My last day here is the first day of their weekend. As the family takes it easy, I’m taking a walk around, committing to memory the little details of the home my friend has made. The fridge magnets, for instance, which are a window to a part of her personality. I am solidifying the many…

Post school run hot chocolate, we took to the open road to check out Afsha’s favourite Al Bayt stadium. It was closed, but the tent shaped retractable dome was visible. The only pity was not being able to walk in that park. There was a McDonalds with a tented top as consolation. We got slightly…

Today marked a week of my being here. Afsha the Great has been spectacular in scheduling, ticking things off and relentlessly keeping up my experiences while also being a mum, influencer and general boss. I’m also learning how she single handedly strategised my entire experience of Qatar. I’m slightly scared I think but more, in…

Our morning routine took us to Aspire Park. Ms. Afsha took the ducks some baguettes coz she’s that sweet. We walked around, she told the backstory of this neighbourhood, the sports complex, the upcoming sports day (they have a national day for sports. Every 2nd Tuesday in February: that’s so smart) After some hanging about…

The weekday routine we’ve settled on is, drop kids to school and head out on adventures. Today, we returned to the MIA park to check out more Yayoi Kusama installations. After meeting more cats than is legit, we headed out to Mshereib, downtown Doha, design district, name it. We’ve earmarked a couple of things for…

Sunday dawned and with that, the realisation that while the kids have school here, I’m still on my weekend. Once the kids got dropped off to school at 6 something, Afsha and I set out to the Corniche for a nice long walk. Having worked up an appetite, we headed to Souq Waqif for breakfast….

We started the morning with a trip to the farmer’s market that was key to Afsha’s businesswoman origin story. She was welcomed there by people as the triumphant queen returning to greet old collaborators. People shared what an influence she was at the market and how she’s pushed women into trying their hand at a…

The family takes it easy on Friday mornings. I know from following Afsha that she turns off all alarms on Friday and so, I decided to stay quiet as a mouse. The littlest mouse however had other ideas. We both spent the morning drawing and colouring. After a biryani lunch, Afsha packed up the only…

The start of holiday planning is a phase of weaving between a frantic kind of excitement and “oh, I’ll have to leave the comfort of my kettle and tea / my bathroom / my patch of sunshine on the porch”. It’s just so convenient to not have adventures. “Nasty, disturbing, uncomfortable things”, as Bilbo Baggins…