day One

We arrived in a fog - both literally and figuratively. After 36 hours of traveling, I was really tired. Our huge airplane was packed, but the majority of the passengers were transferring to other planes headed for India. The airport in Qatar is brand new, shining, clean and very modern. There were no lines for immigration and all we showed were passports. The signs in the airport read, "Arab Pride" and men and women were dressed in traditional garb. Women were in black, covered. Men were in white robes with red and white checked head scarfs. We chose the "nothing to declare" line for customs which meant we just walked out!

A university cab driver met us and made sure we got cash from an ATM in the airport. As I said, it was foggy --- and warm. Driving through the downtown area at 7PM proved to be a challenge with traffic heavy, modern and impressive buildings all around, signs in arabic and english, and brightly colored neon lighting. We drove along the Persian Gulf before heading to our apartment near the university. It is about 20 minutes from the business district. Construction is going on everywhere - large attractive structures with tile roofs and painted concrete walls. Homes are large from what I saw. Our apartment is small. We have a compact living room with a table, 4 chairs, a sofa and a chair as well as a flat screen Sharp T.V. A hallway leads to a small kitchen with stove, refrigerator and washing machine. A bathroom is off the hallway and the hallway ends in a bedroom. I do not think anyone has lived in this apartment before we moved in. We have pots and pans and table service for 4 as well as sheets and a cover for the bed. There is also a dresser, 2 nightstands and a freestanding closet. It's very adequate. The airconditioning works just fine! There was bread, bottled water and juice as well as a bag of sugar and tea bags in the kitchen.

Dr. Haitham and his 2 daughters (Rasha and Batool) met us at the apartment to welcome us. Rasha is in 9th grade and Batool is in 10th grade. Haitham and his wife are Jordanians and both girls were raised in the U.S. -- Haitham worked at a university in Indiana and Arizona. There are 6 children in the family. They moved to Qatar 3 years ago and the children all attend a Canadian school. Rasha misses the U.S., Batool does not. Both speak American english without any accent and are delightful. Batool needed to go to Landmark to meet friends (the Walmart of Qatar), so Rasha accompanied us to the grocery store. Another adventure. I am not really sure what all I bought....Something that J. liked (free tasting in the store) and looked like yogurt but is brown and you buy it in chunks like cheese! I wasn't too brave this first time, so I stuck with fruit and vegetables that I recognized. Men and women shop at the grocery store. Again, most were in traditional dress. The cars in the parking lot were mostly SUV's, American made or luxury German cars.

I will obviously need some cooking lessons. I could tell that Rasha had no idea what to recommend since she says she can't cook. so I am hoping to meet her mother and learn some tricks. I asked her about the security guards at the grocery store. She told me they are mostly for Arabic people, to make sure that males and females are not meeting each other. Here, I thought it meant there must be a lot of crime. She assured me that westerners can do things that would not be allowed by arabs. I may be warned about those things, but not punished. No doubt, you were worried about that!

Also picked up 2 cell phones for local use. Luckily, another professor also met us and bargained with the Indian store owner for the 2 phones. Ali is his name and he is also from Jordan. He drives a brand new Mercedes, has 9 children and his wife is expecting the 10th child soon. He seems easy going and laughs at my questions. As usual, I am full of questions --- mostly basic ones that first evening! I expect I will entertain Ali with my questions and comments as the months go by. Let's hope he continues to have a sense of humor.

By the time our welcome "team" left, it was after 10PM. It was a rough first night -- which is to be expected. The mattress is as hard as rocks, so I will have to get used to that. J. was picked up by a driver at 7:30AM today, so he was up at 5AM. He's called me twice already to report that everyone at the University is friendly and kind. He is assigned an office and the books he shipped over were waiting for him. I am now a homemaker, so I am making a home. That means I am unpacking and making a list of what we need!

The sky is a clear blue this morning. A mosque is a block away. The call to prayer has just ended. It's about 70 degrees and rather quiet. I am told there are others that live in this "compound", but I haven't seen anyone yet. There is a swimming pool just next to our apartment. Walls surround the complex and a desert area is just a block away. I can see the university from the street outside our apartment! A kind and patient young man who works for the owner of this complex has answered my phone calls and turned on our hot water, showed me how to use the electricity, hooked up the cable and gave me the wireless password. I am sure he finds me rather stupid, but he covers it well and smiles a lot. His english is minimal, but better than my Arabic!

So, I have survived my first evening and my first morning.