Dear Doha Diary

Having found a nice little spot to spend the night, on a sandy spit, east of Al Khor, stretching out into the Arabian Gulf, I parked Grey Legs and spread out my towel.  I changed out of my cycling clothes and hung them out to dry on the handle bars. The spit was raised out of the sea with large rocks and as I relaxed after my day in the saddle, I listened to the water lapping gently and shoals of fish jumping and darting about around the surface of the ocean. The sun had now gone down and the sky was a dusky pink to violet, turning to dark blue, and looking up I saw the moon, just over half full and bright.  There was a light breeze and the humidity began to pick up a little as darkness fell. I had noticed a group of Philippino guys parked up and a few of them wandered past me towards the end of the spit, carrying what looked like camping equipment.  I was a little disappointed that Id be sharing the space but they weren't too close and seemed quiet enough. I then n

With Eid AlAdha approaching and the weather cooling to a mere 40 degrees, what better time to plan another micro-adventure and this time to do something I've been dying to do for a long time - sleep in the desert under the stars. After little sleep and an aching back, I hauled myself out of bed and set off at 6.30 am on the day of Arafat, a fasting day for Muslims, before the celebrations of Eid Al Adha - the Festival of the Sacrifice - begin.   Roads were quiet, temperatures around 35C and no wind.  I planned to cycle up the coastal road running along the east coast of Qatar, to Al Khor, a small town in the North East, located on a creek - Al Khor is Arabic for 'the creek'.   The ride would be approximately 50km which I estimated would take me 2.5 hours, give or take a stop when necessary. Id heard of a small island among the mangroves - for which Al Khor is famous - which looked like it might be a good place to camp and star gaze, away from bright lights and civili

Being a small desert peninsula, Qatar doesn't have too many natural resources apart from the obvious oil and gas, especially with the pearl fishing industry long since disappeared.  But there is one thing that grows well here..... the date palm (Phoenix dactylifera to give its Latin name!!). In fact, dates have been cultivated here in Qatar since the bronze age and now there are over 1300 registered date farms in the country, producing more than 31,000 tonnes annually..... most of which are consumed by the local population with only a small proportion being exported. Last week saw the start of the Local Dates Festival, in Souq Waqif, Doha.   18 local farmers have been invited to bring their crops for sale including fresh dates, some dried dates and even saplings for those who want to try their hand at growing their own! The government is keen to showcase this locally grown super food and encourage visitors to the festival to taste, buy and learn more about the prope

1.  Wandering the lanes of Souq waqif My top recommendation for a visitor to Doha is a stroll through the lanes of Qatar's famous souq,  known as one of the best in the middle east. This renovation of the original, rebuilt on the same site, is actually only around 15 years old, although some of the buildings are original and you'd never spot the ones that aren't as its been done very very authentically.   It is the very place where Qatari bedouin would trade their animals, wool other goods and a place where they could buy their essentials.  It is the heart and soul of Doha and although the main street that runs through the souq is characterised by souvenir shops and shisha cafes, exploring the alleyways behind will uncover some real gems... oudh, perfumes, traditional Arabic clothing, pots and pans, scarves, bags, shoes, and oh the spice market, where you can buy every spice, pulse or nut and the best Yemeni honey on the planet! One of the best