Building Boom

People may be leaving cars and overdrawn credit cards at the airport in Dubai, but quite the opposite is happening in Doha.

The other day, I stepped out from work and realized how significant it was to see the number of cranes dotting the skyline. I counted 17.

Here's a panorama view, starting from the North:

Dive report

I've been underwater the last 2 weekends, and there are lots of good things happening there.

Two weekends ago, though, there were terrible winds at Old Club Reef. For those who live in snowy climates, think of how it is when snow drifts-- that's what the sand was like. Even with keeping the kit in the back of my car, it still got covered in sand. I had to take my regulators apart and clean them, and I'm still finding sand in odd spots.



Last weekend the Al Khor Dive Club ventured out to 3 Barges, a dive site that is North and East of Ras Laffan. We did 2 dives, with the water temperatures being 20C. 3 Barges is a site teeming with life. There were countless chromodoris annulata nudibranchs, 6-armed starfish, small patches of coral beginning to grow, and... wait for it... 3 anemone with clownfish! This is a huge deal for Qatar.







Coral beginning to grow.


Brittle star.

Chromodoris Annulata nudibranch.

Yesterday I went to Old Club Reef, and the conditions couldn't have been better. Warm day, no wind, and water temps warmed up to 22C, with a small thermocline to 23 at 6 meters, and surface temperatures at 24. If this keeps up, I predict I'll be back in just a 3mil within 2 weeks.

But there was some excitement at OCR. A chromodoris obsoleta has laid eggs, and I also got a good photo of the chromodoris cazae that has been lurking for the last few weeks. Seeing the chromodoris cazae is an especially wonderful treat, as the only documented sightings of this nudibranch in the whole wide blue world are Qatar and the UAE. There were also 3 nice-sized white snapper, which I am sincerely hoping did not fall victim to the spearfishermen who insist on hunting where a lot of people pleasure dive.

Chromodoris cazae.



Nudibranch eggs.

l

Chromodoris obsoleta and eggs.

c

Chromodoris Obsoleta--close up.



Finger coral that reminds me of icicles.



Rush hour.


Brittle star.

Sampling the wares...

I've heard of sampling grapes at the store before buying, but this has to take the blue ribbon...

This morning I was in Carrefour, doing a shopping before going to work. I stopped at the nuts and dates section, and found that someone, or several someones, had opened a box of dates...


and helped themselves quite generously, leaving the pits behind on the shelf.


It's amazing what I see in Doha sometimes.