Top five likes and dislikes

Likes: - The diversity - The great travel destinations near(er) - Tax-free salary - Low crime levels - Bigger living space Dislikes: - Moaning expats - Crazy driving - The fact you can't walk most places - How 'some' expats are treated depending on the colour of their skin - Generally bad customer service With regards to accommodation, we're at the Pearl and love it. Couldn't imagine living anywhere else. Sure, there's traffic noise, but we can WALK around to shops and restaurants and are by the sea. And as others have put it, you get out what you put in and it's really up to you to make the most of your experience. I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

Kiwispiers can you please expand on 'choose accomodation carefulhttp://www.evoke.ie/elizabeth-soffe-putting-up-a-big-fight/y'? What should one look out for/ take into account? You mentioned you were relocating, pros/cons? Thanks! The housing is most often inferior in construction to western code and maintance is often very poor at best. Think carefully when selecting your accomodation. There is no price on life and the safety of your family .http://www.evoke.ie/elizabeth-soffe-putting-up-a-big-fight/ I'm sure other ladies can contribute to the list but well bulit and reasonably maintanced compounds I or close friends have lived in : Al Jazi gardens and Al Jazi villiages 1&2 Al Alreen compound Al Rayyan Villiage Al Messilah riveria gardens Al Fardan 1,2,3,4,5,6 Y village All of these are pricer places unfortunately but you can still pay the same rents and get dangerous houses. Stories of melted wiring and plugs , fires , "live water "( shocks in the shower or bath) pools that are over chemicalled ( I have heard of a kid being burnt by pools of chemicals left poolside. If we weren't in company accommodation ( Al Rayyan villiage ) I would always choose an older place like Al Jazi or Al Messilah or Riveria . Dated , yes , dangerous no . They are well bulit and have lasted years + have on site maintenance. <em>edited by Whereintheworld on 30/06/2014</em>

Hi Eleanor, Really? Aww, I have been so emotional the last 24 hours, I don't know how you've felt. Definitely, that sounds like a good idea, I'm not sure if you can swap email addresses but mine is yvonnewstein @ hotmail. Co. Uk. It's comforting to know that there are other mums moving over at around the same time. Yvonne :) Dear Yve, we are exaclly in the same situation!! My husband left yesterday, we (me and DD, 8 years) will come to Doha in August! Shall we keep in touch and share the experience? We will be living (I suppose) in Education City and DD will attend ACS School 4th grade. I am keen in meeting new friends, expecially families with kids. cia, Eleonor This is a great post. My husband flew over to Doha from Scotland today, well actually, he is half way there to be precise. Myself and 2 kids will be joining him in August too and I actually feel really overwhelmed, more that my other half will be organising accommodation for us without me. I already feel a little more settled in joining this website, it's good to know there is a friendly atmosphere between all the expats ;)

Dear Yve, we are exaclly in the same situation!! My husband left yesterday, we (me and DD, 8 years) will come to Doha in August! Shall we keep in touch and share the experience? We will be living (I suppose) in Education City and DD will attend ACS School 4th grade. I am keen in meeting new friends, expecially families with kids. cia, Eleonor This is a great post. My husband flew over to Doha from Scotland today, well actually, he is half way there to be precise. Myself and 2 kids will be joining him in August too and I actually feel really overwhelmed, more that my other half will be organising accommodation for us without me. I already feel a little more settled in joining this website, it's good to know there is a friendly atmosphere between all the expats ;)

Likes 1) The autumn/winter/spring weather and the ability to get out and set up a tent and feel like there is no one within miles 2) Having livein help at home and the time this means we can spend with the family. I don't know how working parents in the UK cope with young kids and full time jobs (Kiwi - I had a livein maid for all of primary - I'm not entitled, kids learn from what you teach them. I am very messy though but I don't think this is down to the maid!) 3) Being somewhere which is truly multicultural and the insite into different ways of thinking it has brought me 4) Driving along the corniche 5) Not being in the UK! Dislikes 1) Some people's/companies' treatment of low income workers (be they labourers, maids or cleaning staff). 2) The complete lack of health and safety (and training on health and safety) and the fact that no one really cares about this 3) The uncertainty of knowing that we could be forced to leave tomorrow 4) The heat in the height of the summer and the inability to spend time outside with the kids 5) The time it takes to find good friends and then the fact that (particularly at this time of year) they leave <em>edited by lalala on 29/06/2014</em>

Kiwispiers can you please expand on 'choose accomodation carefully'? What should one look out for/ take into account? You mentioned you were relocating, pros/cons? Thanks!

Likes: 1) The fact that DH earns well and we can take great vacations 2) Living on The Pearl and general safe environment in Qatar 3) Waking up to sunshine most days of the year v's grey skies and rain back home 4) The fact that I don't "have" to work 5) Volunteer ops Dislikes: 1) The arrogance and dangerousness of some drivers 2) Bad treatment of labourers and lower income workers 3) Malls, malls and more malls...all with the same stuff in them (and I'm not a big shopper!) 4) Price of housing rising to silly levels yearly 5) Bureaucracy <em>edited by chizz on 28/06/2014</em>

This is a great post. My husband flew over to Doha from Scotland today, well actually, he is half way there to be precise. Myself and 2 kids will be joining him in August too and I actually feel really overwhelmed, more that my other half will be organising accommodation for us without me. I already feel a little more settled in joining this website, it's good to know there is a friendly atmosphere between all the expats ;)

Likes: 1) The wonderful people I have met. 2) My job. 3) No snow in the winter. 4) More time with my husband. 5) Having more vacation time that matches up with my husband. 6) The ability to travel to many places we would never have seen had we not come here. 7) Short working hours at my job. 8) That pretty much everything can be delivered -- including some of the small grocery shops that do delivery. 9) Shorter wait times for certain medical treatments, seeing specialists, getting an MRI, etc. 10) Being able to afford to have someone come and clean my villa once a week. Dislikes: 1) The negative Nancy's who spend all their time moaning about well... everything. 2) That sometimes the quality of the fruits and vegetables is not very good. 3) Cockroaches. Fortunately I have seen very few inside our villa over the past 5 years, but I don't like them just the same. 4) Lack of selection of novels -- but this is overcome by using an ereader. <em>edited by DebK on 28/06/2014</em>

oh dear, some people are very glass half empty lol. I have been in Doha 5 years, both my children were born here and we are not in a hurry to leave. I like the sunshine, the family friendly atmosphere, the helpfulness of people, the lack of crime (it isn't non existent but I feel much safer here than in NZ), the ease with which you can make friends and socialise and of course I like the fact that we make enough money here that we are able to be a one income family and not be on the breadline. At the risk of sounding like an elitist expat, it is nice not to have to deal with a certain side of society that we would have to back home. Doha is a lovely place to be pregnant, you are treated like a princess by taxi drivers, waiters, supermarket workers and shop assistants. If you have small children, they are coddled and entertained by people who genuinely love children, rather than feeling like another scumbag with grubby kids like you would in many western countries. I don't like the summer heat, the lack of outdoor living, the darkness of villas, the cost of rent, the traffic/drivers and the amount of time you spend in malls, everything is very homogenised and bland and you don't feel immersed in art of culture or see a lot of design stores. Cafe's and Restaurants tend to be American style franchises with pretty awful food and terrible coffee. It is hard to get a nice salad, a cake that doesn't taste like it came from a box or a fresh sandwich. The schooling situation here is also of concern with a serious lack of places in certain age groups. As someone who isn't so much into going to the gym but who loves to walk, the fact that you can't walk anywhere interesting is not a plus. We have been in al waab 5 years and are relocating to the Pearl soon so I am looking forward to being able to do more on foot and spend less time on the road as well as spending more time on the beach as there are few public beaches in qatar. I love the huge mix of cultures and perspective my kids are immersed in. I use drivers a lot and I love the conversations I have had with people from cultures that are so far removed from my own. The level of common ground is humbling. Things I don't like on principle, but which don't actually affect me are the exit permit policy (in practice getting an exit permit has never been remotely an issue, the racism/class-ism in malls, as a westerner I am totally not affected by this but it does bother me to see men of certain races/classes turned away from parks/malls etc, also knowing that every building I go into was essentially built by slave labour doesn't make me happy. I also enjoy the benefits of cheap "help" but at the same time worry that my kids will grow up feeling overly entitled if we stay here too long. I was in villagio the day of "the fire" and it certainly hit home how completely untrained many staff in positions of safety/responsibility actually are. I do not trust "the system" like I would back home. My maternity care was great to be honest, but some of the healthcare here can be quite old fashioned/out dated and being a private (money making) health system there is a tendency to over prescribe. Since I am home with young children, my boozy days are more or less over and I rearely have dinner out, but if I were younger/single childless I can imagine the cost and general in-availability of alcohol in cafes and bars, and the restrictions on non married relationships might be concerning. I am not sure that Doha would be a good place to come if you were young and not already in a relationship. As a westerner, some aspects of life were initially very frustrating, after a while I adapted a "when in Rome" outlook and since then have actually found things like Drs appointments etc quite easy once you understand that there is no point in making an appointment and that you have to be very proactive to keep your place in a queue ;). I now quite enjoy the fact that in Doha "no" never really means "no" and I will ask a questions in as many forms as possible until I get the answer I want. What I hate more than anything is the complete lack of being able to organise things by phone/email/website. Almost everything requires seeing someone in person. On the flipside even McDonald's deliver and many people park outside their local grocer or shwarma shop and honk their horn, I can only imagine what would happen if you were that lazy back home. Really I think Qatar is what you choose to make of it. Decide what you need and very carefully choose your accommodation. Be proactive socially and find support where you need it. It will always be hard leaving a well established social circle and support network so expect the beginning to be tough. You will get back what you put in. <em>edited by kiwispiers on 28/06/2014</em>

Likes ; The souq, good friends from around the world, cooler winter weather, visits from family and friends, our apartment which was quiet and peaceful and surrounded by trees and greenery. Dislikes : summer heat, terrible roads/driving, racism and discrimination, lack of scenery, not being able to work (at that time!) We lived there from 2009 to 2011.

Like - The weather, also in summer - going out into the desert - the unpredictability of this place - salary/package - lots of interesting holiday destinations nearby Dislike - slavery - I need more vacation - why do we need even more shopping malls while older neighbourhoods with many small shops get demolished? - ... - ...

Likes The sights , smells and sounds of Souk Waqif The Winter weather Having everyday access to a swimming pool, gym and tennis courts Great photographic opportunities Meeting people from all over the world Dislikes Lack of human rights and discrimination Standard of driving and traffic ahhhhh!!!! Sponsorship system ,exit permit!!! Cost of living Difference between haves and have nots <em>edited by alee on 28/06/2014</em>

Been here for 9+ years, and here's what I've got: Likes: 1. Amazing friends 2. A job that I love (most days) 3. Winter (when the weather is close to perfect) 4. Full-time help at home 5. Amazing friends (there are enough of them that I'll count them twice!) Dislikes: 1. Sponsorship system (including exit permits, etc). 2. Summer weather 3. Discrimination based solely on nationalities 4. Expats who spend most of their time moaning that they would rather be someplace else. 5. Movies that are edited to death (ie cutting out the kisses in Frozen).

I'm not sure whether you'd like my feedback, but here you go... Like: 1. High salary/high income 2. Departure lounge of Doha airport 3. N/A 4. N/A 5. N/A Dislike: 1. The need for an exit permit 2. The dangerous roads and taking part in traffic 3. The lack of entertainment 4. Being on a peninsula, you can't drive somewhere, you're stuck in Qatar. 5. High costs of living Edited to add that I don't live there anymore. Hopefully others who still live there will give their input as well. edited by Notnewintown on 27/06/2014 Notnewintown :-))) LOL I was going to reply myself and like you, couldn't think of many likes, but 100's of dislikes. The departure lounge is heaven, I am off there for the very last time in 20 days, 7 hours, 35 mins. 7 secs.....and counting, not that I am counting down the days to get out of here :-)))LOL

I'm not sure whether you'd like my feedback, but here you go... Like: 1. High salary/high income 2. Departure lounge of Doha airport 3. N/A 4. N/A 5. N/A Dislike: 1. The need for an exit permit 2. The dangerous roads and taking part in traffic 3. The lack of entertainment 4. Being on a peninsula, you can't drive somewhere, you're stuck in Qatar. 5. High costs of living Edited to add that I don't live there anymore. Hopefully others who still live there will give their input as well. <em>edited by Notnewintown on 27/06/2014</em>

I love this idea! Yes, ladies, please let us know. I am moving there in August and feel a little overwhelmed and excited.