Camels In Doha, Qatar
Last week, we chatted about the beautiful horses travelers can see for free in Doha, Qatar.
The camel pen is right next door to the horse pen in the old city! And it is open for viewing also.
I don’t find camels beautiful. (grins) They are very similar to moose (I adore moose) in their usual faces and forms. But they are magnificent. And they are strong. And they DEFINITELY have unique personalities, which makes them a lot of fun to watch.
This camel looks like he’s yelling over the fence at the neighbors.
This camel stole a ‘kiss’ while I was distracting her pen mate.
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Horses In Doha, Qatar
Last week, I talked about how cats rule Dubai.
They rule Doha, Qatar also.
As do horses.
Horses are…everywhere. (grins) Visitors can watch horse races. They can ride horses over nearby sand dunes.
And they can visit the stables in the middle of the old part of the city. For FREE!
The horses, many of them beautiful Arabians, can be seen in their pens, eating and frolicking and doing horse things.
They can also be seen in the buildings, in their stables. The Dear Wonderful Hubby and I walked right into the buildings and that type of spontaneous visiting seemed to be encouraged. We watched as locals brought treats for the horses and fed them. Some kind souls offered us some of the treats so we could feed the horses also.
It was a horse lover’s dream!
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Muse Food – Mounted Police And Setting The Mood
I was completely enchanted by these mounted police in Qatar.
And…I shouldn’t have been. Because they ARE the police. They have the ability to arrest me and others and perhaps do worse to us.
Those beautiful horses? I suspect they have been trained to kill.
But someone from North America, like myself, associates them with parades and other peaceful events. We don’t view them as possible weapons.
If you want to change the mood of a story, that can be as easy as changing a small detail…like the mode of transportation the rule enforcers use.
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Muse Food – Rambo, Falcons And What We Value
When the Dear Wonderful Hubby and I were exploring Doha, Qatar, we ventured into the section of the city (Falcon Souq) where the falcons were bought, sold and tended to.
(There is an awesome high tech hospital dedicated to serving falcons!)
Falconry in Qatar is a BIG DEAL. The falcons sell for thousands of US dollars. They are prized and well taken care of and valued for a number of different aspects.
As you can likely predict, yes, some falcons are valued for their hunting prowess and for their flying skills. They are graceful in the air, like deadly little dancers.
But some falcons, like Rambo shown here, are valued for their beauty. Rambo has entered and won many beauty contests and his male handlers were adorably proud of that fact. (smiles)
That says a lot about Qatar culture.
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Brush With Royalty In London
Recently, the Dear Wonderful Hubby and I had a full day layover in London, England. So we stored our luggage in lockers and headed out to explore.
(First, we had to visit the post office to exchange some ancient pounds for current currency, a task we were given by the elders to complete.)
The streets around Buckingham Palace were blocked off. The Qatar flag was flying everywhere.
Some guards on horseback passed.
We stopped and watched.
Then a carriage with King Charles III clearly visible in it passed. (He was looking his age.)
A carriage with Kate, Princess of Wales, visible followed. (She was looking extremely regal.)
The parade continued for many moments after that.
Dear Wonderful Hubby joked that every horse in England was in attendance. (grins)
It was all very exciting!
But not everyone was as enthralled as we were. During the display, one woman was enthusiastically taking photos…of a squirrel in a nearby park. (laughs)
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