It has been quite some time since my last writing. Life has been a whirlwind in the past few months. In April I was getting ready for big exciting changes ahead while making plans for my life. Now at the end of September life has had its ups and downs, good times and bad, good moments, and nervous moments, but all in all things are good.
Work and the experience here in Doha presents daily challenges and I try often to figure out the best way to cope in a culture that values things slightly differently than I am used to. I had a conversation with a colleague who is fairly new to Doha who asked when do things begin to feel like normal. I had to respond that I wasn't sure, but things after some time feel MORE normal than say a few weeks after I had arrived.
Some of the challenges:
Speeding cars, near traffic accidents, long conversations due to language barriers, exhaustion from work, daily naps, sunshine, sand, stares towards you, slow decisions, chain of command decisions, conflict, confusion and even chaos.
I also have positive interactions like:
Shared experiences with expats, Qataris, and co-workers; friendly hellos; sunshine, pool time, generosity from the unexpected; and of course a love that should have been realized many many years ago and now finally is.
Work and the experience here in Doha presents daily challenges and I try often to figure out the best way to cope in a culture that values things slightly differently than I am used to. I had a conversation with a colleague who is fairly new to Doha who asked when do things begin to feel like normal. I had to respond that I wasn't sure, but things after some time feel MORE normal than say a few weeks after I had arrived.
Some of the challenges:
Speeding cars, near traffic accidents, long conversations due to language barriers, exhaustion from work, daily naps, sunshine, sand, stares towards you, slow decisions, chain of command decisions, conflict, confusion and even chaos.
I also have positive interactions like:
Shared experiences with expats, Qataris, and co-workers; friendly hellos; sunshine, pool time, generosity from the unexpected; and of course a love that should have been realized many many years ago and now finally is.
