Qatar National Day 2012

 

18th December is Qatar's National Day and as part of the celebrations many family/tribal groups set up huge tent majlis around Doha. The land on which the tent's erected is allocated by the government and the various families use their allocated land for weddings or important occasions. Most of the time the land looks like bare, rocky wasteland and you'll see these seemingly abandoned areas all over Doha.  However, everything changes when there's a function and the area is transformed into a tent palace. Huge marquees spring up seemingly overnight, carpets are laid on the ground, huge generators kick into life to provide electricity, sound systems are set up, lighting's installed and seating for the visitors is brought in. Often, two of these tents are erected, one for men and one for women. For the national day celebration most of the families had erected long tents with large carpeted areas at the front surrounded by chairs.  Some had camels in pens to one side for the younger guests to ride.

We were guests at one family majlis and we sat in two of the plush armchairs that lined the inside of the tent.  There were also seats lining the entire outside area as well, there must have been hundreds. The tent area, the area outside and the walkway to the public footpath was covered in carpets, you'll see them in the video.

Inside the tent we drank cardoman coffee and watched the dancing, the drummers and the poets. The dance being performed is the ardah, the traditional male dance in the Gulf region. Two lines of singers face each other and are led by a poet who moves between the lines directing the next lyrics to be sung. If its a 'performance' these singers are the only people moving, howevr in a community setting such as National Day, everyone of all ages joins in most carrying their sword, singing along and moving in an anti-clockwise circle on the carpet while the drumming group stand in the area between the two lines of singers.  In Qatar and Saudi the dancers traditionally carry swords, I'm not sure about Bahrain but I assume it would be similar. Over in the Emirates the dance is called 'Al Yolla' or one of the many variations on the name.  The Emirati singers carry canes mostly but I've also seen swords used occasionally. In the Emirates and also in Oman, there are often two or three young boys or teenagers moving up and down in the area between the lines of singers expertly tossing swords or imitation rifles. While  I've seen this here in Qatar, it doesn't seem to be a regular part of the dance here.

This evening, while the adults had a break, the little boys had their chance to dance. They all seemed to be under the age of 10, outrageously cute in their celebratory dishdashs. Some enjoyed a chat and a play sword fight with their mates, others were serious, they were there to practice hard.  The very young ones clutched their fathers' hands and walked around earnestly clutching their swords.  So, as you'll see, some of the dads joined in with their sons showing them the steps and the sword movements.

Thank you to the family for their hospitality.

The A, B, C of modesty.

Campaign organiser Najla Al Mahmoud is quoted as saying 'We noticed a lot of shorts, spaghetti straps, transparent and very tight clothing being worn freely in public places.  We don’t want to interfere with anyone’s religion and force them to wear hijab, we only want modest clothing. It’s a matter of etiquette and class. We want to be able to go to public places without a lot of flesh around us.'

Traditional Dhow Festival in Doha

 

For centuries fishermen, pearl divers, and traders from Africa to India have relied on boats called dhows for their livelihood. To honour that rich maritime heritage, a festival celebrating the traditional dhow is held annually in Doha, Qatar. This year, dhows from Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar, along with their proud owners, took part. Visitors were able to climb aboard the dhows and imagine themselves as modern day Sinbads. A bit of trivia is that legend has it that Sinbad's home was in Sur in Oman.

Musicians and dancers performed, there was a pearl diving competition and rowing races between the crews of working dhows, local childrens' group demonstrated traditional games and craftsmen demonstrated the methods used in building a dhow. If you aren't keen on boats, skip ahead to 2:40 for the music and dance.  There are two dance groups performing on the clip, the first is probably from Yemen, or if they're from Oman, its from way down south near the border and yes, its bagpipes. Second is the fishermen's parade with drumming.

The background music is an old Qatari folk song titled 'Umm al Hanaya' (Mother of Abundance). It praises a ship, maybe a pearl diving boat or possibly a trading vessel (its left to your imagination), and tells of the excitement of the people when she departs and their joy when she returns safely. This piece of music was used during the opening ceremony of the 2006 Asian Games in Doha.

   

 

This is rock and/or roll.

Surfing the net and I found this wonderful piece from The Simpsons, one of my favourites.  Its the scene where Bart gives the churchgoers the words and music to a hymn he says is Garden of Eden by I. Ron Butterfly.  When Rev Lovejoy's realises what the congregation are singing he utters the classic line "Wait a minute, this sounds like rock and/or roll."

Anyone over 50 will get the joke because they know the song referred to is Iron Butterfly's (I. Ron Butterfly, geddit?) 'Inna gada da vida' a song famous for its lengthy organ solo that went on and on and on.  Want to see the original? Its here  An interesting bit of trivia is that when the band released the album they couldn't play in bars or nightclubs in the US as several of the bandmembers were under the legal drinking age of 21.

A sporting irony.

The Grand Final weekend is over in Australia. The Sydney Swans are now the 2012 Champions in Aussie Rules which is Melbourne's game and the Melbourne Storm are the  2012 Champions in rugby league which is Sydney's game.  Its ironic really isn't it?  Now on to the V8s at Bathurst!

Can't find a supermarket in Doha?

Maybe this'll help you find your way.....

Hyatt Plaza in Doha, Qatar.

 

We (want to) know who you are.

Some changes on YouTube this morning which I 'm guessing are in response to the film clip and the often violent response to it.  YouTube now request that you rename your channel using your 'real name' (whatever it may be today) and then ask for a reason if you do not wish to do so.
On a tangent, a worrying question that comes out of this situation is this: the arbiteurs of what is 'free speech' and what is appropriate to be out in the public domain are not the governments who are supposed to represent the wishes of the people but the privately owned media companies who represent...who? Their shareholders? Management? Do we not care as long as the profits roll in?