QATAR

What is today? I think it is Friday April 25. I flew from DC, leaving Dulles on Qatar Airlines at 9:50 p.m. and I have arrived at the Doha Airport in Qatar and it is Friday night here at 7:30 pm. I leave at 9 pm for New Delhi and will arrive around 3:30 am on Saturday morning. I will highly recommend Qatar. They are reported to have the best Business Class in the business and I admit it was pretty good. I missed dinner, went to sleep in my flat bed and pajamas (yep, they give you pajamas) and slept a good 6-7 hours. Probably snored, but no one poking me or telling me to turn over. (I miss that by the way.) Anyway, I am currently sitting in the lounge of Qatar Airlines. It is like a big expensive hotel lobby, but with all the food and drink you want, good stuff like dried apricots and dates, along with more traditional western fare.

Qatar is a small island nation that sits just off the eastern (?) shores of Saudi Arabia. Stable monarchy I think. Nobody marching in the streets, yet. People are very nice. I want to say that Qatar has escaped the sort of suppression of women’s rights that exist in Saudi and some other smaller Emirate nations, but I speak from very little real experience. Just the impression that I got from the very….very talkative lady from Canada who sat, or slept next to me on the flight. She was very friendly. Husband was an accountant and they had lived in Doha for 13 years. I will post a pic with this if I get a chance.

Now it is off to India where the people are many, the services are few and life swirls around inspite of the dramatic differences in social class. Ah the Hindu’s you gotta love em.