

                                                                      First day of school 

Lots to come in my next blog: the heat, the shopping experience, the rugby club, the souq, the driving, and of course how I am surviving in Kindergarten!

On Our Way...Finally!

Nothing like getting 24 hours notice to get on a plane with two kids and 10 suitcases. Finally leaving for Doha early tomorrow morning. Here we go!

YYJ ---> YYZ --> YUL --> DOH

Current weather in Doha.

All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go....Yet.

Traveling to and living in different countries with our children is something Andy and I have wanted to do since the boys were born. As a family we've lived in New Zealand and Canada....next stop Doha, Qatar. The boys are excited about our move to the Middle East. Will is going into Grade 1 and is most exited about trying new foods and Ben is excited about starting Kindergarten and having popsicles every day! 

We are supposed to be there already (two weeks ago, actually), but we are still waiting in Canada. The delays in the immigration office were due to Ramadan and Eid holiday closures; we are fully aware that this is just a preview of more waiting in our future! Three of the our four visas have been approved for some time now, but apparently Will’s visa wasn’t done at the same time. After finally getting word that he had a visa a few days ago, we expected plane tickets to follow the next day. Alas, no tickets and it’s the weekend again in Doha. School starts in a few days but we won’t be there for the first day, but hopefully it won't be too long before we're on a plane. Inshallah!

Our ten suitcases are packed and we're ready for our adventure!