أ.ن. مرحبًا, أهلاً, كيف حالك؟ (تستخدم كتحية غير رسمية) !Howdy from Qatar

And the adventure has finally begun!!

I left Houston on a 14.5 hour flight to Qatar at 8:40PM. I flew Qatar Airways, which is by far the nicest airline I've ever been on.  Now only did each person have their own TV, but the TVs were touch screen and I watched The Hunger Games and Safe House, which are still really new in the United States. There are also lots of TV show options and games too. We were served dinner and breakfast on the plane- kind of funny that we got breakfast about an hour before we got off the plane (about 7:30PM Qatar time). I had a free glass of red wine with dinner. I told myself it was to help me fall asleep, but if they were offering free wine I was going to partake! 

Menu I "stole" from the plane. 

I arrived at the Doha International Airport last night around 8:30PM (12:30PM Texas time) and it was a whopping 95 degrees outside and muggier than you can imagine. I keep reminding myself it is a good thing I was raised in Texas and that I'm slightly used to this kind of heat and humidity!  From the plane I took a bus along with the other passengers to customs and baggage claim where, thankfully, my supervisor had arranged a service to help me with my paperwork and baggage collection.   One of my coworkers at the Qatar Foundation, was kind enough to pick me up from the airport and take me to find something to eat. 

When my coworker asked me if I was hungry I told her yes, but not to ask me what I wanted to dinner because I had no idea what was even available! We stopped at a souk (outdoor market) and I got shawarma for 6QR. (The Qatari currency is called Qatari Riyals and 3.64 QR is 1 American dollar.) It was delicious and a great introduction to some yummy local food.  We took a few minutes to walk around the souk.  There are lots of fabric stores (and lots of white fabric) because it is really common for people to get their abayas/thobes tailored for themselves.  Men wear white thobes and women wear black abayas.  Abayas are the full length robes and just the head covering is called a hijab.  I'm definitely brushing up on some terminology while I'm here.  

My apartment. View from the front door.
Door on the left leads to my bedroom.
Kitchen is to the left of the table. Living
room is huge and has a TV. 

After grabbing dinner she took me to my apartment.  The residence halls on campus are the former faculty apartments that have been repurposed.  Since I am an intern I have my own apartment with a living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom.  It's really nice and makes me wish I had a place this spacious when I lived in the residence halls at A&M.  Currently the Qatar Foundation is building new residence halls that will open sometime next school year. They are multi-billion dollar buildings and look really awesome from the outside.  I've been told I'll get a tour before I leave.  When the buildings are complete, the Qatar Foundation will hold a record for the most Platinum Certified LEED buildings in the world! 

I quickly settled into my apartment and unpacked a little before I went to bed. I was absolutely exhausted from so much travel.  Unfortunately I woke up at about 3:30 in the morning and couldn't fall back asleep. The sun rose this morning at 4:30!! Thankfully Megan (my best friend/roomie/"sister") talked me into a sleeping mask so the sun won't disturb me and hopefully when I get over this jet lag I'll be able to sleep past sunrise.  I was surprised wasn't awoken by the morning call to prayer, which I thought I would hear from my room. 

My bedroom. While I am the only one
in it there are two empty bunk beds.

I spent this morning unpacking some more and Skyping with friends from back home- it's always good to hear a familiar voice.  At noon I met up with my two coworkers and we went for lunch at the Student Center. I got lunch from the buffet line- chicken cordon bleu, rice, and some veggies.  There is a Papa John's in the Student Center but I'm going to do my best to hold out and not eat a lot of American food here. I really want to get the full experience and that means trying new things!! (I'm sure my parents are laughing while reading that!) At 1:00 I attended my first staff meeting and it was really great and I learned a lot, which I wasn't expecting in a staff meeting. We talked a lot about learning organizations, what they are and how the Qatar Foundation fits into that description.  

After my meeting I got a tour of the building that I will be working in and got to see my office- it's huge and I've got a great view (pictures to come). Then my coworkers took me on a driving tour of campus- way too hot to walk it all! Afterwards I came back and got some logistical stuff figured out for the summer 2 class that I am taking online through Texas A&M and then took a 30 minute nap before another I sat in on the RA meeting. Afterwards my coworker took me to the grocery store- "LuLu Express" and I got some of the essentials. They have a much better selection of food that I recognize than I expected. They even have peanut butter which was impossible to find in Italy! Jess then took me on a quick tour of the Education City Club House that is available to all Qatar Foundation staff. It's got a rec center, a pool, some sports courts, a restaurant, and a place to get massages. Apparently there are hour-long massages for about $15- you can bet I will be getting one! 

I made my first meal today in my kitchen! Thank goodness I wasn't relegated to only a microwave and mini-fridge like I was in the Texas A&M res halls freshman and sophomore year! I made pasta with ragu sauce- comforts of home. 

Tomorrow I am looking forward to taking a million pictures, meeting with the VPSA, and getting the ball rolling on my orientation project. I am having an amazing time so far and I can't wait to share more with all of you.