The eternal cry of the traveler...

[qatarperegrine]

How, HOW did I fit all this crap in my suitcase three weeks ago?

:-(

I'm leaving for California in a little less than an hour. Here's hoping that my travel plans end up less snafued than all my friends' recent attempts to get places!

Being in Pittsburgh has been amazingly fun, and I am continually amused to meet people IRL that I had previously only known (a) through my friends (b) from their LJs and (c) from cryptic submissions to cmu-bash.

At the same time, being here made me realize something else. When I planned this trip back in August, I was desperate to be back in Pittsburgh and with my Pittsburgh peeps. It's been kind of nifty to realize that, while this trip has been fun, it has been less strictly necessary to my sanity than it seemed four months ago. I guess that means I'm happy in Doha. :-)

Comments

Hope you don't mind if I add you

[dubaiwalla.livejournal.com]

Your journal looks rather interesting.

Re: Hope you don't mind if I add you

[qatar.livejournal.com]

Yours looks very interesting, too! (Hope you make it back to Dubai for the holidays....)

Re: Hope you don't mind if I add you

[dubaiwalla.livejournal.com]

Thank you! One lives in eternal hope, etc.

[pheno-menon.livejournal.com]

interesting 2 c ur posts on the different faces of qatari living... i've lived tr all my life nearly n i realise i was beginning 2 take it 4 granted :) good stuff here!

[qatar.livejournal.com]

Thank you!!

I think Qatar would be a difficult place to live if you are Keralite. People make so many assumptions based on others' ethnicities....

[pheno-menon.livejournal.com]

on the contrary i thought it was easy living anywhere in the gulf if ur keralite.. y do u think so?

[qatar.livejournal.com]

Some of my nonwhite friends (Sri Lankan, Chinese, Indonesian, Vietnamese) have said that people treat them like... well, like they treat their maids and nannies and drivers....

[pheno-menon.livejournal.com]

well that is true... however my 18 yrs in doha (i've only been visiting since 2000) were great.

my analysis is that the south asian and south east asian expatriate communities r so large that they just form cliques and circles within themselves, so its all cool.

qatars tourism and visa policy pretty much reflects their tolerance towards other nationalities. on-the-spot visas for americans, europeans and wealthier south east asian n east asian people r readily available. for other ethnicities, its the long drawn application process and in my opinion its easier to pass a driving test in qatar than go thru the pains of a visit visa!

my dad works for an american firm, n we have a few white and arab friends... so far so good really :)