For our final day in Doha we wanted to do something fun. Trouble is that Qatar is a very small country and there really isn't THAT much to do. So I found an operator through the Hilton Concierge that has Desert Safari tours. I opted for the full-day tour to maximize our dune time.

We got picked up early in the morning by Abdullah in his comfortable Toyota Land Cruiser. We drove about 45 minutes south of Doha past all the suburbs and industrial areas to where the paved road ends. There was a small compound there where we had the option to do camel rides while he prepped his car for the dunes by letting out a lot of air out of the tires. The camel rides were kinda fun but very short. I guess we could have done it for an hour if we wanted to but 10 minutes was enough.

From there he drove into the desert. Unfortunately that seems to be popular thing because the sand was not exactly pristine and criss crossed with tire tracks just about everywhere. It was kinda fun going up huge dunes then driving right along the edge, then turning sharping and basically sliding down the dune. Then he would blast back up another hill and do it over and over.

We ended up at the southern end of Qatar at a bay which is the Saudi Arabian border. We took in sites, listened to Abdullah tell us about how he freedives to catch fish at his secret spot not far from there, and poked a dead Sea Snake with a "science stick".

Then we heading back north and ended up at a very cool campsite on the Persian Gulf coast. A u-shaped series of tents had luxurious furnishings inside as well as a full-sized modern attached path. Along the beach were cool cabanas where we relaxed and enjoyed some cold beverages. We took a dip in the slightly cool but crystal clear water, until Ruth got bit by something!!!

To top off the visit we got some snowboards and sleds and hit the small dune right behind the camp to practice. Once we got the hang of it a little we hopped back into the Land Cruiser and took off to the huge dune nearby and took a couple runs. It was MUCH slower than snow but still kinda fun.

To top off the visit to Doha we hung out at the night club at the Hilton.


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