Desert Doha

Last night...and an evening trip to the desert. Our driver (after stopping to let air out of the tyres) took us to a camp where we ran on the sand-dunes, rode a camel, ate shishkebabs & smoked sheesha. Daylight probably would have been better, but still a great way to spend the final night...before heading to the airport at 330am!
Also a photo of the Beach Volleyball (also a Canadian Crew), and the 'Wushu'.

Souq Shopping

If you need spices, or a falcon........

Birthday Bazaar

Thanks for all the birthday wishes!

I had a fabulous day. A short day of track cycling, followed by a trip to the Fabulous Old Souq (markets) in Doha, with Larry, Zac, Todd, Amy & Julie.
What a magnificent place. A large outdoor sandy path, then many narrow hallways containing vendor after vendor. Anything from Cloth, to hundreds of fragrant spices, and even falcons!

Afterwards we sat on a deck, eating kebabs....and smoking Strawberry Sheesha from a giant pipe, while we watched the locals, all of course in traditional robes & Burka's, do their shopping.
Very difficult to take photos, as it is offensive to take photos of the locals...especially the women.

There are men offering to cart your purchases around in wheelbarrows, and donkeys giving children rides. I can't wait to get back. Many of the crew have bought gold and spices etc.
All in all, it was a fabulous birthday.

Some of the sports here are also amazing, in particular Wuchu (a type of kung foo), Kabaddi (a type of tag)...and my favourite: Sepaktakraw (volleyball played only with the feet & head).
More later....

Damp Doha

It's raining here in Qatar more over the last 2 weeks than it has in 10 years...breaking all kinds of records! The roads have flooded, our windows are leaking in the media towers (not surprising) and the control room room for our Beach Volleyball crew sank 12 inches, until they could re-enforce it with some poles!
Just above the television compound at Aspire, there are huge cracks in the cement, that seem to be widening! (see photos!).

Took a taxi to the Corniche last night, and ate at a fabulous restaurant....seafood, indian and Lebanese food. On the walk back, we were entertained by some fireworks just off the Corniche.
Got a rather wild ride back to the media village with 2 local qatari men in a van that were passing by! (but that's another story....)

Included a photo of my english/arabic keyboard! (click to enlarge),
and our (tired) tech support guys!!

Aspire Action

Qatari Questions

Day 3 in Doha. Still a little jet lagged, and staying in a media village that is only half finished, but it is still great to see so many familiar faces from all over theworld.

Orientation prepared us for many of the cultural do's/dont's, but still very surprised to see so many women walking around in full length, face-covering burkas.

First night here I went with Aussie Dave to see Qatar play United Arab Emirates at the Al-Sadd Football Stadium. Great game: 4-1 to Qatar. Taxis of course no-where to to found afterwards, so after a lengthy walk, a local (Indian) familyfinally stopped and gave us a ride!

Now that we're well into setup at the track cycling, we can see how amazing the Aspire Centre actually is. It's the largest sports centre in the world, housing 9 venues including our velodrome.

Picture are: view from media village P01 (my room), and football spectators.

Destination Doha

Tomorrow I leave for Doha, Qatar to work for the Host Broadcaster on the 2006 Asian Games. It's been a while in coming....but finally I'm excited, and can't wait to be off.

Packing is a bit of a dilemma. It's Spring in Doha, but expected temperatures range between 20 and 30. In consideration of the local culture however, we have been discouraged from wearing: sandals, anything above the knee, anything shoulderless, tightly fitting, bright or low cut.
Unfortunately that pretty much discribes my entire 'usual' summer wardrobe right there!

As part of the DAGSB Uniform that we are required to wear, the women on the crew have been provided with a Shella (head covering). Apparently not required in the media towers or work venues, but should be on-hand if we are sightseeingand wander into a religious area.
Other tips we have been giving: Display no affection in public, showing the bottom of the foot is considered extremely offensive, carry toilet paper with you, do not use what may appear to be a urinal (probably a station for washing the head prior to prayer), and of course your left-hand should alway be used with caution!

There are 70 or so Canadians covering 3 venues. Not to mention a handful of Aussies I know that will bethere also....so I'm hoping to grab a social drink (or 2) in the Aussie bar that Dave has told me about!
I should go pack, I hope to blog while I'm away, depending on internet access....so come back often!
You can check out the official Doha Asian Games at:
http://www.dohaasiangames.org/

When It's Raining....

You can play hide'n'seek in your room, kiss the cat, dissect a pomegranate in a tutu, or just cuddle up with a friend on the couch and watch TV!

Snowstorm Aftermath

In the past few days we've enjoyed collecting snowballs, hugging a snowman, and trying hard to toboggan in snow that was just a little too deep! We also had a ton of fun at the opening night of Bright Nights at Stanley Park. (click to enlarge)

Things are Strange in the West....

Yikes....November in Vancouver has been a series of wind and rain storms, that have caused power outages, flooding, and a boil-water advisory that lasted a week. (just lifted today!) Now....a snow storm over the last 48 hours has dumped 20-50cm of snow on the Greater Vancouver area. Downed trees and power lines, disrupted ferries & flights, pile-ups on the highways, and closed schools. All this followed by a predicted cold-snap tomorrow....with frost-bite warnings, and hazardous driving conditions on icy streets. To make things worse....they have been experiencing higher than average temperatures in the East! Qatar is looking warm and welcoming next week!

Boo.....a Caterpillar !

Halloween party-time, and gearing up for trick-or-treating with Dad.

Pumpkins, Pumpkins, Pumpkins

Lily & Makena having fun at a Pumpkin Patch in Richmond, and posing with her decorated pumpkins as well as the jack'0'lantern carved at preschool.

Yee Ha!

Southlands Country Fair (on a soggy day!), and a cowgirl that is very reluctant to be photographed...

Kamloops Wedding

Lily & Abby having fun at Christine's (Jasons cousins) wedding in Kamloops.
Not even the rain could dampen the fun, and Lily danced up a storm on the dance floor long after her bedtime!

A Huge Milestone

Thursday, September 7th.....day one of preschool !