Doha (day two)

Jet lag is no fun. I am sleeping well though, hopefully it will pass soon. Dad had to go into work today so Mom and I got up and took a taxi down town to the Souq. The Souq is the old fashioned market with narrow streets and customary shops and goods. It is not historical, but was rebuilt to model what it would have looked like. It was really awesome to visit. The 'main drag' is open to the sunlight but the side alleys are covered and winding in every direction. It is quite the maze. There were all sorts of traditional clothing shops with veils and robes, furniture, trinkets, and all sorts of food. They have wonderful bread over here. Its made almost like a crepe, flat and thin. We watched them make the one they handed us, its great. There was also men to watch working at their craft. Carving things from blocks of wood, making jewelry, even a cobbler working on shoes. The best part of the Souq though is the area with wholesale spices. Entire shops full of burlap sacks with every kind of spice and incense you can think of. It smells wonderful. I only wish I could read Arabic so I would know what they all were and what I could use them for! I didn't take my camera today because I wanted to take it all in before I spend the whole time looking for pictures, but don't worry, we are going back and I will take lots of good ones. When we came back from our morning I sat on the beach and read my book for a while longer. When Dad came back from work he brought dinner with him. A Lebanese dish called a 'swarma' which is grilled chicken and some veggies rolled up in Arabic bread, basically a fajita. They were good. After dinner we went down the the cafe in the main part of the hotel and listened to two women who played the violin and piano while we drank coffee/tea. Another terrible day! The only thing that is wrong is that there is no snow for Christmas. I suppose the tan that I will pick up will make up for it though.