I mentioned in an earlier post that I've had trouble getting to sleep as there are issues with turning off the thinker once I lay down. My mind goes into overdrive and I finally relent, get the computer, and answer the question(s) that kept me awake. To be honest, it's the one time of the day where I can have total quiet (with the occasional snore from A) and think by myself. Luckily, it snowed all night, which prevented us from getting out this morning (positive spin on more snow [I got to sleep in a bit]).
On to the discovery! There isn't much about living in Qatar that makes me nervous or worried. After living in a Muslim country in N. Africa for five years, I feel like adapting will just happen. It isn't always fun figuring out where to buy toilet paper, but you do it because you have to. The one thing that has had me thinking a lot is the driving. I'd heard that Qataris drive on the left hand of the streets (with the driver on the right side of the vehicle). I'm not nervous about the traffic, crazy (non-law-abiding) drivers, round abouts, or road rage. I grew accustomed to that quickly. It was all of that, combined with feeling like a fish out of water on the "wrong" side of the road.
I had visions of accidentally turning the wrong way down a one-way street, having to weave through on coming traffic, before having police stop traffic so I could get off the street. Or, I'd just not drive and have to wait for A to get off work before we could leave the house. Neither of these seemed like good options for me.
So, last night, I was reading some ex-pat blogs to get an idea of the transition to driving on the "wrong" side of the road. I went back to the blog that I remembered having topics about driving when a light bulb came on.. This is a BRITISH blog! They drive on the "wrong" side of the road! Doh!! So, for them it is driving on the "wrong side," but for us it is the "right" side. Sigh of relief (sorry Brits).
I went on to start studying up on driving rules and practices, which seem familiar (in terms of N. African driving). I got side track on actually buying a vehicle, which vehicles to buy (I get the idea that a 4x4 is the vehicle of choice for safety and dune hopping), and how to maintain vehicles. I was getting into classifieds when I heard, "K, you may want to sleep some time soon..."
Since A was clearly awake, I tried to let him in on my discoveries... I can't say that he was nearly as excited as I was. Of course traffic laws at midnight, might not keep most people awake. I am an exception.
No comments:
Post a Comment