It rained this morning in Doha. Only "some small rain" as my driver, Mr. Karu put it; but rain nonetheless. I would've taken a picture, but it didn't last long enough! I wasn't expecting to see any rain, not until the fall anyway. Still waiting for the heat that’s going to break me… We'll see.For those of you reading this from Calgary or Vancouver: this picture displays the parking rate downtown, at the souks (markets). In case you don't have a calculator handy, that's approximately $0.30 Canadian per/hour. Did I mention that gas hovers around $0.20/litre? In reality however, that's all small consolation for the grave danger one puts their life in driving here. The roads are all new, nicely paved, and wide (generally 3 lanes). Unfortunately there's a marked lack of lane discipline. That said, being without wheels is very restricting, especially living out in the burbs as I do. I am seriously reconsidering my initial intention to not drive. I don't have to decide anytime soon, however, as I'm still without a Residence Permit, and therefore cannot lease or buy anything anyway. The illustrious RP, which also allows one to obtain a liquor permit, is still some time in coming, as I've only just begun the process. Tomorrow I go for blood-typing and a chest x-ray.
In case there was any doubt in my mind as to why I've come here (there wasn't: but let's just say there was, for the sake of this commentary), it was certainly erased yesterday. I volunteered to judge a Science and Math Fair at the Al Rasala Independent Girls High School here, and it was truly an extraordinary experience. I'll start by mentioning that when initially invited, I also invited my boss Fred, UC-Q Director of Student Services, to join me. This was indicative of my inexperience as, of course, no men allowed! Anywho, the event ran four hours, but I could've stayed all week long. There were 44 projects entered, mostly by the grade 12 class. The exhibits ranged from very simple to impressively complex, and offered remarkable insight into what education for girls is like here. At their simplest, girls built models to demonstrate their knowledge of equations to calculate area and volume. This is something you would see in a grade 7 Science Fair in Canada. Yet, we also saw demonstrations on DNA structure. Fortunately for me (a Political Science major), the first project I visited was about recycling! The best part of all this though was talking with the students, and witnessing their enthusiasm: nervous, eager, passionate enthusiasm. Not one of these young women had ever participated in any such event before. Many had never even been exposed to this sort of "public speaking", conversing with the judges (strangers). One of the very proud event organizers explained to me that Girls' Schools were more apt to host beauty pageants than Science Fairs. This notion of really educating women is all very new, and still not widely valued. But the students I encountered understood it very well. The entire experience was both humbling and magnificent. I believe I walked out of that high school with a new education myself. Of course they thanked us all profusely for giving our time, but I am quite certain I got much more than I gave that afternoon.
