Graduation ceremony in Qatar

This year the Grade 12 Graduation from Qatar Academy took place at Al Shaqab Equestrian Centre. A large platform was constructed in the shape of the QA logo. In such a large arena it was hard to get a "cozy" feeling. Tim sat on the platform with the other Senior School administrators. He was so far away we had a hard time recognizing him. There were 94 graduates from the IB program. The graduates are attending Universities all over the world.

The event was made even more special by the appearance of the Emir! He sat in the front row beaming at the graduates. He turned around to watch the graduates' processional with a big smile on his face.

Tim and other administrators giving awards

Graduation ceremonies in Qatar are very similar to those happening this week in Canada. There are awards given for highest subject marks (although these are trophies not money), the valedictorian speaks, the guest speaker is a former student of QA, and there is a reception afterward for families and friends. However the service tends to be much shorter and much more formal.

Making a Difference

Lisa "official" UCQ photo from Public Affairs

For the past year Lisa has been teaching nursing at the the University of Calgary - Qatar. Last week, UCQ had a year-end Appreciation Banquet for its faculty and staff. It was a beautiful dinner with entertainment, games and prizes.
The Dean also gave out the 2013 U Make A Difference awards. These are a big deal at the main campus of University of Calgary in Canada. This is the first year that UCQ has done their own awards.

This is a peer-nominated award for coworkers that go above and beyond their job description to "make a difference" at UCQ in the area of leadership, support, collaboration, excellence, positive work environment, and student learning environment. The Dean gave out 8 awards (out of 150 staff and faculty) and Lisa received one! She was quite shocked and pleased that her coworkers recognized her efforts. There were only two awards to Nursing faculty.

Here is the Dean's summary of what Lisa's co-workers said in their nomination:

Lisa is often the course lead and is extremely busy but she is always extremely supportive throughout the term as a mentor and role model.  She really helped me increase my skill and confidence in a critical time: my first semester.  She is willing to face difficult situations and assumes responsibility for making difficult decisions.  Lisa was able to give constructive criticism without being too critical.  She is a pleasure to work with, being quick to joke, smile and laugh.  For her students she does extensive prep work and creative supplementary materials to assist learning.  Her dedication to her craft is admirable and I am always amazed at the efforts she gives to creating an excellent learning environment for her students. Lisa is an outstanding role model, mentor, and teacher who contributes to a better teaching and learning environment at UCQ.

Date season

Date Palm in our front yard

Last week the gardeners started getting ready for a new season of dates. The Palm tree in our front yard now has netted bags holding the unripened dates. As they get ripe and fall off the branch, they are caught in the net. The tie on the bottom allows the gardeners to release the dates that are ready for eating.

This tree on the walking path missed the netting. Lisa took the photo this morning so you can see the process of ripening. There are many different types of dates. They do look and taste different. Of course our favourites are covered in chocolate and stuffed with cashews!

Sand Storm

Front page of today's newspaper     50km/h winds

For the past few days we have been experiencing a sand storm called the Albawareh. This is common between end May and mid July in Qatar. The Albawareh is caused by the Indian monsoon season as  low pressure systems extend over the Arabian Gulf, Iran, and the Arabian Peninsula. These low pressures meet high pressure systems coming from the Mediterranean. The systems clash over Saudi Arabia creating high winds, hot temperatures, and rising sands. It helps to look at a map.

Footprints in the sand

Vergie sweeping the front door -- again

This storm began on the Friday and is expected to last until Thursday. Typical of the Albawareh, the strong northerly winds decrease during the night and increase by midday. Today the Qatar weather stations are predicting "overcast with a blanket of dust". Thankfully for our family, this is merely an unpleasant experience. The front step is constantly in need of sweeping and the mess in the house is trying: sand blows in around the cracks in the windows, covers the tables if you leave a door open for a few minutes, and leaves footprints all over the tile.









Lisa has also learned a few lessons about laundry. The clothes dry very quickly because of the winds and the temperature (still 35-40 degrees Celsius). But if the clean clothes are left on the line for more than 20 minutes they start to get dirty. And sometimes the drying rack blows over -- wet clothes on sandy patio. Not nice.

When we came home from work on Sunday, the wind had shredded the BBQ cover and left behind a thick layer of sand. This BBQ is almost brand new but now looks like it has been outside for decades!

Downtown buildings difficult to see

Sandstorms can also be dangerous. The blowing sand causes areas of low visibility making driving hazardous. Sometimes we can't even see the house across the street. Outside the city is especially dangerous because of the wide open desert spaces and nothing to block the wind. People with chronic respiratory illnesses (like asthma) are encouraged to stay indoors. Inhaling fine sand particles can cause major respiratory problems. Most people who work outside wear a face mask and long sleeve shirt and pants. The sand does actually pelt your skin.

If you want to see a sandstorm at its worst, have a click on this YouTube video. The video is from a driver watching the Albawareh in Kuwait in 2011. The video is 10 minutes long but you get the idea pretty quick. The man is speaking Arabic but even without sound, the image is powerful.
YouTube video of sandstorm in Kuwait

Finishing Well

Simon starting a 50m Freestyle

As the school year draws to a close, this week marks the end of few activities. Last sailing practice on Wednesday. Last Youth Group on Thursday. Last Swim Team event yesterday. It is sometimes hard to stay motivated to finish well but Max and Simon are still putting in the effort.

Max reflecting on his race

The last Swim Team competition for the year was a Boys Swim Meet yesterday. The team has grown significantly from the 3 swimmers who competed in this Qatar Swim Meet last year. Yesterday the boys team of 14 swimmers took 3rd place overall (among 12 schools from Qatar). Simon had a couple of personal best swims and 3 first place races. Max swam consistently and performed well against his older and larger competitors. Also at last week's Sports Award ceremony Max received the award for the boys Swim Team Most Valuable Player.

Simon, Coach Jemma, Max after yesterday's competition

The end of Swim Team for this year is bittersweet for the boys. They are happy to have a break from practices but their beloved Coach Jemma is leaving Qatar this year. Three years ago Jemma started the swim program at Qatar Academy and has been a great teacher, coach and encourager for Max and Simon. She is a wonderful young woman and we will all miss her dearly.

Arabian Cruise

For our mid-semester break in February we chose a trip that was relaxing, but with a bit of variety and education, and lots of family time. We took a cruise from Dubai that stopped in five ports on the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman. We traveled aboard the Costa Classica Cruise Line. You remember the Italian cruise ship that sank in the Mediterranean last January 2012?  Yes! That was Costa Cruise Line. Needless to say, our cruise was very reasonably priced......

Before our ship left the port of Dubai we had a safety drill. No kidding! It was a marvelous hour of seeing 1000 people dressed in life vests, going quickly to muster stations where we were given safety demonstrations in seven (7) different languages. Next time you complain about the French-English demo on a plane, think about watching it seven times!

Our first stop was the city of Muscat in the country of Oman. From the ship we were awed by our first sight of Muscat with its mountains! We don't have mountains in Qatar and did not expect to see them in the desert. The Al Hajar mountains rise from the sea amid the desert sands.  Muscat has small reserves of oil and natural gas but does not have the wealth of Qatar.

We went ashore and spent the morning exploring the Souq. Lisa made some fun purchases and had a great time laughing with the vendors. The most notable character was "George from India" who sold wonderful cotton tops.

One of our shore excursions was to jump on a dhow and travel into the fjords and the "Norway of the Middle East". This was a fun day on a smaller boat, swimming in the Gulf near Telegraph Island, watching dolphins. Telegraph Island was a small relay station for telegraphic messages from Pakistan to London, England. It was an unpopular post because of the heat in the summer. The post was abandoned in 1870 but the cabin and part of the tower still remain. The tour guide told us that the term "going round the bend" was started here: British officers hated the posting so much that they wished to "go round the bend" of the Strait of Hormuz and back to India.

Another port of call was Abu Dhabi. We spent a day sightseeing and were surprised that it is a city with a very different feel than Doha or Dubai. The Sheikh Zayed Mosque is absolutely beautiful and we were thrilled to have a tour inside. It has magnificent chandeliers (gilded with 24 carat gold) and the largest hand-knotted carpet in the world.

Our time on the ship was very relaxing and full of the usual cruise activities: swimming, sun bathing, spa treatments, and eating of course!

We passed twice through the Strait of Hormuz. This is a strategically important geographical feature. It is the narrowest point between Iran and the UAE. All oil from the Gulf countries (UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi) must travel out of the ("Persian") Gulf through the strait in order to be made available to the rest of the world. Because it is only 41 km across it has been called a "choke point" and there seems to always be fear that Iran will close it off and put the world in a difficult position of not having access to the world's oil supplies. This was an important geography lesson for all of us and the whole boat seemed to get quiet as we passed so close to Iran.

3 on 3 at Villaggio Mall

What do you do when you have a country that wants to promote basketball and there is a mall with an indoor skating arena in it?  Of course, you host the first FIBA Asia 3×3 Basketball Championships and convert the arena into three basketball courts.

Max and Simon play for the Qatar Foundation Under 16 basketball team.  Although the 3 on 3 tournament was for adults, the boys' team was allowed to play during the competition.  It was a lot of fun for them.  When asked if the crowd of 1000 people watching affected their play, the boys responded by saying they didn't even see the people.