You are Here: A work of flash autobiography

by Matthew Stranach

It is a sunny day in Qatar.

How easy it is to say “a sunny day” when you are here.

In fact there is a wide variance of sunny days.

There are some days in the early months of the year when dust storms render the sun little more than a pale, dun-colored disc floating over the low dun-colored buildings which line the horizon in nearly every direction within Doha.

There are the days when the sun is akin to liquid metal boiling in the kiln of the sky.

You think of places in Qatar.

There is your office. It is gorgeous, comfortable, and ultra-modern. You may find yourself thinking you are doing the best, most professional work of your entire career. You may look outside and see the palm trees in the courtyard swaying in the breeze, which also riffles the water in one of the numerous fountains around campus.

Then there is your compound. In many ways this resembles an exotic neighborhood of your home country. You may go running numerous laps around it in the evenings. You will say hello to your coworkers, and their spouses, and their children.

You will be amazed at how tightly-knit this community feels.

There are numerous shopping malls. This is where you will go most every weekend. Your child will dash between stores. He will careen and tumble between aisles a hundred types of shoes, makeup, clothing, and electronics. He will learn to walk in the malls and in the villas and in the compounds. You will not take him outside during the late mornings and early afternoons in the spring and summer months.

Of course it is hot. After a very short amount of time, the word “hot” loses all descriptive meaning. In the winter, when it becomes as cold as ten degrees Celsius you will reach for your long-sleeved shirt and turn on the space heater in your villa. You will remark that the weather has finally turned. For two whole months you may find it is more comfortable to wear long pants around the compound as opposed to shorts.

Of course there is a vibrant cultural life outside the malls, the compound, and the worksite. When visitors come you will take them to Souq Waqif, and the Corniche, and to the beach resorts outside the city. You will camp in the desert and float on the salty waves of the Arabian Sea. These moments will color the rest of your time in Qatar.

Depending on where you live, you will grow accustomed to the sound of construction from early hours of the morning and throughout the day. This is a growing city, after all.

When you return to your home country to visit you will find yourself looking forward to returning. Friends and family will ask what it is like to live and work in Qatar.

You will say that there is nowhere else like it in the world.

Doha, April 2011