December 18th, and the week leading up to it, is pretty wild in Qatar. National day is meant to celebrate the day in 1878 that the founder, Shaikh Jasim succeeded his father, Shaikh Muhammad Bin Thani as ruler, leading the country toward unity.
During the preceding week there was horse and camel races, shooting and falconry exhibitions, cultural displays and gifts from employers (I can't tell you what Sidra gave away, because I was at Hamad Women's Hospital at the time and didn't get one. I know what it was, but the are sending it to me later and it's a surprise for Greta).
The actual day started with us getting up at 4:30am to get an early start to hike to the parade site. We were told it was important to get there before morning prayer let out out at about 5:00, to beat the crowds. It was good advice! The evening included the most spectacular fireworks display I have ever witnessed (and people who know me, will understand that is saying a lot) and ended walking the streets watching car after car go by with folks on the roof, the hood and the running boards, honking, yelling and back-firing. Mostly in the spirit of fun and celebration, but some, seemed pretty dangerous. Interesting to note the folks will behave foolishly, even when alcohol isn't involved.
Explore the gallery below for selected shots of the day, and follow this link to hear Ana Qatari
an exclusive National Day track by Rayyana to commemorate the day.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/10846454/Blog%20resources/ana_qatari_track.mp3
During the preceding week there was horse and camel races, shooting and falconry exhibitions, cultural displays and gifts from employers (I can't tell you what Sidra gave away, because I was at Hamad Women's Hospital at the time and didn't get one. I know what it was, but the are sending it to me later and it's a surprise for Greta).
The actual day started with us getting up at 4:30am to get an early start to hike to the parade site. We were told it was important to get there before morning prayer let out out at about 5:00, to beat the crowds. It was good advice! The evening included the most spectacular fireworks display I have ever witnessed (and people who know me, will understand that is saying a lot) and ended walking the streets watching car after car go by with folks on the roof, the hood and the running boards, honking, yelling and back-firing. Mostly in the spirit of fun and celebration, but some, seemed pretty dangerous. Interesting to note the folks will behave foolishly, even when alcohol isn't involved.
Explore the gallery below for selected shots of the day, and follow this link to hear Ana Qatari
an exclusive National Day track by Rayyana to commemorate the day.
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/10846454/Blog%20resources/ana_qatari_track.mp3
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