#weareQatar: What life is like in Qatar right now

After receiving numerous text messages from long lost friends and people I used to know, all asking whether I was okay, was I still living in Qatar and do I have food to eat - I thought it might be high time to answer those questions.

I am living in Doha.  I  go to work every morning as usual, my colleagues and I talk about how strange the current situation is and it’s unfortunate that it is happening during Ramadan.

I then book a car - which comes late - as usual.  I go to a fully stocked LuLu Hypermarket, a popular supermarket in my neighbourhood. I get my supplies and head to the counter to find just one person waiting in line to pay.

There weren’t really any signs of people rushing into the supermarket and panic buying. I was mildly surprised by the calmness in the store.

I tried to take a picture of the calm grocery store two days ago when reports were flying that people were going crazy in a mad rush.  As I took the photo, a middle-aged Qatari man reported me to management who then asked me to not take photos in the grocery store (my most exciting moment of the week).

I then go home, cook, do whatever I normally do, then go out to pray, meet friends, dine out or whatever else.

Nothing has changed

The regular expat and citizens in Qatar are simply going along with their regular routines. Yes, there are some political instabilities in the background, but it’s left in the competent hands of Qatar’s leadership.

My biggest life challenges right now are how to get a driver to collect me on time so I am not late for work.

Are people worried about the current crisis? Yes.

Is it affecting our day-to-day life in Qatar? No.

I booked a British Airways flight home to Canada that stops over in the UK, thus avoiding all the Gulf hotspots and bans. Other than that, life is normal.

We are praying that Qatar and its neighbours settle their disputes peacefully.  Surprisingly, most Qataris still refer to their neighbours as brothers, not merely neighbours.

Let’s pray for peace, happiness and God’s pleasure in this holy month.