Hello dear friends,
We came back home from a month of holidays a few weeks ago but
I am still struggling to get back into my routine. Last week I went to
the gym for the first time and almost died the next day from pain in every bone
and muscle of my body. I couldn't walk for a few days after
that.
Anyhow, we had a wonderful time and I would like to share with your what we saw, ate and did during that time. Here is Part one of our Holiday 2019 saga.
Unfortunately, it didn't start the way we planned and I will tell
you why. According to our itinerary, the first stop was St Petersburg, Russia. My husband left
Sydney three weeks ahead of me for Cape Town to visit his father. The
plan was that on the same day I would fly from Sydney and him - from Cape
Town to Doha, the capital of Qatar where we would stay overnight and on
the next day, the 29 of June to be exact would catch a connecting plane to
St Petersburg where our
holiday would officially begin. However, when I came to the airport and
presented my passport for check-in, it appeared that the date shown on my
Russian visa was incorrect, instead of stating the entry date of 29 of June as
per my application, it was showing that I can enter Russia not earlier than 2
of July, which was the day when we supposedly would fly from St Petersburg to Moscow.
I still don't know whether I entered the wrong date on the application or whether the Russian Embassy made a mistake, the bottom line was that upon receiving the visa, I didn't look at it properly thus was fully responsible for this terrible blunder. There was no way I would be let into Russia earlier then the date on my visa, I can only fly to Doha as per my ticket and wait there till my visa become valid, ie 2 July. I managed to get a hold of my husband in Cape Town and asked him to check the date on his visa, it was correct and he was good to go. However, being a good husband, he said that he is not going anywhere without me, so he cancelled his flight from Doha to St Petersburg and stayed with me in Doha.
I still don't know whether I entered the wrong date on the application or whether the Russian Embassy made a mistake, the bottom line was that upon receiving the visa, I didn't look at it properly thus was fully responsible for this terrible blunder. There was no way I would be let into Russia earlier then the date on my visa, I can only fly to Doha as per my ticket and wait there till my visa become valid, ie 2 July. I managed to get a hold of my husband in Cape Town and asked him to check the date on his visa, it was correct and he was good to go. However, being a good husband, he said that he is not going anywhere without me, so he cancelled his flight from Doha to St Petersburg and stayed with me in Doha.
My frustration with myself was beyond words. I can't fully
express how upset I felt. Both of us were so looking forward to seeing
St Petersburg, visit its amazing
palaces and museums, walk along its streets during the White Nights season and
see a ballet at its world renowned Mariinsky theatre for which we had bought tickets well in advance and we
were facing the possibility that after months of careful planning, preparations
and anticipation we would have to miss St Petersburg all together. Not to
mention the financial loss that we incurred due to altering our itinerary and
re-booking the flights.
Anyhow, there was no point of crying about it so we took a deep
breath and made a couple of executive decisions. Number one, since we
were stuck in the Middle East, we would try and make the best out of it and
second, we would contact our travel agent and ask him to once again re-book our
tickets and forgo Moscow completely in favour of St Petersburg. Once we made up our minds,
I felt much better and was really looking forward to explore what this part of
the world has to offer.
We decided to spend a couple of days in Qatar and then fly to Oman
for a couple of days since it was the only country to which we could fly
directly and quickly and so our Middle East adventure had begun.
The next morning, after a quick breakfast at the hotel Kempinsky,
we went downstairs to seek the advice of a concierge about what sites should we
visit.
His immediate suggestions were The National Museum of Qatar and also
The Qatar Museum of Islamic Art. Armed with his advice, we stepped
outside into the 46 degrees heat. I got my first impression of this dry
land was from the plane and now staying in the middle of the totally deserted
street, all I could see around us was just a jungle of tall skyscrapers,
expensive cars driving by and the shimmering glare of the desert beyond.
It was so hot so walking around was out of the question so we hastily got into an air conditioned cab
and asked him to take us to our first destination, The Qatar Museum of Islamic Art.
The museum is built on an island off an artificial peninsula on
one end of the Corniche, a several kilometers a water front promenade extending for several kilometers Doha Bay, near the original dhow harbour and hosts over 14
centuries of the Islamic Art. We spent quite a few hours there admiring
the vast collection of arts and crafts, exhibiting high artistic skills of ancient artisans.
The next day we took a taxi to see the The National Museum of Qatar. As the taxi drew nearer, we were spellbound by
the innovative architecture that was applied in building this museum. The
structure looked so light and delicate that it looked like being suspended in
mid-air and at the same time effortlessly blended into the surroundings as if
it has always been there.
We spent a few very interesting hours walking through its halls
that spread over 1.5 km and then took a taxi home.
And of course, you can't be in Middle East and not visit a souk
and so we did but I found it underwhelming in comparison to the souks that we have been to in Morocco a couple of years ago.
The two days that we spent there were a true revelation. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay in Doha and learned quite a lot about life, culture and traditions of people Qatar.
The following day we left Doha and flew to Muscat, the capital of
Oman.
Till the next post
xoxox
Anna
Till the next post
xoxox
Anna
Gosh, that's crazy about your visa, Anna. At least you made the best of it, and saw such wonderful sight.
ReplyDeleteXOXO
Jodie
Thank you Jodie, it was a disaster that we salvaged as much as we could and had a great time afteall
DeleteOh gosh! ....But what a beautiful building that museum is!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Nancy, it was shocking experience
DeleteWhat a big disappointment for you Anna! But I admire your resilience in adapting your schedule. I didn't know much about Doha so this was interesting, and I look forward to reading about Oman, which I understand is a very beautiful country. Thanks for joining #WowOnWednesday!
ReplyDeleteThank you Gail, I am working on it as we speak :)
DeleteMy brother was stationed in Qatar a number of years back! I will have to ask him where he visited while there!
ReplyDeletewww.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com
Thank you Mirelle
ReplyDeleteIt's always so hard getting back into a routine after vacation!
ReplyDeleteSo true
DeleteI would have been gutted about my plans being ruined too Anna. What you salvaged from the trip looks brilliant though. I love all the architecture! xx
ReplyDeleteThank you Laurie, I believe we did what we could
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm so sorry that happened, but wow! You still saw some wonderful sites!
ReplyDeleteYes, we did
DeleteGlad you like it
ReplyDelete