←→Reporting from Qatar

Posted Tuesday, June 12th, 2007 · Permalink

I’m currently at Doha International Airport, just south of the capital of Qatar. It’s my first time in the Middle East and, despite it only being an hour layover, it really is a fascinating place to be.

Dawn Above the Middle East, Iran

I landed just before 6 o’clock in the morning, local time. Qatar Airways was fantastic. We were transported by bus to the main terminal, and so I just a few breaths of genuine Qatar air. And even before 6 in the morning, this stuff is hot. Another something that had slipped my general understanding is that Doha lies on the edge of a desert. Not like those in California. I mean a real desert like those in the Nights of Arabia.

It’s also the first airport where I’ve witnessed Islam being practiced in very visible, open rooms along the sides of the main terminal. Great views of the surrounding areas. And it has free Wi-Fi. But the bathrooms are disgusting.

Question to Mr Oil Sheik: If you make such a great airline, beutiful cities, and free Wi-Fi, why can’t you go that extra step to profide decent bathrooms?

In any case, I’m hoping to compile a short little presentation of my experiences flying the Amsterdam-Doha-Ho Chi Minh City route. Next stop: Vietnam!

Filed under Asia, On the Road, Qatar.

Responses feed4 Responses ↓

  • 1ourman // June 12th, 2007 at 4:32 pm

    Ha…the bathrooms won’t seem so bad when you get to Vietnam.

    I’m jealous that you are on your way. I miss the place more than I ever thought I would.

  • 2Timen // June 12th, 2007 at 7:39 pm

    I’m not kidding. Save the few bad ones that most Westerners never even see, Vietnam’s doing okay compared.

  • 3Pickled Eel // June 18th, 2007 at 1:33 pm

    Spend any time behind the scenes in the Qatar Airways HQ (just over the road from the terminal) or airside with any of the managers and captains and you will understand the state of the toilets are the least of your worries. Qatar Airways are the airline you fly in that region when you have absolutely no other choice. The odds are stacked against you. That there has not been a major mishap is probably due only to the professional crews and their bullet proof Airbuses. I don’t offer this up in jest, on on the basis of hearsay but from first hand experience.

  • 4Villa Rental // July 9th, 2007 at 6:34 am

    Thats a good question you posed, but I guess with all places that you go, you won’t find everything just the way you would like them to be.

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