Hello! My name is Anna Zerbinati, and I am currently half way across the world expanding my horizons. This year I decided to take on another language which happened to be Arabic. Having taken two years and a half of Chinese and then taking Arabic really showed me the distinct features and unique styles of the language. Although I am still an Arabic 1 student, I didn't let that stop me from experiencing a once in a lifetime trip to Qatar. I wasn't fully sure I was prepared but decided to take the risk and couldn't be more grateful I did. I am loving it here in Qatar! The weather is great, the people are so kind, and most of all everything is so beautiful. Every building, every store, every highway is designed so that when you look at it you see more than just stones and bricks. You see the intricate designs and patterns that show a lot about the Qatari culture. Different from New York City where the skyline is filled with buildings with the same rectangular prism shape. In a tour through the city you are put face to face with buildings that are zig zag or slanted, or even cylindrical. And to top it off every building is faced with abstract designs that in the night time glisten with colorful lights.
Upon arrival, the first thing that came to mind was
Florida. It smells very much like the beach here because of the desert sand.
Living in the desert is extremely different compared to back home. For example
yesterday it rained a ton and the front of my hosts’ house became an ocean.
Because it rains so little here the streets are not prepared for large storms,
therefor the roads have no sewers. Instead the government sends big
trucks to go to each street and pump out the large masses of water.
Of course the food here is delicious! Everything is so
fresh, products don't last for years, and there's a variety of restaurants from
all around the world. On our second night here the hosts planned a welcome
dinner at a Syrian restaurant. The food was really good and it wouldn't stop
coming! I've noticed that hospitality here is shown with lots and lots and lots
of food. And at the end of every meal you are offered dessert and
tea.
Today we took a trip to the Sheikh Faisal Museum to learn
more about old Qatari traditions and how lifestyles has evolved over the years.
This is a private museum that displays different artifacts from a variety
of cultures such as the Qatari, Moroccan, Palestinian, Christian and even
Jewish culture. Along with that there are many war items such as guns and
swords that were used in ancient wars. Sheikh Faisal also has collection of
antique cars in his museum and a cage with four cheetahs. All items on
display were collected by Sheikh himself as he traveled the world in search for
his pieces. What I thought was
very unique about the museum is how there are rooms you can walk into and they
are a replica of rooms back in the day. For example there was a section that
displayed what old Christian prayer rooms looked like. They had a golden bible and even a
confession booth. All in all I have never seen a musuem like this before and
enjoyed the unique once in a lifetime experience.
The trip has been amazing so far and I couldn't be more
grateful for our hosts, chaperones, and Center for Global Studies for giving me
an experience I could not have gotten anywhere else. I hope all is well back in
the U.S! See you guys soon!!
Thank you !
With lots of love,
Anna Zerbinati
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