my first annoyance in doha-its not like uk

DiamondGirl
By DiamondGirl

while shopppin with my other half in city center
we went to splash. we collected about the clothes we wanted
and as im new there i thought ill go to cashpoint downstairs and check my balance as it will show in riyal, jsut to avoid any embarrassment at the till.
so i asked the lady to hold the items for me she said it s ok for one hour.
i said 20 mmins will b sufficient and off i went to the cashpoint.
after realising my 100 pounds of so where sufficent i happily went bak upstairs to pay, i asked her for the stuff she just managed to mutter no.
i was angry to say the least after spending an hour or more choosing the items and tryin them on,
this wouldnt have happened in good old blighty
is this wat im to expect i already notice a few of the staff cant understand englsh.
i guess it comes down to sumthin i read earlier on here this is gulf get used to it.
i think i just wanted to vent
thanks x

By diamond• 15 Jun 2009 13:31
diamond

Oryx, are you talking to me or DiamondGirl???

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By Oryx• 15 Jun 2009 12:17
Rating: 4/5
Oryx

Yep customer service is pretty crappy here.

Inconsistent

I had GREAT service in Qtel at Villagio the other day and always at PQ. Also I was bargain shopping at Shoe Mart sale and they were great.

Crappy in Virgin and H&M (surprising both usually good)

But then again diamond think of the salaries/training they get in the UK and they do here..... its sad a lot dont know HOW to do their job. But chains should have international standards...and they do NOT.

By Arien• 15 Jun 2009 11:09
Arien

What a load of ....

This could happen anywhere. Btw , who told you Doha is Just like UK before you rushed here???

this is a troll and diamond!!! ,watch out.. you are the target.lol

______________________________________________

- Listen to Many...Speak to a Few -

By maz1• 15 Jun 2009 11:04
maz1

Tallg, yes it looks like i got them 2 confused. LOL to clarify the first comment was for diamondgirl. Second comment was for diamond, but not all of it, as the first part doesnt apply to her.

Thanks for noting out that i may have a virus (I do). I just have not had time to get my machine rebuilt, will do it sometime soon!

By Gypsy• 15 Jun 2009 10:56
Gypsy

Since everyone else is complaining. I was at Carrefour...oh wait..Sorry

Iz waz ats carrfour last nite an the dude tryz 2 sellz mez a toshiba tv whenz wats i iz wantin iz a sony. iz waz soz upset. thatz would neverz happenz inz in tha uk's

By tallg• 15 Jun 2009 10:30
tallg

maz1 - please note that diamondgirl and diamond are two different people.

Please note also that you appear to have an issue with your PC, that causes you to post each comment many times. Someone else had this problem and it turned out to be a virus.

By owen• 15 Jun 2009 10:23
owen

wait for more.. there'll be more to come and carry with you always tons of patience, you are in Doha, Qatar..enjoy.. :)

[img_assist|nid=12867|link=none|align=left|width=|height=0]Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.

By diamond• 15 Jun 2009 10:21
diamond

Maz1...you talking to me? I've always thought my English was quite staggering actually.

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By Amanda• 15 Jun 2009 10:18
Amanda

Who the bloddy heck calls it 'Blighty' for a minute there I was transported back to 40s England with spitfire pilots and roses round the door.

By maz1• 15 Jun 2009 10:14
maz1

If that's the case, then why are you criticising the people by saying I already noticed few people that can't speak english and Doha is not like the UK. Sounds a bit hypocritical coming from u, considering that ur english doesn't come across so staggering. N.B: He\she comes from the UK where customer service is 100 times better than here. At least i dont have to repeat myself 100 times, and everytime i go to the UK i appreciate their service even more.

By ranishkt• 15 Jun 2009 10:10
ranishkt

maz1 again a chain targetting nationalities ...

By CuriousButDetermined• 15 Jun 2009 10:09
CuriousButDetermined

To be honest.. it is your fault diamond girl..

you should have checked your budget prior to shopping..

asking staff to hold items while going to check balance would absolutely make them wonder!

you could have asked the other half to do that job!

you cannot blame staff as you never know what experiences they have been through!

these poor guys work hard and don't recieve enough pay nor do they get treated well by shoppers!

I hope you did not shout at them when they did this because your time and effort was wasted.

People just walk in shops, hearing that customer is always right, and walk in like kings and queens. Please people, share the injustice of this world imposed on those poor workers by being responsible.

By Gypsy• 15 Jun 2009 10:03
Gypsy

Wow. Did you throw yourself a pity party later that day?

By diamond• 15 Jun 2009 10:03
diamond

Tall, I think the word is 'dim-witted'. I'm just wondering what marvellous country he/she comes from where customer service is 100% bacause I've never come across such a place.

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By tallg• 15 Jun 2009 09:58
tallg

Must have ruined your day. It's a wonder how any of us cope with all these incompetent fools around us.

By maz1• 15 Jun 2009 09:54
maz1

It was pretty obvious he did that, doesnt take rocket scientist to figure that one out. And besides that's only one example, I think i can write a book on it.

By maz1• 15 Jun 2009 09:47
maz1

Most of the people that work in the shops, restaurants, my work place, etc. Don't want to mention nationalities as there are too many emotional people about.

By Gypsy• 15 Jun 2009 09:44
Gypsy

Ummm...maybe the ice cream melted from the hot cake AFTER he heated it up.

By tallg• 15 Jun 2009 09:39
tallg

maz1 - Whose dim-witted attitude?

By maz1• 15 Jun 2009 09:33
maz1

I agree with what you say, but you cannot compare Doha to the UK. I been here for a while now and i'm still not use to their dim-witted attitude. I can give you a perfect example, once i went to a restaurant and i specifically told one of the guys to warm the cake up and to make sure that he removes the icecream before doing so. Anyways the guy brings the cake back with the ice-cream melted. How stupid is that! For godsake it's common sense.

Word of advice, be stern when talking to people, trust me it works.

By Bluemountain• 14 Jun 2009 20:01
Bluemountain

everybody wrote so i have to write but i don't know what to write

By verisimilitude• 14 Jun 2009 19:30
verisimilitude

So you had a bad day and maybe you miss being in the UK. But this is Qatar, its not the UK. You cannot expect Qatar to be like the UK any more than a Qatari who goes to the UK can expect the UK to be like Qatar.

You think people in the UK never have a bad day?

By britexpat• 14 Jun 2009 19:14
britexpat

Yes, I get great customer service at Dior also :)

By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 19:11
diamond

It may have something to do with the kind of shop. I have always had great customer service here.

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By notsoglad• 14 Jun 2009 17:41
notsoglad

What's that supposed to mean? I find a positive attitude clever after all, otherwise you end up as a nervous freak (me) because ANYWAY change is beyond our control, there is no solidarity here and coming back to the thread, no customer service ideology at all, do I make myself clear?

By Majnoon Ajnabi• 14 Jun 2009 17:39
Majnoon Ajnabi

hidden and you pay them by getting gum or candy for change.

It's so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and say the opposite

By Majnoon Ajnabi• 14 Jun 2009 17:37
Majnoon Ajnabi

that's not rose coloured glasses you have on....it's your head in the sand.

It's so simple to be wise. Just think of something stupid to say and say the opposite

By notsoglad• 14 Jun 2009 17:37
notsoglad

Diamondgirl , I sympathise with you regarding the absolute lack of customer service in Doha but it is one of the little things we have to put up with. I also miss the 'thanks Dear', 'sorry about that' from the UK stores and I appreciate very much your humour posting it in here, where everything can happen!

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 17:30
DiamondGirl

squarepeg id expect that response from someone of your generation. And my english is fine thank you very much and how i choose to type is my choice, notsoglad your points are fair and i never said doha was bad it was just peeved at this particular store.

By tallg• 14 Jun 2009 17:29
tallg

my bad, I got confused between the first half of your comment which was leg pulling, and the second half about no tax which was factual!

By notsoglad• 14 Jun 2009 17:27
notsoglad

TallG, I know, you like to pull the leg of the newcomers. No need, I am really hooked in, don't you see? :-)

And I meant to be like Donosa, let's look things with the pinky shades, if something so horrible and dreadful as losing the product of hours of searching for right size and prize matters so much, it means that we have forgotten the real picture, things are really more comfortable here (if you do not start looking too close, ok?)

By tallg• 14 Jun 2009 17:22
tallg

You can get weed here if you want it.

A lady stabbed a man just the other day.

And corruption is here in a slightly different form. Wasta and importance gets things done, makes things disappear, stops things being reported etc etc.

By notsoglad• 14 Jun 2009 17:05
notsoglad

Yes, Doha is not UK, there are no homeless people, not weed, the teenagers do not settle arguments stabbing each other, the politicians are not corrupt and taking advantange from the tax payers money, and please do not forget that here you do not pay taxes on the already very high salaries. No, not at all like UK, indeed.

By Squarepeg• 14 Jun 2009 16:36
Squarepeg

Play nice, Xena? What about "fair comment"? She's complaining about shop staff not understanding English. Judging by the standard of her written English, she's hardly in a position to criticise.

By Xena• 14 Jun 2009 14:50
Xena

with the newbie... don't want her thinking we are a bunch of 'nasty cows';-)

"if you don't like the heat... get out of the kitchen... but stop trying to fan the flames before you leave... it will burn you on the a** as you go through the doorway...." ME

 

visit www.qaws.org

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 14:23
Gypsy

Y wud u tink i hav a prblem. i luv txt speek. its nut annoyin 2 read at all.

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 14:18
DiamondGirl

if u have a problem gypsy avoid my posts in future

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 13:51
Gypsy

i luv tha tex speek it mks me sund edjumacated. dont u tink?

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 13:51
DiamondGirl

ive no problem with it,

By anonymous• 14 Jun 2009 13:47
anonymous

And apparently proud of it.

 

 

 

I refuse to drink the kool-aid! -- PM

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 13:43
DiamondGirl

agree with u there PM

im an example of text lingo.

By anonymous• 14 Jun 2009 13:40
anonymous

As my grandma used to say: I can spot quality :-)

Ironic about the language issue. I think in the future ESL students will surpass the native speakers because they are the only ones that will know proper grammar, spelling and punctuation. Sadly, in the UK, US and Canada we are slowly moving towards text-lingo. I've been watching some American DVDs lately with the subtitles on and am taken aback by how many times I have seen the word "cos" :-(

 

 

 

I refuse to drink the kool-aid! -- PM

By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 13:35
diamond

PM, you know me too well. High praise indeed considering English is my second language...thanks!!!

Re DiamondGirl...imitation is the sincerest form of flattery...lol

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By anonymous• 14 Jun 2009 13:30
anonymous

lol

 

 

 

I refuse to drink the kool-aid! -- PM

By deedee• 14 Jun 2009 13:29
deedee

Get used to it diamondgirl---check the threads regarding poor customer service. I expect the worst at all times in Doha, then when something good happens I am very plesantly surprised! These are all called "character building experiences" and they give us a whole lot of great stories to tell people back in our home countries.

By anonymous• 14 Jun 2009 13:27
Rating: 2/5
anonymous

First, there is the issue of language levels. Your English is far better :-)

And second, you would never shop in Splash!

 

 

 

I refuse to drink the kool-aid! -- PM

By Dottie• 14 Jun 2009 12:55
Dottie

Aww come on DiamondGirl...............did you SERIOUSLY expect Doha to be like 'good old Blighty'? Of course you'll get annoyed by aspects of life here, we all do. But just stop to consider - not everything in the UK is wonderful and fabulous is it? Generally, I find sales staff here to be much more polite and helpful than the UK.

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 12:42
Gypsy

Don't get youtube at work so I can't :(

By Oryx• 14 Jun 2009 12:38
Oryx

go chew on your little vermont leaf....i am english kick me in the teeth...we could all do with some new dental work! ;)

anyway watch the video clip - maybe this poster! LOL

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 12:34
Gypsy

Remind me to kick you in the teeth the next time I see you Oryx. :P

By Oryx• 14 Jun 2009 12:33
Oryx

that is because there is very little difference btw canadians and americans

Canadians are slightly better informed

Americans have a better sense of humour

both a gullible ;)

By Oryx• 14 Jun 2009 12:32
Oryx

habitee I thought this was you doing a spoof of Vicky Pollard from Little Britain.

LOL~!

Vicky P Shopping....if you want to laugh...take 2 mins to watch this!

By tallg• 14 Jun 2009 12:20
tallg

My first annoyance in the UK - it's the UK.

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 12:19
Gypsy

My first annoyance in the UK...Everybody thought I was American. :P

By bleu• 14 Jun 2009 12:18
bleu

My first annoyance in the UK - it's not like Qatar.

By smoke• 14 Jun 2009 11:55
smoke

Great! now look what we did..we gave her a second annoyance about Qatar :( thank you visit again :)

Good Fortune always comes knocking at your door...when you are sh*tting in the toilet!! :)

_[]~SMoKE~[]_

 

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 11:42
DiamondGirl

thanks everyone points taken. x

By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 11:35
diamond

Smoke, don't be silly, I do all my shopping in the UK so I can avoid such annoyances ;)

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By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 11:34
Rating: 3/5
diamond

I think it's the title of your thread...it's more funny than anything else that one would think that Qatar would be like the UK.

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By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 11:34
Gypsy

She was doing fine till she started complaining about such a little incident that could happen anywhere.

By smoke• 14 Jun 2009 11:33
smoke

Rofl me too thought it was you diamond, havent seen your posts in a long time and then i saw the no. of weeks in the profile :p

Good Fortune always comes knocking at your door...when you are sh*tting in the toilet!! :)

_[]~SMoKE~[]_

 

By tallg• 14 Jun 2009 11:33
tallg

You were doing fine til the 'good old blighty' comment. That left you open for attack.

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 11:30
DiamondGirl

wow thanks for the nice welcome ladies

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 11:29
Gypsy

Nope, nor would you spell something "sumthin."

By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 11:26
Rating: 2/5
diamond

And don't you forget it Gypsy...I mean would I really use a capital letter in the middle of a word????????????

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By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 11:24
Gypsy

LOL!!! I did actually read this thinking it was you who wrote it Diamond. Got about 2 words in before I realized "Oh yay, she's Diamond now not Diamondgirl" :P

By qatariboy2005• 14 Jun 2009 11:23
Rating: 5/5
qatariboy2005

U would rarely find ppl working in shops that understand english well as it has happened to me several times.Infact some of them don not care less and when u ask them too much they get annoyed and they push u over the edge.I was in Nike store at city centre and the whole store had only one guy working there and it took me 30mins to get right size outfit.Make sure uv got enuf balance before going for shopping next time,thats the best way to save all this hassel.

By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 11:20
diamond

Er...did the penny not drop that Qatar is not going to be like the UK before you decided to come here?

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By catsniper• 14 Jun 2009 11:18
catsniper

It can happen any where in the world, not just in Doha. So be cool by enjoying 50C summer :)

Moving on is simple; it's what you leave behind that makes it so difficult .

By britexpat• 14 Jun 2009 11:17
britexpat

Still perpetuating the class system :(

By diamond• 14 Jun 2009 11:17
Rating: 3/5
diamond

Can I just state for the record that I am in no way related to nor do I have any connection to DiamondGirl ;)

So true...it would never have happened in England. Shop assistants here are committing heinous crimes by not looking after goods properly. I hope the said assistant has been severely punished.

Isn't there a site called vent.com or something where you can go and spill your guts about life's annoyances?

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By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 11:15
Gypsy

The horror.

By lilBoPeep• 14 Jun 2009 11:13
lilBoPeep

TYPICAL!!

Whatever you vividly imagine, Ardently desire, Sincerely believe and Enthusiastically act upon, Must inevitably come to pass.

By DiamondGirl• 14 Jun 2009 11:12
DiamondGirl

no i didnt bother too cud hardly find my hubby size as it was and the kids had had enuff

By Gypsy• 14 Jun 2009 11:10
Gypsy

Wow. To think you had to go back and grab all the same sizes again.

By genesis• 14 Jun 2009 11:10
genesis

what are you doing shopping at splash! the only time I’ve been there, we were shopping for my son’s new nanny.

By tallg• 14 Jun 2009 11:04
tallg

Words fail me.

By smoke• 14 Jun 2009 11:03
Rating: 4/5
smoke

Why didnt u get your better half to go run down and check your balance for you? What good was he tagging along?

Good Fortune always comes knocking at your door...when you are sh*tting in the toilet!! :)

_[]~SMoKE~[]_

 

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