Alone in the city? How about renting friends?

Read an article on the Guardian which was about renting a friend, trust me “renting a friend”! The article said about how a guy meets his friend at a café and over a cup of coffee thy chat about music, current events and the ups and downs of their working lives. But they don’t spend a lot of time talking about their feelings or their relationship, or rehashing the past. It’s just not that kind of friendship. And the interesting part comes from the fact that the duo feel the same and they prefer it that way, as the guy who has invited his friend to the café is paying him to feel the same. In fact, he’s paying him £40 an hour to feel the same!

Not so long ago, friendship meant lot of happiness, wisdom and good weather that money cannot buy. In a cold and indifferent world, a friend was someone we had to make for ourselves. But after reading this article, I don’t think it is required anymore, as we can buy friendship at our own convenience, that too by the hour! It’s like for a certain consideration, we can hire some friend to go to a museum with us, or hang out at the gym, or keep us company while we shop.

Wonder where this concept originated in? In Japan. But the idea is becoming popular across the world, including the US. There’s a website – rentafriend.com – which maintains a database of 417,000 names, people for hire from all over the US and Canada. And astonishingly, some 2,000 people pay to subscribe in order to find friends to take to dinner or to invite round for some scrapbooking. 

The website says: “Rent a Friend to attend a social event, wedding, or party with you. Hire someone to introduce you to new people, or someone to go to a movie or a restaurant with. Hire a Friend to show you around an unfamiliar town, teach you a new skill or hobby, or just someone for companionship. You can view all of the profiles & photos on RentAFriend.com right now for free!”

The website doesn’t forget to update the status. It says: “As of Friday, February 10th, 2012, there are over 417,000 Friends available for rent worldwide!” and goes on saying that where and all they have been featured and how famous the website is: “We have been featured on CNN, ABC, AOL, The Today Show, MSNBC, Fox News, Associated Press, CBS and thousands of other newspapers, television stations, radio programs, websites, and magazines from around the world.”

And recently, the website was launched in the United Kingdom and it says: “We are proud to announce that RentAFriend.com is now available in United Kingdom! We will be adding thousands of new Friends over the next few weeks, so please be patient as we expand globally!”

Maybe this idea will help for people who go abroad and find it difficult to socialize. If Asians are going to the Western countries, they might find it difficult to socialize with the Westerners and then this website might come in handy. Instead of feeling lonely and worrying how to socialize, maybe it is easy to find a friend on the website, of course coming at a price! Yes, when I came to Qatar last year, I longed for friends, a friend with whom I can talk and express my feelings. All the day I stayed at home and waited and waited for my hubby to return home. The whole day, I was alone at home. It was in such days I got to know about a girl from Bangalore who also had worked with the same newspaper where I began my journalism career. My joys knew no boundaries, as I thought here is a girl who is from Bangalore and I could talk to her in my mother tongue, Kannada.

But I didn’t realize the consequences of such a friendship. Every time I called her, she refused to pick my calls or answer my messages, making me feel that I’m troubling her and then I kept quiet. I thought maybe she’s busy and maybe she’s thinking that I’m calling her to ask if she came to know about any job openings, for I had sent her my CV, seeking her help to find me a job. But later I came to know when I went for an interview that she had not even mentioned my name when the Editor of a magazine had asked her if she knows any person who is interested to work. Will tell in another post why I didn’t accept the job offer from that magazine.

Coming back to the point, I had to go for a conference in India and requested her hubby if he could help me in getting some discount in air tickets. He promised me to do so by assuring that he would give the name and contact number of a travel agent. And I followed up with him for about 15 days, but in vain. All he had to do was just let me know that he couldn’t help me, but he took me for granted. But by the time I realized it, only two days were left for my journey and I had to pay twice the amount to get the tickets. Yes, a loss, economically and mental stress too!

Then, I sent her a message sarcastically thanking her husband for his “help” in getting me a “great discount” and asked if she needs anything from back home. And she was more than happy to know that her husband had helped me, when in fact he had not even bothered to just give me the name of the agent! She asked me to buy a bag for her, which fortunately or unfortunately I did, and returned to Doha. After my return, I tried contacting her, but in vain.

Later, she lost her job and she kept on calling me, and it was my turn to make her know how I used to feel when she was indifferent to my calls. Then, she and her hubby started posting personal comments to my casual status messages which surprised me. One fine day, I picked her call and finished my talk within two minutes and she felt I was rude to her by limiting myself to yes and no over the phone. And after that call, I felt bad and in the evening I tried calling her to visit us for the Laxmi puja, and no surprise, she didn’t answer my call and didn’t even bother to reply my text message.

I just left that issue at that and moved on till I found a good job at a repute company which matched her profile. I tried calling several times, but no answer and then I texted her, expecting no reply, but there it came, suddenly, asking me why I was so interested in helping her out. I replied, “Unlike others, who pretend to help and then turn their backs, I always help friends whenever I get an opportunity.” Then I sent her a mail telling her openly why I behaved indifferent, which only enraged her. Instead of accepting her follies, she wrote me back telling that I was “childish”. Emotions and “such kinda stuff has stopped bothering me 15 years ago.”

Then I wondered is she the same person who used to lecture: “I believe in the circle of life, because how else would you describe 'what goes around, comes around’...” “I believe that I'm responsible for my own actions because that alone will keep me from blaming others and causing strained relationships. I believe that relationships are built on respect, trust and love - strictly in that order. I believe that in a world of individuals comparison makes no sense at all…” and went on to say: “Sometimes, you wonder if all that you say falls on deaf ears. Sometimes, you wonder whether you took it for granted that someone will understand you when you poured your heart out…  You feel let down, you feel like you deserved more, you feel like you're entitled to an answer. But most of all, you feel like you were talking to a wall. Because, sometimes, that’s all it takes - a patient ear, and an encouraging word- to let you know that the way you feel matters. No advise, no rationalizing, no logical explanations, just listening to what you have to say. That's all it takes. And then you realize, it's unfair to expect others to react the way you want them to. It's stupid to think that they would treat you like an 8-year-old if you didn’t agree with everything they said. It's even more stupid to believe that they don’t actually care…” blah, blah blah.

Her lectures never stopped there, she went on: “We all need friends. Sometimes, we need just that one friend to make it easier for us to get through troubled times. Now, trouble need not necessarily mean something catastrophic, but it does mean that you’re in need of some advice. And that call for help must be taken seriously, no matter what the situation - whether it’s a break-up, a low –attendance-at-college issue, a quarrel at home because you weren’t allowed to go out and party, victim of office gossip, misunderstanding with the spouse, not knowing what to wear for an interview, or simply trouble with choosing the right pair of shoes… So, if I call someone a ‘close friend’, she’d have to be someone who tells me the truth about that little piece of spinach caught in the gap between my front teeth, someone who gives me her honest opinion about my wearing anything luminescent and pink - the colors may be in style, but she has the ‘permission’ to say that I look like a psychedelic ice-cream cone… To me, a close friend is someone who I can pour my heart out to, someone who listens to me before dishing out any sort of advice, who does not negate every feeling that I am going through in an effort to make me feel better, who ‘empathizes’ (as opposed to sympathize), who I can call at 4 am to pick me up from the airport, who I can invite home without having to worry about the mess…all this and so much more. We might move on from college talk and gossip, but in our hearts, we’ll always remember one another the way we used to be, no strings attached. Girlfriends! You can’t live without them…” blah blah blah.

And then, I saw both she and her hubby had disappeared from my Facebook, good for me, as I and my friends no more get to see their unnecessary personal comments on my wall. As whatever she lectured, she had never followed. I agree not everyone can become Ramakrishna Paramahamsa! And now, friends, from Bangalore, I run a mile away. She has taught me a good lesson, never to trust or rely on Bangaloreans and I think twice even before I talk to any Kannadigas in Doha now!

Coming back to renting a friend, maybe I would have not been hurt or insulted by a friend had I merely rented out a friend. But I have experienced how it feels to move to a new town and not know anybody, somewhat daunting and more than a bit lonely. And now, I don’t need to search any friends, as I have met like-minded friends, I get invitations for social gatherings and I’m enjoying my stay here.

But when given a good thought, don’t you think that it’s a shame that services such as renting a friend even have to exist? A friend is someone with whom a relationship has been developed and I wonder at the very concept of buying that. And see the sad state of affairs that a day has come where people can’t even make friends for themselves!

But I wonder if all is that easy. Will the so-called paid friendship stop at that and no emotions and feelings attached? Don’t they get used to the idea, or say an obligation to keep the paid friend happy and amused always? Don’t they have the fear of losing him/her if someone else pays them better? Will this paid friendship not too selfish and self-centered, not caring about each other or not getting attached emotionally? Don’t they feel that the paid friends merely act or pretend to be a friend, while all the attention is on the money paid on the basis of hours spent with each other?  

Who will not love the yellow metal?

For the first time in my life I have come across people who won’t wear any jewels. My neighbour’s maid one day told me that her landlords do not wear any jewels and often persuade her also not to wear any jewels. I was confused for a moment. It just reminded me of my school days when one day suddenly the school authorities announced that students shouldn’t wear any gold ear rings. It took us a day or two to realize that the decision was taken because a KG girl had lost her ear rings!

Malayalam actress Kavya Madhavan

But here, the case is different. It is because of the religion that they do not wear any jewels. The maid told me that her landlords were Pentecostal Christians. And now I realize why the small kid was so curious about my chain when I took her in my arms the first day I met my neighbours 10 months ago. The kid was pulling my chain and the mother had to literally pull the little one away from the chain, only making her to scream and cry. I noticed that the mother was not wearing anything and I thought it to be a fashion. And it took me nearly 10 months to know the fact that they belong to a faith which forbids them to wear any jewels! The family strictly follows the faith and adheres to the principles.

But I wonder if everybody follows and committed as my neighbours are. I often feel how can a woman stay away from jewels? Doesn’t she feel like having some at least? I have not read the Bible and I don’t know if the holy book restricts Christians from wearing any jewels, as I see other Christians wearing jewels. I don’t know why this particular group considers wearing jewels as “sin”. And maybe again, the interpretation of the Bible differs and something might have been interpreted in a manner that it forbids ornaments. Here I remember Mahatma Gandhi who once said: “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

A Christian bride

I have also heard that few denominations of Kerala Pentecostals will not baptize a person if he/she is wearing ornaments! Leaving apart what the holy book says, let me think about it from a social aspect. Even during earlier times, social status was determined by the amount of gold and silver jewellery a person wears. During weddings, gold was given as part of dowry, so the more gold they gave as dowry or they wear the more rich they were considered to be. While the rich wore lot of gold jewellery, the poor, who couldn’t afford, wore glass, plastic or stone beads’ jewellery. Maybe when Christianity entered India, many of these poor people found solace in the new religion, as it preached simplicity and treated everybody alike. Maybe they decided to shun jewellery and start their life afresh in the newly accepted faith.

And maybe because of this decision, Pentecostal Christians took a joint decision to abstain from divorce, wearing ornaments, remarriage of divorced, smoking, drinking wine, going to theatre to watch commercial movies, watching drama or dance along with unbelievers etc. It was a requirements for the believers to avoid such things to get baptized and to join a Pentecostal church.

Another important feature among this group is wearing white dress. The elders insist others to wear white, symbolizing purity, inside and outside. Whether they are in the US or the UK, North India or in South India, they maintain their identity and stick to the rules set by their forefathers!

A Christian bride

Okie, coming back to the topic: I sometimes keep wondering if I was a goldsmith in my previous birth, because I love gold like anything. And my relatives keep asking if I’m the same woman who used to spurn the metal during my childhood. I used to laugh at my cousins seeing their love for jewels and today, to their and my own surprise I own more jewels than any of them!

My love for jewels began only after attending a Malayalee friend’s wedding. Then also, I had no idea that one day I would end up marrying a Malayalee, who are known for their loads and loads of jewels on the bride during weddings. Slowly, my salary and savings went on to buy jewels which helped to save my parents’ grace during my wedding. Yes, I will never forget the incident where one female counted how many gold bangles I was wearing during my wedding and another who sarcastically made fun of me asking if the maatti along with the ear rings I’m wearing was mine or my mother’s. Though I couldn’t stop laughing at her ignorance, I simply replied “mine”. Reason for such query? Simple? It was an antique south Indian temple jewel and I had paid double the money to get that set, but women (who are unaware of the fact that wearing old and antique temple jewellery is a new trend) thought that I’m wearing some old jewellery (probably from my mom’s or grandmom’s)! But whatever said and done, I love my jewels and absolutely adore them.

A Muslim bride

Somehow, I’m attracted to gold like a magnet. Every time I have some extra cash or find some special occasion, whether my birthday or my hubby’s or parent’s birthday or my wedding anniversary or my parents’ wedding anniversary or some auspicious occasions or festivals, I head towards a jewellery shop to pick up a gold bangle or a gold coin. I just love the metal. I save and save and always tell myself that I will invest in some other thing, but the minute I see a jewellery shop, I seem to gravitate towards gold! My hubby is often irritated by my irrational obsession and I counter-argue telling him that it is a stunningly rational one, given the trend in gold prices, which would come in handy in future.

And I have inherited this bad habit of presenting something in gold for near and dear ones. I just wait for an opportunity to buy gold. So far, a gold chain bought for my hubby’s friend was the expensive one back home, and I remember how I had cried for one day when I lost that chain with a diamond pendant. Yes, some gold is due on our part and his friend would get something else from us when we return home ;)

Recently, we had Vij’s friend’s wedding and though initially we thought of buying him a good watch, then felt like no, not watch! Then, I took my hubby to a gold shop and we ended up buying a beautiful diamond pendant for his wife. When we presented the gift before he left for his wedding, our friend was literally excited, overwhelmed with joy and emotions. When else do you get to see such a moment? Gold comes in handy and can bring that glitter and smiles back on faces, I swear, try giving some such presents and see how happy you will be and how happy your friend or relative or family member will be!   

I don’t think I’m the only one to love this yellow metal. It is uniformly loved across the country, like cricket and movies. I sometimes feel naked and starving without some kind of the sparkling trinket on my body. And show me a house where there is no sign of some piece of gold, barring quality and quantity.

Anoushka Shetty in temple jewellery

And I have come across families where the shiny metal has come to save their lives and honour. I have seen families fighting for the gold, brides getting tortured and harassed, but still there’s not a single woman who can say that she doesn’t love this metal. And will any woman forget how she lost all her jewels to her in-laws? I don’t think so, my mom would never forget how she lost all her jewels to her in-laws, not just her, many of my cousins and their daughters too will never forget such incidents. For as women, we have a sort of emotional attachment towards gold jewellery and would never like to part with them.

If other countries see gold as an investment, Indians, including me, have a sort of emotional attachment to the metal and would never dream of parting from it. But we have to laud people before independence and during independence, for contributing their precious metal for the country and war. My dad remembers how during the 1965 Indo-Pak war, thousands of people across the country had put their gold jewels in soldiers' fund.

My dad sometime tells me how his teachers used to often mention about a ship explosion outside Mumbai in 1944 and the blast had sent a shower of gold ingots over then Bombay. The gold bricks had even injured several people. Some bricks fell into the sea and other areas and to the surprise of many, they had crashed through roofs and fell in their homes. In amongst the debris falling from the sky were the 28lb ingots of gold, one of the first to be found was picked up by Burjorji Motiwala, a retired Parsee civil engineer. The ingot had crashed through the buildings corrugated roof, penetrated the floor of the balcony above and come to rest on his balcony in the corner. The bar was stamped Z13256 and was worth Rs 90,000. Motiwala received a reward of Rs 999 which he donated to the relief fund. 

Shobana in temple jewellery

Plus, I have also come across a few reports which say how men use magnets outside Zaveri Bazaar stores to procure gold dust. There are people who are called as gold dust collectors who have been around Zaveri Bazaar ever since the jewellery market was set up in Mumbai during the second half of the eighteenth century. Turning dust into gold is estimated to provide the daily bread for up to a thousand people. Ther are seasoned sweepers who retrieve up to four grams of gold a week. Wonder how gold can be found on streets?  During the buffering and polishing, gold traces are always left on the workshop floor. While most of it is carefully retrieved and recycled, a small quantity makes its way across the market on the soles of the workmen’s shoes, where it mingles with the dust on the ground.

While some, including me, just don’t see any auspicious occasion to buy gold, many consider it as goddess Lakshmi and make plans ahead when to buy it, on special days and months and muhurats as they give much importance to the auspicious and inauspicious days.

How about this??!!

Just before the festival season, newspapers brim over with advertisements of gold - in every form, a gold fund offer by banks or a discount on jewellery. No matter how much the prices soar, the love for the yellow metal never tends to stop or the vice versa, as the old saying says, in India, thanks to drought and marriage, the price of gold will always go up.

And if a person is thinking of gold as an investment it is always better to invest in gold bonds, which is a simple way to buy gold. Buying gold in demat form, either through the commodity exchange or through a mutual fund, can give us all the positives of gold with much fewer hassles and greater tax efficiency. When buying physical gold, not many realize that we are paying a premium on the gold which we would lose if we go to sell it. Plus, keeping the gold safe is always an issue. There is another important reason why people should opt to buy gold in demat form. We women are always reluctant to sell physical gold, but with a gold bond, it is much less of an emotional issue and we will not hold our men back from selling the gold bonds! 

My first National Day in Qatar

At the break of dawn, people were moving towards the Corniche not just to find the best seatbut also to find the nearest parking area, and to see the air show and the Army march in its full glory. Cars were parked as far as the HMC Complex on the one end, to the Musheireb area on the other end, while thousands walked towards the Corniche to watch the parade.

Qatar Airlines flight

People near the Oryx statue

People returning after watching the parade...

People had started turning up at the Corniche from as early as 5 am. Most showed up in style, wearing dresses or accessories inspired by Qatar’s flag or with faces painted in maroon and white, the national flag’s colour.

Don't know what the cops are discussing...

Snack-time before leaving the Corniche...

With an old beauty...

And the cop too...

For future...

We parked our car at Vij’s office and walked towards the Corniche. It was nice to see the empty roads and walking on silent roads was amazing, even though our legs started singing with pain. We reached the Corniche and came to know that there were several seats laid for thousands along the stretch from Al Bidda Park to the Ministry of Interior headquarters along the Corniche Road which were already occupied and the crowd spilled over to the roadside!

The kid looks amused...

He wanna ride now itself... ;)

Weeeeee.....

Proud to be Qataris...

We just stood at the big screen near the Oryx statue to watch the whole event and then joined the crowd to see other events.

National Day Parade

Braving cold weather and traffic blocks on many city roads on Sunday morning, we joined hundreds of people who were lined up to witness the National Day parade, which featured a large number of marching platoons and new armoured vehicles along the Corniche.

Rendition of the National Anthem and recitation of verses from the Quran followed by an 18-gun salute to the Emir signalled the start of the event. The parade showed Qatar’s indelible horse and camel racing and maritime tradition as horse and camel riders paraded while dhows sailed in the bay at the start of the much-awaited national day parade.

It was followed by members of the Qatari army, navy and air force marching smartly on one side of the Corniche Road as tanks and classic and modern armoured vehicles passed on the other side. Vij told me new to this year’s parade was a team of powered paragliders who flew as the parade progressed. Military speedboats dashing across the waters added to the beauty of the event.

Old bus...

As Vij had seen in the last year, this year also vehicles carrying dignitaries led by the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani followed the armoured vehicles as countless flag-waving spectators cheered the country’s leader who responded by waving back at the crowds.

A captivating air show featuring a series of fighter planes zoomed past emitting smoke trails in the national colours of maroon and white, but it was so hazy and foggy that we could hardly get any good pictures.

And a dogie too...

Sorties by parachute jumpers from the armed forces were so remarkable that many, including us, were awestruck. The jumpers made their landings on the spacious lawns in the precincts of the Emiri Diwan. Later, a brand new Qatar Airways aircraft flew past the parade zone at a low altitude towards the end of the show of military vehicles!

The march past featured contingents from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guards, Internal Security Force, Civil Defence, heritage police, cadets of training institutes and other academies, as well as scouts and schoolchildren, just reminded us of our Republic Day celebrations back home.

The show of the country’s military might featured battle tanks, armoured personnel carriers, rocket launchers, mine detectors, anti-aircraft guns, propellers, infantry vehicles, surveillance equipment, fire extinguishers, coastguard vessels, anti-pirate frigates, interceptors, fire engines of the civil defence, other monitoring and communication vehicles in the use of the Internal Security Force and Al Fazaa, and other departments of the Ministry of Interior.

Even though the parade’s focus seemed to be on the armed forces’ recent possessions, the organisers also succeeded in bringing to the fore the country’s cultural heritage, fielding groups of soldiers on horses and camels. The cavalcade of horses, led by immaculately dressed soldiers, drew our attention.

As the soldiers marched, many people stood up on their seats to salute the soldiers. Dressed in maroon and white, children were most excited to see the show. It was obvious that many teens took complete advantage of the festive mood and its privileges. Many youngsters had come along with their friends just to shower people with snow-spray and burst the crackers.

After the parade, the Corniche burst into a barrage of honks, songs, shouts and dances in a convivial atmosphere as a variety of cars bathed in maroon and white hues ruled the 7-km stretch. Passers-by in Qatar-inspired costumes carrying various National Day memorabilia greeted each other through party poppers and sprays.

Vij is here for the past two plus years and he goes every year to the Corniche to get himself soaked in the spirit of National Day. Moreover, it’s amazing to feel and see how much Qataris celebrate the occasion and this year, I loved being a part of that. The sense of community on display throughout the day provided a feeling of warmth for us and so we decided to venture outside despite the chilly evenings and nights on Saturday and Sunday.

After the event, we just walked towards his office and got an opportunity to click several pictures of the cars, painted in different colours, parading on the roads.

Fireworks

In the evening, there was an exciting party mood all over the Corniche as thousands flocked to witness and enjoy the revelry that would cap the evening edition of the National Day celebrations.

The sky above Doha sparkled with Qatar’s national colours on Sunday night, as maroon and gold fireworks soared above the Corniche during an exciting climax to the National Day celebrations.

The display, which lasted 12 minutes, lit up the night sky with a dazzling array of some of the best fireworks in the world. As well as the incredible quality of the display, the sheer extent of the show was amazing to watch.

We cheered in chorus in great amazement when the barrage of fireworks started to shoot up the sky with different styles and colours plus a mix of a loud boom that synchronised the glittering starry-like sparks coming from the small boats that was used as the base of the pyrotechnics.

Spanning the length of the Corniche, the display was enjoyed by everybody making use of vantage points around the entire area. The highlights of the show was the appearance of hearts, flowers, baby footprints and smiley faces in the sky, as well as letters spelling out the name of the country.

The fireworks display was synchronised to a track which was also composed for the evening and performed by the children who helped to come up with the creative concept behind the show.

I also read in some newspapers that the show had been some six months in the making, and eight computers fired off the fireworks which took 20 technicians around 18 days on site to set up! And I saw a few of my friends saying on FB that it was the best fireworks they had ever seen.

There were about a dozen Dhows which performed the 20-minute laser show cruising off the seashore of the Corniche that unleashed colourful light beams criss-crossing the night sky.

Flags and roadside vendors

I think roadside vendors were most happy with the celebrations, as everybody was buying flags from them since Thursday. They were selling vehicle stickers, featuring pictures of the Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani and the Heir Apparent Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. Most of the vehicles donned them and I think most youngsters enjoyed having them on their vehicles.

Some were even selling T-shirts, scarves and flags besides vehicle stickers. Some shiops even had stress balls in the colours of the Qatar national flag, and some had featured the pictures of the Emir and the Heir Apparent.

Business was brisk at the retail outlets selling ad materials, especially at the auto accessories’ shops. Many retailers across the city were busy fixing stickers on vehicles even in the wee hours. Even though we didn’t fix any stickers, we didn’t forget to have two small flags at the back windows and a big flag on top of our car to get ourselves indulged in the Qatari spirit of celebrations ;)

Painted cars

The fact that everyone in Qatar comes to see a show is what amazes me. The entire country practically gathers at one place that makes the day memorable for everyone. It brings them closer together as a nation.

The motorcade by a mix of expensive SUVs, CRVs and ordinary cars painted with temporary maroon paints and souvenir car stickers while young Qataris standing up on car roofs, waving huge national flag as they sang and yell just to greet thousands of spectators who came and jam packed the Corniche.

Young Qataris who were either walking or standing atop the moving cars occasionally sprayed party crazy ribbons and snow spray to anyone just for fun and make the parade livelier and enjoyable for everybody who braved the chilly night at the Corniche.

There were blowing of horns either from cars and hand-pumped plastic toy horns just to make noise everywhere as another way of showing of fun and enjoyment regardless of nationality or race. Some teenagers even wore Halloween masks and donning comic mascots to make the Corniche parade fill with even more party mood.

There was heavy traffic around 8.15 pm when everybody went home after the fireworks display that vehicle movements were at a snail pace taking more than hour before a motorist can get out from the monstrous traffic jam emanating from car parks towards the different road directions.

The display of vehicles, primed in patterns of maroon and white that travelled on the Corniche Road once the official parade was over. The fervour began on Saturday night, which was when many drivers brought out their vehicles, adorned with stickers and paint. The creative display made many instant celebrities, as crows gathered to shoot videos and pictures of the vehicles.

Many four-wheelers, studded in maroon glitter, had a common trademark – youngsters hoisting the Qatari flag from the hood of their vehicles. Driving at the speed of less than 10-km per hour, many drivers even sat out on the windows of their cars as they waived the national flag.

How can I not click a pic in front of his office? ;)

Police vehicle also has flags...

There was certainly no shortage of dare-devil stunts. Some even stood out on the doors of their vehicles, waving the national flag with the help of an enthusiast who held the other end of the flag from a parallel vehicle.

Meanwhile, each moment was being captured by people who had specially come out to capture the enthusiasm of these youngsters. Last year also Vij had photographed these colourful vehicles and we have to appreciate the patriotism of these youngsters.

Vintage car show

Well-preserved vintage vehicles became an instant tourist attraction during the classic car show near the Oryx statue on the Corniche. After the formal launch of the exhibition after the National Day parade on Sunday, we took an opportunity to freely get in the decades-old vehicles, take pictures and experience how the soldiers and dignitaries did in the past.

And Vij was eagerly posing near almost all the vehicles and kept me busy throughout clicking his pictures. Many kids enjoyed the show and were posing for the photographs.

A favourite among the more than 20 classic vehicles on display are five armoured cars dating back to the 1950s. Equipped with 75mm cannon and machine gun with smoke grenade, the Saladin 6x6 armoured car which was brought to Qatar in 1965 was one of the crowd drawers, along with few others including a Daimler MK2 and Saracen 6x6 armoured personnel carrier.

The first motorised vehicle in Qatar which was the Morris 1930 used for geological surveys done in the country between 1932 and 1933 is also featured at the expo which runs until December 30. It was placed beside a 1956 Model Beadle Albion used as a school bus for students during their field trips in the 1960s.

VIP cars have also drawn more visitors at the expo such as the 1958 model Oldsmobile 98, 1955 convertible Cadillac and Ford Galaxy 500 Sunliner, which were valued for having been used by many royals, heads of state, ministers and other high ranking dignitaries during their official visits to Qatar in the past.

A 1942 model C8A HUP, which was used by Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah during his excursions along with tribesmen in the countryside was also showcased.

Police cars, including Ford 1961 model and 1947 Land Rover ‘80’ series 1, were also crowd-pullers along with four units of Triumph 1960 motorcycles, which were some of the first ones used by Qatari traffic police when it was founded in 1955. Interestingly, the maroon and silver coloured motorcycles remind every onlooker of the Qatari flag.

Three firefighting vehicles used by the Civil Defence in the 1970s never failed to amaze us for their totally different look from colour to size and features as compared to the modern ones.

Visitors have until December 30 to witness the exhibition which is part of the celebrations of the Qatar National Day.

Darb al-Saai camp

Different aspects of Qatar’s rich cultural heritage came alive at Darb Al Saai camp near Sports Roundabout and we couldn’t miss it as it’s very close to our house.

The camp, which opened on December 10 as part of the national day celebrations, featured a spectrum of activities ranging from poetry recitals to folkloric children’s games such as Sadda Raddha and animals’ exhibition.

The animals’ exhibition, which included Arabian Oryx, was aimed at creating awareness about the importance of the natural habitat and its preservation.

Another area of interest at the camp was the traditional tents corner known as Al-Maqtar intended to reflect the old nomadic way of life in the country. The venue showcased the young falconer competition, traditional cuisine, art with a focus on drawings and historic photographs and hunting with greyhounds ‘Saluki’.

There were hundreds of families, students and individuals who flocked to the venue to participate in the activities and learn about Qatar’s culture.

The camp was not restricted to cultural activities as it offered a display of classic cars, including a Ford Model T and a ’67 Chevy Corvette, both of which are sought after collectors’ items.

Overall, it was a memorable day and we will cherish for days, and yes, will be at the Corniche little early, next year ;) Happy National Day, Qatar!