Discover Qatar Part 2

 Today we have a full day tour booked of the northern and western parts of Qatar. Yesterday was pretty much the east and Doha centre so there is a fair bit to see today. We started the tour at the Horizon Manor Hotel where our guide Sajid was waiting with a Toyota Landcruiser . We set off and our first stop was Al Khor Harbour, where the fish markets are. In the past this was an important centre for pearl divers and fishermen but is now primarily the fish market. It is amazing to see the range of fish and crustaceans available and price is a lot cheaper than Australian seafood prices.



We set off again after a brief visit to the market and went out to the Mangroves where a board walk has been set up to protect them from human interference. It was amazing to see how alive the mangrove is, and to begin with, the further we went in the bigger the fish were. There is a reasonable walk to the end of the board walk and after our recent meals, we figured we needed the exercise. 



Once again back in the car and we were heading to Al Zubara Fort. This is a UNESCO world heritage site and a visit here explains the history of the fort and its significance in Qatari culture. The outside temperature was in the low 30's but inside the fort it was surprisingly cool. The adobe walls are over 30cm thick, and have ventilation holes throughout. The bug zapper was going overtime there as the flies started to congregate. 



From here it was a short drive to see some sculptures in the desert. These are relatively new but use reflection and angles to its advantage. The sculptures are called "Shadows travelling on the sea" by Olafur Eliasson and they  create the illusion of perfect circles using mirrors. From a distance it just looks like some kind of futuristic shelter but it is not until you are underneath that you get the full effect. It was definitely worth the detour.




We then went out through Al Shamal to see the ruins of a traditional Qatari village. Sadly western influence and rubbish from central Asia seem to make its way to the beaches in Qatar. The Qatari government are considering the use of trash nets to combat the ever increasing problem. This whole area was under water at some stage and this was evident in the adobe used to render the houses. This also led us to the Zekreet Penninsula and the unusual rock formations created by wind and rain erosion over the years.







Our last stop was another sculpture in the desert called 'East West, West East' by Richard Serra. Four  14m high steel plates are perfectly aligned over a distance of 1 km It appears the steel plates are solid so the weigh alone would be enormous, let alone setting them in a foundation in perfect alignment. To be honest I didn't see the artistic value in it, but as I tell everyone, Art is subjective. 


This brought our day tour to an end and we needed to make our way home as the light was getting low. Back at the hotel we decided to go the the Desert Rose Cafe at the souk Wakif, for dinner again. We were not going to order the mixed grill this time so ordered smaller meals. It was still too much for us, but it was delicious. Maybe third time lucky! Time now to walk it off and get an early night... we hope.

Day 21 Doha Discovered

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