These past few weeks in Qatar have changed and developed my perception of the Middle East and the world in general. I have learned just how full of kindness the people are here in the Middle East. Everyone I have met has been so hospitable and friendly and so proud of their country. Since my first blog post, I have gotten the chance to meet and become friends with a few of the students at Texas A&M Qatar, and they are some amazing people that I hope to keep in touch with even beyond the conclusion of this trip.
In addition to the wonderful people, this country is also filled with amazing sights to see and things to do. My favorite thing we did is the desert safari where we got to go dune bashing in 4x4s and then ride dune buggies. This experience was so much fun and something that you can not miss while visiting Qatar. See my previous blog post for more about this ;). Number two would definitely have to be going on a Dhow Cruise. The Dhow cruise was a truly phenomenal experience. It began with all of us loading onto a traditional wooden boat and sailing into the Arabian Sea. A short trip (and photoshoot later), we anchored and were allowed to jump into the ocean. We flipped and dived into the refreshing Arabian water, which was so salty that it was really easy to float in. After we were done swimming, we dried up and got ready to eat a scrumptious fresh-cooked BBQ dinner. We spent the rest of the night blasting all sorts of music- from Indian to Arabic to Dance to Salsa to Country (we have a very diverse group!) and dancing the night away. Truly an unforgettable experience I will cherish forever.
Number three on the list of things to do in Qatar would have to be Souq Waqif. Souq Waqif is a market that sells handcrafted goods, foods, arts, pets, gifts, and absolutely anything your heart desires. You can easily spend an entire day getting lost through the intricate alleyways of the souq and bargaining with the local vendors to get really good prices on cool gifts to bring back home. One of the members of our group dropped a large amount of money on fake Rolex watches to resell back in College Station. Talk about businessmen. I visited Souq Waqif six times on this trip and never got tired of it.
Number four would be visiting a mosque. Islam is such an inspiring and amazing religion that everyone should take the time to learn about. Islam is so misunderstood and going to this mosque was very educational and eye-opening. We got to witness a call to prayer and also learn about the origins of Islam and the similarities and differences to the other Abrahamic religions. Number five on the list would be to visit a traditional camel market. This camel market was just so cool. We got to see how the camels are raised and fed and even some cute baby camels. We even got to try their fresh milk which was very warm and salty.
These five experiences can not sum up all of Qatar as there are literally hundreds of things to do in this tiny little country. I have had so much fun on this study abroad program and learned so much. I am going to miss the amazing place that is Qatar and all of the lovely people I have met. This program has taught me about open-mindedness and the kindness of the world. In the future, I hope to continue to travel and grow my global experiences in my career and personal life as we become a more globalized society. This has been such a wonderful trip that I would recommend it to anyone, and can?t wait to be back.
