Anyone who regularly reads our website will notice that we have been posting increasing numbers of positions in Qatar, specifically in Doha, for the soon-to-be-opened Sidra Medical & Research Centre and at the Hamad Medical Corporation. I thought I would answer some of the more practical/common questions.
Q: Can women drive in Qatar?
Yes, women are allowed to drive. The streets are, however, crowded with large, fancy cars, and personally, being a walker, I would, as soon as possible, accommodate myself to the heat and walk wherever possible. (It’s also good for the abs and the derrière.)
Q: What if I don’t want to drive?
If you don’t want to buy or to rent or lease a car (which can run between about US$700 to US$1,300/month), you can hire a driver (who will take you all over town for about US$7/hour, plus gas). There are also local taxis, and Sidra and Hamad have shuttle bus service between the hospital and housing.
Q: What is there to do in Qatar?
Qatar is a tourist destination. Activities range from music and theatre, to museums, to sports (golf, running, biking, tennis, horseback riding, and hiking), to sailing, to shopping. For more information, Creating Memories in Qatar - A Guide to Recreation in Qatar.
Q: Are there Western colleges in Qatar?
Yes. Education City and its environs are home to Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts in Qatar, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Texas A&M University at Qatar, Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar, University of Calgary in Qatar, and the College of the North Atlantic in Qatar. For more information, see International Universities in Qatar.
Q: What should I wear?
Qatar is hot and dry to moderately humid for most of the year, with occasional days of very high humidity. Women do not have to wear an abaya or cover their hair. However, out of respect for the local Muslim culture, in public one should not wear revealing garments, such as tank tops and short-shorts.
Q: Are there churches for Christians?
Yes. In 2005, an agreement was signed by representatives of several denominations for a long-term lease on land on the outskirts of Doha, where the denominations could erect six churches (at the churches’ expense). The property includes a Catholic church (opened 2008), an Anglican Church (building in process), an Indian Christian Church (building in process), a Coptic Christian Church (open), a Greek Orthodox Church (opened 2008), and an Syrian Orthodox church (opened 2009).
Q: Can I buy alcohol in Qatar?
Only non-Muslim expatriates with a liquor license can buy alcohol at the one retail outlet, and alcohol is strictly controlled. Hotels do, however, sell alcohol and, on the Pearl, restaurants sell alcohol, and there is even a pavement café atmosphere there where diners can consume alcohol in the open air.
Q: Can I buy prescription medications over-the-counter in Qatar, like in Saudi Arabia?
Yes, with the exception of narcotics.
Want to read more letters?
Visit our page Letters from Helen Ziegler.
For more Qatar FAQs, see:
- Qatar General FAQs
- Qatar Social & Cultural FAQs (full set)
Want to read more letters?
Visit our page Letters from Helen Ziegler.
