Yes, This Is Real Life Part 6: Birds in Doha

 

 

Preview: Yes, This Is Real Life

Part 1: Location, Location, Location

Part 2: Brits In Beantown

Part 3: Shades On, Wheels Up

Part 4: Welcome to Ghostport 

Part 5: When You Layover During Ramadan

 

In each of these adventures, there comes a point when I wax poetic about the experience of travel.  So, buckle up, because here it comes....in a minute, once I deal with some logistical preliminaries.  

As discussed in the last post, we spent the first nighttime layover in Doha at the Grand Hyatt.  It's a beautifully sited property at the entrance to The Pearl.  The Pearl, for those who 1, haven't been to Doha, and 2, care, is a man-made land form (I guess is what you'd call it) that spirals out into the gulf.  It is still under construction, if the huge cranes are anything to go by, but is home to a ring of high rise commercial and residential buildings, followed by even more outlying 'islands' that, as far as I can surmise, look to be exclusive residences.  It's best viewed from the air, but the 'gateway' is fairly impressive from the ground.

 Thanks to hotel status, we landed a suite with a great view for the night.  

 Now, let me just back up and say that I had my reservations about trying to check into a hotel in Doha with a person of the opposite sex who I'm not married to.  It might be silly, but the blaring notice that a marriage certificate is required for Qataris gave me pause.  I'm on a mileage run, and ain't nobody got time to spend with the morality police between flights.   

As it worked out, there were no questions, and hardly any side-eye.  I was pleasantly surprised after my last major foray into this town, wherein I learned that at night most people don't walk the streets, especially single western female types.  I didn't feel unsafe really, just out of place.  

After we over indulged at Iftar, and spent a few minutes relaxing at the man-made 'beach' out front, we retired to the room, and realized it was about noon at home and there probably wasn't any sense in trying to adjust to the local time.   So, what're a couple of mileage runners to do?

Step 1- Open the bottle of wine the manager left for us to thank us for our brand loyalty. 

Step 2- Drink it & converse all night about the thrill of flying around the world. 

And on this point I need to expand (you were warned) because there's something existentially beautiful about mileage running.  When you're planning the average, or even above average trip, there is generally an accepted purpose that you try to fulfill- Wine tasting in Napa, or skiing the alps.  You start there, and build the necessary plans around it.  You have a goal, you meet it, you are victorious.  

However, a mileage run is a trip in reverse.  The plans come first.  And I don't mean the plans to go on a snorkel cruise, and then a romantic sunset dinner.  I mean the airline tickets, the layovers, and the one nights hotels- what is usually the most pedantic part of the plans.  The outcome of this is that you aren't beholden to preconceptions, or to anything at all.  If you go and come back, mission accomplished.  Everything else is gravy. 

Which means that, when you and your friend just spend the entire night's layover watching rugby, talking about nothing, drinking wine covertly, and then watching the sun come up over Doha, it's perfect.  There's no sense that you were supposed to do a single thing differently. 

So when at 4am, you start to hear bird calls as you stand looking out from the darkened balcony of your hotel, and your friend says he didn't think there were birds in Doha.....you just laugh and have another drink.  Because sunrise will come all too soon over this expensively camouflaged desert. 

Because yes, there are birds in Doha, as there are the world over.  And yes, they wake up at 4 am, as they do the world over.  And it's beautiful to realize this, when for once your only purpose in life is to know that there are still a few universal truths....and then to you yourself to fly on to your next stop along the way. 

 

And that, is what's up next...

 

Part 6- A Stop in Sri Lanka: Dealing with Dragons or, Ceylon With a Side of Naptime
 

Yes, This Is Real Life Part 5: When You Layover During Ramadan....

The main lobby of the Grand Hyatt.  We've arrived.

The story so far:

Preview: Yes, This Is Real Life

Part 1: Location, Location, Location

Part 2: Brits In Beantown

Part 3: Shades On, Wheels Up

Part 4: Welcome to Ghostport

By way of disclaimer, I fully admit to knowing little to nothing about the tradition of Ramadan outside of some rudimentary comparative religion classes in college, and a couple of weeks of googling what it would be like to be a foreign traveler here during the holy month.  Any of my thoughts/observations are purely based on my outside perspective as a mileage runner spending a weekend bouncing around Middle East airports, and may be completely incorrect. 

On arrival in Doha, the flight crew made an announcement about the holiday, informing passengers against eating, drinking, or smoking in public spaces during the daylight hours.  The airport lounges also were not serving any alcohol at any time, though they did have their regular food service running during the daytime.  We didn't stop at the proper arrivals lounge though, since we had the Grand Hyatt waiting.

When in Doha- Ramadan tent.

Getting into town, the combination of the oppressive summer heat, political travel restrictions, and daytime fasting have made this city feel abandoned.  We checked at the Hyatt in before sundown, and the hotel was quiet.  What's more, almost all of the restaurants were closed.  They had one 'international' restaurant open called 'Santa Monica' which, to a Mileage Runner from LAX, just seems wrong.  However, there was another option....

Having realized about a month ago that we'd be doing our Doha layovers during Ramadan, we decided to make the best of it and take advantage of the lavish evening meals that the bigger hotels here in Doha hold nightly.  They put out huge banquet spreads- multiple salad bars, hot bars, carving stations, and especially over the top dessert bars.  Think 8 flavors of ice cream, pies 3ft across, and chocolate fountains.  They generally have two sittings- around 8pm, and a later time around 10 that goes until 1 or 2 am.  They set up special dining areas in a tent outside, complete with uplighting and music.  Needless to say, we each had several plates and made the most of the experience.

Needless to say, I was glad that the Hyatt also had an impressive gym and pools, both indoor and outside.  However, they were doing some promotional photo shoots of some kind outside, and so we were relegated indoors to swim.

Back up to the gym for a moment though.  I actually went on arrival and actually managed to make myself get a good workout.  (You may applaud here) This being Qatar, they have a separate gym and spa area reserved for women only.  Now, this isn't the norm in the west, but I will note that the other part of the gym was co-ed, so women weren't excluded.  I expected the ladies part to be small, or lacking in equipment, but OH MAN was I wrong.  It was full service, and as the rest of Doha was, empty.  There was even an expansive water spa with steam and sauna.  I could get used to this. 

After that, I felt pretty justified in enjoying my Iftar feast.  It was also fun to be out late (read all night) and to watch the city come alive (or as alive as it was going to get under the circumstances).  By the time we left the tent, the lobby area was full of people relaxing after the meal, and the hookah smoke was thick in the air.  We didn't' go that far down our 'when in Doha' path, have to leave something for the future. 

Up next- We stay up to see the sunrise, and the true meaning of mileage running is understood as we ask the existential question: Are there birds in Doha?

(With a hook like that, how can you not keep reading??)

~CruisingAltitude