Apartment living with children?

We've been here 4.5 years now and I can safely say that I would have gone nuts living in an apartment with our 2 who were aged 3.5 and 6 when we arrived. I was only saying to my husband yesterday (as the eldest ran out to play while the younger and her friend bolted upstairs to do the same) that we will struggle when we leave here after the freedom and easy friendships they have grown up with on the compound. Our door is always open, kids pop in and out and you can tell where they are by the pile of bikes and scooters (or flip fops) outside a particular villa. Others on the compound who have had babies are now at the toddler stage and they all meet outside in the afternoons to ride their bikes etc and have impromptu play sessions. All the kids love having flower beds and trees and its even better if there is a puddle of water left from watering to jump, splash and roll in. We are fortunate to be in a company compound where we know everyone and the children are relatively safe but I have heard of other compounds with the same friendly atmosphere. I think that in an apartment building it would be difficult for the kids to have this sort of life once they are a bit older, even if there is a play room and pool as you would always have to be there watching over them (which we all have to do with the pool bit anyway). So given the choice I would opt for a compound every time.

I live in an apartment in West Bay. Do you get a housing allowance or is it company accommodation? If we had the option of a villa I would move out of my apartment in a second (we don't - it's company accommodation). The apartment was great when the kids were tiny (no stairs!) and it's massive. I've also got a really nice view. I now have a 4 and 5 year old and I find the lack of outdoor space really hard. Our apartment would rent for about 18-20k I think. A similar amount can get you onto a fairly nice compound where the kids all play out if your husband is prepared to do the legwork and also sit on waiting lists for a while. I constantly worry about fire safety in my apartment - if the front door is blocked there's no way out. I''m particularly paranoid about this because I'm a Doha longtimer and so I know the risks. I don't know the apartments in the intercom in particular but it doesn't have balconies which would really put me off (I manage to squash a paddling pool onto my balcony!). It is fairly near a decent park which you could walk to for most of the year (although everyone in Doha would drive :)) As an international hotel chain I'd also expect their fire safety is top notch but it's always worth checking the fire escapes (and whether they're blocked with rubbish) when you/your husband looks around. Finally, I saw your other post on nurseries that mentioned DESS. Just wanted to check that you definitively have the DESS place confirmed as there's a long waitlist for that age group. It may be you have preference or have been sitting on the waitlist for a while. Just highlighting in case as it's not unknown for people to assume their children have a place because they've made an application. Not meaning to patronise so ignore if you do have a genuine place, it's just the last time I checked this the person has assumed she had a place even without making an application!