Last day . . .

My last full day in Doha was certainly an eventful one!

I have so many stories to tell, I'm not sure where to begin. So, I guess I'll start with the business side of things.

Most of my day was focused on continuing to explore internship opportunities at TAMUQ for our majors. Both Dr. Liticia Salter, Director of OASIS (Office of Academic Supplemental Instruction Services), and Alicia Holland, Director of Marketing and Communication, felt their offices could provide a range of internship options, from writing to editing to planning writing workshops. Between these two meetings and the one with Dr. Bickham in the Liberal Arts program yesterday, I feel quite confident that our innovative English Aggies could pursue experiences here in areas related to their professional interests.

I also had the pleasure of talking with Jowaher Almarri, another academic advisor at TAMUQ. Jowaher is a native Qatari who has worked on this campus for about five years. She is just a warm, kind person, and she was incredibly open to answering any questions I might have about Qatari culture. She provided interesting insight into the experiences of the local students, who find themselves in an extremely unfamiliar environment when enrolling at TAMUQ after spending their entire childhoods in schools segregated by gender. Further, she had very positive things to say regarding on the maturity with which the students have handled any misunderstandings resulting from cultural differences. I think this patience and understanding contributes a great deal to the unique learning environment on this campus.

Okay, on to the crazy stuff.

Remember that first day, when I toured Doha in a haze of exhaustion? Our tour guide, Jamal, did a fantastic job. Because there's so much to see, though, Maiken asked him to show me around some more this afternoon.

Our first stop was the Sheikh Faisal museum. Sheikh Faisal is the second cousin of Qatar's current emir, and the museum is really a mansion that is brimming with his personal collections. What kinds of collections, you ask? Well, the inventory ranges from antique weapons to dinosaur fossils to classic cars. A person could get lost in there for days. Thank goodness we had Jamal to show us around!

There happened to be a calligrapher at the museum, and Jamal asked him to create souvenirs for Maiken and me: our names written in elegant Arabic calligraphy. Didn't he do a beautiful job?

Like a genius, I placed this masterpiece oh-so-carefully inside a magazine for safekeeping. Then, like a not-so-genius, I folded the magazine in half and stuck it in my bag. I think I can smooth out that fold when I frame it, right?

Our next stop was the camel race track, where we pulled up just in time to see hundreds of these handsome devils parading into the track for their daily workout. I mean hundreds.

On our way out, we made a new friend! Raea had ventured out to the race track in a cab, having read online that the race would start at 3:30, which it didn't. (FYI, I've been told that web sites around here are not the most reliable sources of current information.) She was having trouble getting in touch with a driver to come pick her up, so we invited her to ride back into the city with us. As it turned out, Raea's husband is an Aggie with a degree in construction science; his work brought them to Doha a few months ago. She eventually hopes to come to A&M for the MBA program. She has been busily exploring the area while he works during the day. It's all fun and games until someone gets stranded at a camel race track, huh?

Anyway, Raea kept us company for the last stop on our tour: Katara Village. This area holds numerous restaurants, a beach, several interesting art displays, a stunning marble amphitheatre, and an ornate mosque (pictured above). We arrived right around sunset -- just in time to hear the call to prayer sung over a loudspeaker by a man inside the mosque. It is a hauntingly beautiful sound.

I don't have much commentary for this stuff, but I thought you all should see it. So, commence photopalooza in 3 . . . 2 . . . 1!

Cool artwork -- half plants, half person.

The amphitheatre, which seats up to 5,000 people.

A sculpture entitled "Speak no evil," made of repurposed metal objects. This piece is one of three; the other two, of course, are "See no evil" and "Hear no evil."

Me with my new friends, Jamal and Raea. (I really am the worst at taking selfies. Sorry for cutting off half your face, new friend.)

I had one last dinner with Eric, Kerry, and Maiken. Since TAMUQ's spring break is next week, they're all heading off to their fabulous vacation destinations tomorrow. I was very glad I got to spend a bit more time with these three people, who worked so hard to make sure my time here was both productive and fun. They really went above and beyond!

So, tomorrow I'll wrap up with one last meeting on campus, and then I'll head back to Texas!