Happy Halloween from your favorite Library Luchador!They let you wear that at your job in Qatar??? YES!
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Can a US citizen get a visa at the airport in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso?
John Marquiss, Sara Yamaka, and I are traveling to Burkina Faso to see John’s friend who works in the Peace Corps and to attend the SIAO, Salon International de l’artisanat de Ouagadougou, The International Arts and Crafts Fair in Ouagadougou.
These are the steps that John and I had to look into in order to get this one question answered.
This is what the SIAO website says about obtaining visas:
International visitors are encouraged to check passport and visa regulations according to their nationality. Information can be obtained from Burkina Faso embassies or consulates in your country, or from your travel professional.
I checked the US State Department website to see if we needed visas. This is what it says: *Passport and visa required. Multiple entry visas, valid up to 3 months ($75 fee) or 6 months ($100 fee), require appropriate fee, 2 application forms, and 2 photos. Proof of compulsory yellow fever immunization needed and cholera vaccination recommended. For more information, call the Embassy of Burkina Faso, 2340 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008 (202/332-5577) or Honorary Consulate in Los Angeles, CA (213/575-5567) or New Orleans, LA (504/284-6351).
I called the Embassy of Burkina Faso in Washington DC. They said that I could NOT get a visa at the airport. They told me I would need to go to the closest embassy and apply for a visa. Qatar does not have an Embassy of Burkina Faso. The closest Embassy of Burkina Faso is in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. If you are Muslim and going to Mecca or Medina, then you can get a visa to get into Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia does not offer tourist visas. They have a transit visa valid for seven days. John and tried to get one of those once. It took us two months and we were denied a visa because of new rules Qatar had enacted about leased vehicles going into Saudi Arabia. Even if we got a transit visa, and the Burkina Faso visa process would have taken more than seven days, we would have been stuck illegally in Saudi Arabia without visas and unable to get back to Qatar.
According to the “Get In” section of the Wikitravel entry for Burkina Faso, you can purchase a visa upon arrival. Here is what it says in “Get In”:
Passport and a visa are required to enter the country. You generally should purchase your visa in advance, although with 10,000 CFA currency a visa can be purchased at the airport upon arrival.
Also, according to the Lonely Planet postcards section which is a section of their website
where tips sent in by readers:
Visas, Embassies & Border Crossings
If you're a citizen of the European Community you can apply for a tourist visa when arriving at Ouagadougou airport. The procedure is very easy; you just need to fill in the forms (three pages) given to you by an officer, take one photo and pay CFA10,000 in local currency (there is an exchange bureau in the same airport). The officers won't issue the visa until the next day, so you should leave the passport and pick it up the next morning at the same airport. Don't worry about being without ID because the police will issue an authorisation instead. Judith Ripoll, Spain (Jun 03)
Make sure you organise your visa for Burkina Faso for your entire stay before you leave home. Burkina doesn't have an embassy in the Netherlands. The embassy in Brussels requires you to come and pick it up yourself, so we only got a 10-day visa from the French consulate for Burkina. Getting a new visa in Ouaga was slow and inefficient. We had to come back the next working day at 7am and could pick it up after 2pm in the afternoon. The attitude was very lazy and tourist unfriendly. Michiel Hillenius & Sonja Munnix, Netherlands (Feb 03)
Burkina Faso visa: obtained in the French Embassy in Lomè, Togo. I got a transit visa for 5 days for US$10. It was ready in 2 days. The cost of a one month visa is US$26. Patrizio Luntini, Italy (Feb 03)
According to this information, we may be able to get the visa at the airport (but being Americans, we are not citizens of the European Community) or we can get a visa at the French embassy in Doha Qatar.
I sent an email to the US Embassy in Burkina Faso asking for their advice. This is my email:
I am planning a tourism trip to Burkina Faso. I am a US citizen. I am currently living and working in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar. Qatar does not have an embassy for Burkina Faso. How can I obtain a visa to visit Burkina Faso? I am not able to safely send my passport to the Burkina Faso embassy in the US.Are visas available at the airport in Ouagadougou?Sincerely,
Ed Keller
This is the email message I received as a response:
Dear Sir,
I have been instructed by H.E. the Ambassador to inform you that you can obtain an entry visa at the Airport of Ouagadougou if you are invited by the SIAO.
Sincerely,
Office of the Ambassador
The Office of the Ambassador email didn’t give a straight answer the question of whether we could get a visa at the airport and it also added an extra step to enabling us to get a visa. We need to be invited by the SIAO. Now the interesting thing is that I never mentioned the SIAO in my email. The SIAO is the artisan fair we plan to go to and probably the only reason the US embassy thinks US citizens would want to come to Burkina Faso OR Big Brother (i.e. the US government or its spies) is watching me. HAHA Just kidding…is this mic on??? I love the US…”Oh, say can you seeeee…”
We are planning to go through Morocco for two days. There is an Embassy of Burkina Faso. I asked John to call the Embassy of Burkina Faso. When he called the person spoke French. Being ex-French colonial country, Burkina Faso’s official language is French. John does not speak French, so he asked Mark, one of the students in the Introductory French class, to speak French for him. Mark wanted Nadim to speak French for John. Nadim said he wouldn’t do it. Nadim told Mark what to say and Mark repeated it to the embassy person. This is the background as to why we called the Embassy of Burkina Faso. We are going to Morocco from Friday night to Sunday night. Morocco, even though it is a predominantly Muslim country operates on a Monday through Friday work week, unlike Qatar which is a Muslim country that has a Sunday through Thursday work week. In the Islamic religion Friday is a holy day. Basically, when Mark asked the person at the Embassy of Burkina Faso was whether they were open on Saturday or Sunday in order to apply for a visa. The answer was “NO.”
In the Lonely Planet postcard section, there is mention that French embassies can issue visa for Burkina Faso. I tried calling the French embassy in Qatar and got “Press one for…, Press two for …, Press three for…” When I finally got a real person on the phone I asked if the French embassy issued visas for Burkina Faso. The person told me to call another number for this information. I hung up the phone and dialed the new number. When the phone picked up the voice on the other side of the phone said “Press one for…, Press two for …, Press three for…”
I was a little frustrated so I had John call the French embassy. He finally got to speak to a real person after going through the same phone system I did. When he got the French embassy employee on the phone, John asked “Parlez-vous anglais?” The person said in English “YES.” So John asked the person if we could get visas for Burkina Faso at the French embassy. The person on the other end of the phone asked John to call another number for that information. John hung up the phone and dialed the new number. When the phone picked up the voice on the other side of the phone said “Press one for…, Press two for …, Press three for…”
John and I decided to go down to the visa section of the French embassy and find out for ourselves. We got to the French embassy. John asked the guard at the front gate if we could get visas for Burkina Faso at the embassy. He said “NO.” John asked if we could speak to someone in the visa section of the embassy. The visa section by the way is only open 8:30am-10:30am Sunday through Thursday to apply for visas. If you get stuck in traffic in Doha, you will miss the window of opportunity. The guard called someone at the visa section and asked if we could get visas for Burkina Faso. The person on the other end of the phones said that “Yes, we could get visas for Burkina Faso.” The guard let us into the embassy after handing over our cell phones to him.
We got to the visa section and walked up to the woman at the window. We asked if we could get visa for Burkina Faso. She said “Yes, we could and it would take four days.” She handed us the visa form and we realized we wouldn’t be able to fill it out at that time because we would need to gather:
1 filled-in and signed visa application form (must include address in country of main destination) 2 applicant’s recent passport size photos (format 35*45 with white background)
1 copy of the passport and previous visas
1 bank statement (showing transfer of salary for at least the last 6 months)
1 copy of the original airplane ticket
1 copy of the proof of accommodation (e.g. hotel reservation)
1 copy of the travel insurance covering medical expenses, hospitalization and repatriation in the countries to be visited
In addition to these documents, for NON-QATARIS:
1 copy of the residence permit (must be valid at least 6 months)
1 sponsor letter (must include information on salary, position and stating how long you have been employed) + ID copy of the person who signed the sponsor letter
You can also get this off the French Embassy in Qatar’s website which is interesting enough…
IN FRENCH. I had Google translate the website pages into English.
Since we are staying with John’s friend, we don’t really have 1 copy of the proof of accommodation (e.g. hotel reservation). We asked what we needed to do and we had other questions. The woman asked us to be seated and she would ask her supervisor to clarify some points for us.
In the meantime the supervisor was telling another person that was applying for a visa that it would take 10 days. This person needed to be in France for training in less than ten days. He was stuck.
When the supervisor finished disappointing this man, he spoke to the lady that had been helping us. We couldn’t hear what they were saying because they were behind thick glass. When they were finished talking, the woman called us to her window. She told us that John’s friend could fax proof of her residence in Burkina Faso. John’s friend is out in the middle of the country in Burkina Faso with a rare opportunity to use the internet and probably slim chance to use a fax. She also told us that the visa process would take TEN days. What happened to the four days she mentioned ten minutes before???? We are Americans we shouldn’t have this long delay, right? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Since we were leaving for Burkina Faso in less than ten days, we couldn’t wait for the visas from the French embassy.
According to the US Embassy in Burkina Faro’s email, “you can obtain an entry visa at the Airport of Ouagadougou if you are invited by the SIAO.” Our next question was “How do we get invited to the SIAO?” I sent two emails to two separate email accounts of the SIAO requesting an invitation. One email got bounced back to me as undeliverable because the SIAO email mailbox was too full. The other email went unanswered. John called the SIAO Organization. He spoke to an American, Lisa, working for the festival. She said she didn’t know if we could get visa at the airport, but she would check and email us back.
In the meantime I also sent a fax requesting invitations for John, Sara, who decided to join us, and I.
Two days later John received an email from the American working for the SIAO. She said we could get two week visa for Burkina Faso at the airport. My guess is to streamline the process for all the people coming for the SIAO festival...
Whatever happened to the fax that I sent the SIAO? A few days later, I received a fax from the SIAO inviting us as BUYERS (not tourists) to the festival. Our status as buyers will give us access to special pavilions and allow us into the festival earlier than tourists. So that is the cherry on top of my Burkina Faso story sundae.
After all this do we know if we can get a visa at the Ouagadougou airport? We are not completely 100% sure, we now have to hope that the information we got was right…
What would have made this easier and not taken almost two weeks to find out?
These are the steps that John and I had to look into in order to get this one question answered.
This is what the SIAO website says about obtaining visas:
International visitors are encouraged to check passport and visa regulations according to their nationality. Information can be obtained from Burkina Faso embassies or consulates in your country, or from your travel professional.
I checked the US State Department website to see if we needed visas. This is what it says: *Passport and visa required. Multiple entry visas, valid up to 3 months ($75 fee) or 6 months ($100 fee), require appropriate fee, 2 application forms, and 2 photos. Proof of compulsory yellow fever immunization needed and cholera vaccination recommended. For more information, call the Embassy of Burkina Faso, 2340 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20008 (202/332-5577) or Honorary Consulate in Los Angeles, CA (213/575-5567) or New Orleans, LA (504/284-6351).
I called the Embassy of Burkina Faso in Washington DC. They said that I could NOT get a visa at the airport. They told me I would need to go to the closest embassy and apply for a visa. Qatar does not have an Embassy of Burkina Faso. The closest Embassy of Burkina Faso is in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. If you are Muslim and going to Mecca or Medina, then you can get a visa to get into Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia does not offer tourist visas. They have a transit visa valid for seven days. John and tried to get one of those once. It took us two months and we were denied a visa because of new rules Qatar had enacted about leased vehicles going into Saudi Arabia. Even if we got a transit visa, and the Burkina Faso visa process would have taken more than seven days, we would have been stuck illegally in Saudi Arabia without visas and unable to get back to Qatar.
According to the “Get In” section of the Wikitravel entry for Burkina Faso, you can purchase a visa upon arrival. Here is what it says in “Get In”:
Passport and a visa are required to enter the country. You generally should purchase your visa in advance, although with 10,000 CFA currency a visa can be purchased at the airport upon arrival.
Also, according to the Lonely Planet postcards section which is a section of their website
where tips sent in by readers:
Visas, Embassies & Border Crossings
If you're a citizen of the European Community you can apply for a tourist visa when arriving at Ouagadougou airport. The procedure is very easy; you just need to fill in the forms (three pages) given to you by an officer, take one photo and pay CFA10,000 in local currency (there is an exchange bureau in the same airport). The officers won't issue the visa until the next day, so you should leave the passport and pick it up the next morning at the same airport. Don't worry about being without ID because the police will issue an authorisation instead. Judith Ripoll, Spain (Jun 03)
Make sure you organise your visa for Burkina Faso for your entire stay before you leave home. Burkina doesn't have an embassy in the Netherlands. The embassy in Brussels requires you to come and pick it up yourself, so we only got a 10-day visa from the French consulate for Burkina. Getting a new visa in Ouaga was slow and inefficient. We had to come back the next working day at 7am and could pick it up after 2pm in the afternoon. The attitude was very lazy and tourist unfriendly. Michiel Hillenius & Sonja Munnix, Netherlands (Feb 03)
Burkina Faso visa: obtained in the French Embassy in Lomè, Togo. I got a transit visa for 5 days for US$10. It was ready in 2 days. The cost of a one month visa is US$26. Patrizio Luntini, Italy (Feb 03)
According to this information, we may be able to get the visa at the airport (but being Americans, we are not citizens of the European Community) or we can get a visa at the French embassy in Doha Qatar.
I sent an email to the US Embassy in Burkina Faso asking for their advice. This is my email:
I am planning a tourism trip to Burkina Faso. I am a US citizen. I am currently living and working in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar. Qatar does not have an embassy for Burkina Faso. How can I obtain a visa to visit Burkina Faso? I am not able to safely send my passport to the Burkina Faso embassy in the US.Are visas available at the airport in Ouagadougou?Sincerely,
Ed Keller
This is the email message I received as a response:
Dear Sir,
I have been instructed by H.E. the Ambassador to inform you that you can obtain an entry visa at the Airport of Ouagadougou if you are invited by the SIAO.
Sincerely,
Office of the Ambassador
The Office of the Ambassador email didn’t give a straight answer the question of whether we could get a visa at the airport and it also added an extra step to enabling us to get a visa. We need to be invited by the SIAO. Now the interesting thing is that I never mentioned the SIAO in my email. The SIAO is the artisan fair we plan to go to and probably the only reason the US embassy thinks US citizens would want to come to Burkina Faso OR Big Brother (i.e. the US government or its spies) is watching me. HAHA Just kidding…is this mic on??? I love the US…”Oh, say can you seeeee…”
We are planning to go through Morocco for two days. There is an Embassy of Burkina Faso. I asked John to call the Embassy of Burkina Faso. When he called the person spoke French. Being ex-French colonial country, Burkina Faso’s official language is French. John does not speak French, so he asked Mark, one of the students in the Introductory French class, to speak French for him. Mark wanted Nadim to speak French for John. Nadim said he wouldn’t do it. Nadim told Mark what to say and Mark repeated it to the embassy person. This is the background as to why we called the Embassy of Burkina Faso. We are going to Morocco from Friday night to Sunday night. Morocco, even though it is a predominantly Muslim country operates on a Monday through Friday work week, unlike Qatar which is a Muslim country that has a Sunday through Thursday work week. In the Islamic religion Friday is a holy day. Basically, when Mark asked the person at the Embassy of Burkina Faso was whether they were open on Saturday or Sunday in order to apply for a visa. The answer was “NO.”
In the Lonely Planet postcard section, there is mention that French embassies can issue visa for Burkina Faso. I tried calling the French embassy in Qatar and got “Press one for…, Press two for …, Press three for…” When I finally got a real person on the phone I asked if the French embassy issued visas for Burkina Faso. The person told me to call another number for this information. I hung up the phone and dialed the new number. When the phone picked up the voice on the other side of the phone said “Press one for…, Press two for …, Press three for…”
I was a little frustrated so I had John call the French embassy. He finally got to speak to a real person after going through the same phone system I did. When he got the French embassy employee on the phone, John asked “Parlez-vous anglais?” The person said in English “YES.” So John asked the person if we could get visas for Burkina Faso at the French embassy. The person on the other end of the phone asked John to call another number for that information. John hung up the phone and dialed the new number. When the phone picked up the voice on the other side of the phone said “Press one for…, Press two for …, Press three for…”
John and I decided to go down to the visa section of the French embassy and find out for ourselves. We got to the French embassy. John asked the guard at the front gate if we could get visas for Burkina Faso at the embassy. He said “NO.” John asked if we could speak to someone in the visa section of the embassy. The visa section by the way is only open 8:30am-10:30am Sunday through Thursday to apply for visas. If you get stuck in traffic in Doha, you will miss the window of opportunity. The guard called someone at the visa section and asked if we could get visas for Burkina Faso. The person on the other end of the phones said that “Yes, we could get visas for Burkina Faso.” The guard let us into the embassy after handing over our cell phones to him.
We got to the visa section and walked up to the woman at the window. We asked if we could get visa for Burkina Faso. She said “Yes, we could and it would take four days.” She handed us the visa form and we realized we wouldn’t be able to fill it out at that time because we would need to gather:
1 filled-in and signed visa application form (must include address in country of main destination) 2 applicant’s recent passport size photos (format 35*45 with white background)
1 copy of the passport and previous visas
1 bank statement (showing transfer of salary for at least the last 6 months)
1 copy of the original airplane ticket
1 copy of the proof of accommodation (e.g. hotel reservation)
1 copy of the travel insurance covering medical expenses, hospitalization and repatriation in the countries to be visited
In addition to these documents, for NON-QATARIS:
1 copy of the residence permit (must be valid at least 6 months)
1 sponsor letter (must include information on salary, position and stating how long you have been employed) + ID copy of the person who signed the sponsor letter
You can also get this off the French Embassy in Qatar’s website which is interesting enough…
IN FRENCH. I had Google translate the website pages into English.
Since we are staying with John’s friend, we don’t really have 1 copy of the proof of accommodation (e.g. hotel reservation). We asked what we needed to do and we had other questions. The woman asked us to be seated and she would ask her supervisor to clarify some points for us.
In the meantime the supervisor was telling another person that was applying for a visa that it would take 10 days. This person needed to be in France for training in less than ten days. He was stuck.
When the supervisor finished disappointing this man, he spoke to the lady that had been helping us. We couldn’t hear what they were saying because they were behind thick glass. When they were finished talking, the woman called us to her window. She told us that John’s friend could fax proof of her residence in Burkina Faso. John’s friend is out in the middle of the country in Burkina Faso with a rare opportunity to use the internet and probably slim chance to use a fax. She also told us that the visa process would take TEN days. What happened to the four days she mentioned ten minutes before???? We are Americans we shouldn’t have this long delay, right? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Since we were leaving for Burkina Faso in less than ten days, we couldn’t wait for the visas from the French embassy.
According to the US Embassy in Burkina Faro’s email, “you can obtain an entry visa at the Airport of Ouagadougou if you are invited by the SIAO.” Our next question was “How do we get invited to the SIAO?” I sent two emails to two separate email accounts of the SIAO requesting an invitation. One email got bounced back to me as undeliverable because the SIAO email mailbox was too full. The other email went unanswered. John called the SIAO Organization. He spoke to an American, Lisa, working for the festival. She said she didn’t know if we could get visa at the airport, but she would check and email us back.
In the meantime I also sent a fax requesting invitations for John, Sara, who decided to join us, and I.
Two days later John received an email from the American working for the SIAO. She said we could get two week visa for Burkina Faso at the airport. My guess is to streamline the process for all the people coming for the SIAO festival...
Whatever happened to the fax that I sent the SIAO? A few days later, I received a fax from the SIAO inviting us as BUYERS (not tourists) to the festival. Our status as buyers will give us access to special pavilions and allow us into the festival earlier than tourists. So that is the cherry on top of my Burkina Faso story sundae.
After all this do we know if we can get a visa at the Ouagadougou airport? We are not completely 100% sure, we now have to hope that the information we got was right…
What would have made this easier and not taken almost two weeks to find out?
Fog is like Kryptonite to an Arab Driver
Can you spot my parked car in the fog? I parked it near the lamp post and I drew a red arrow on the picture to help you.I had to go somewhere in the city of Doha at 6AM one morning. There was a thick fog throughout the city...MOISTURE IN THE AIR...WHAT IS THIS???? Fog is like Kryptonite to an Arab driver. The best example I can give is when I was driving in DC in the snow. Being a DC native, I know how to drive in the snow. Since most of the people who live in DC are not from DC, most people can't drive in the snow in DC. The same thing happens here in Doha in fog. Drivers who normally would be racing around the city are driving like old people drive in America. The slow down to half their normal speed. The put their hazards on. They creep along the road. Western expats like myself, who are used to "moistrue in the air," drive normally. Some people won't even go out on the roads if there is fog in Doha. It is wonderful to drive in the fog!
1 kilometer = 0.621371192 miles
152 km/h = 94.5 mphWho was driving on D Ring Road in the city of Doha at this speed????
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
How do you like me now?
Here I am hanging out on Sara Yamaka's couch. So are the hours I am spending in the gym working out paying off? Look at the broad shoulders on me. Also, this is my "Porno King" T-shirt I got in Cancun. Sexy.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Where in the world is Ed Keller?
This Friday I leave for two days in Morocco and then eight days in Burkina Faso.
I got my tickets to Japan for the Christmas and New Years break.
I got my tickets to Japan for the Christmas and New Years break.
My old religion professor from college in the news
It's good to see a University of Miami professor that taught me in the news.
"The media will love nothing more than to dredge up Catholics vs. Convicts and the fatigues at the Fiesta Bowl, all that stuff," said Stephen Sapp, religious studies professor and chief of the Miami faculty senate. "I'm not denying that happened. But we've moved beyond that. We have changed the program — until the other night. Now all that old stuff will come back up. People will say, 'See, they didn't really change.' "
Sapp says he speaks for himself, not the faculty senate, which meets Wednesday. He expects the fight and its aftermath to be discussed passionately.
"I think (the mood) will probably be outrage," Sapp said before the enhanced penalties were announced later Monday. "There's always tension between faculty and big-time athletics. We have a new provost who has a wonderful vision for the university and has gotten the faculty on board. We have been poised to make some really important strides academically speaking. Now to have this blight on our record. ... My guess is there will be considerable unhappiness expressed at the faculty senate meeting and probably some disappointment in the penalties."
From With brawl in national headlines, Miami's reputation takes step
"The University of Miami is a well-known brand in college football."
"The media will love nothing more than to dredge up Catholics vs. Convicts and the fatigues at the Fiesta Bowl, all that stuff," said Stephen Sapp, religious studies professor and chief of the Miami faculty senate. "I'm not denying that happened. But we've moved beyond that. We have changed the program — until the other night. Now all that old stuff will come back up. People will say, 'See, they didn't really change.' "
Sapp says he speaks for himself, not the faculty senate, which meets Wednesday. He expects the fight and its aftermath to be discussed passionately.
"I think (the mood) will probably be outrage," Sapp said before the enhanced penalties were announced later Monday. "There's always tension between faculty and big-time athletics. We have a new provost who has a wonderful vision for the university and has gotten the faculty on board. We have been poised to make some really important strides academically speaking. Now to have this blight on our record. ... My guess is there will be considerable unhappiness expressed at the faculty senate meeting and probably some disappointment in the penalties."
From With brawl in national headlines, Miami's reputation takes step
"The University of Miami is a well-known brand in college football."
Monday, October 16, 2006
Sunday, October 15, 2006
One Year and a Day in Qatar
Here is a Top Ten List of things I plan to do in the next year in Qatar:
10. Read "The Complete Sherlock Holmes."
9. Improve my Arabic language skills.
8. Find fossils in Qatar.
7. Spearfish.
6. Dive for pearls.
5. Spend more time in the jacuzzi.
4. Learn to mix better cocktails.
3. Play more guitar.
2. Sleep more.
and
1. Get laid.
10. Read "The Complete Sherlock Holmes."
9. Improve my Arabic language skills.
8. Find fossils in Qatar.
7. Spearfish.
6. Dive for pearls.
5. Spend more time in the jacuzzi.
4. Learn to mix better cocktails.
3. Play more guitar.
2. Sleep more.
and
1. Get laid.
I may work for Georgetown, but my heart belongs to Miami
Coker: At least eight Hurricanes suspended after brawl with Fla. International
Highlights from the article:
"You've got to back up each other," said Miami quarterback Kyle Wright, who acknowledged he grabbed his helmet and went on the field, but it did not appear he was involved in any altercations. "You're not just going to sit out there and let guys get beat up."
Several players appeared to throw punches, including Miami's Bryant, DajLeon Farr and Ryan Hill, and Meriweather was seen attempting to stomp on FIU players.
Meanwhile, Reddick charged across the field, helmet raised high over his head, and slammed it into FIU cornerback Robert Mitchell.
Images are here. Enjoy them. I certainly did.
And a special thank you to Miami's finest - the men and women of the Miami/Dade police force. The police officers definitely know what University of Miami players, students, and fans are like.
Edward F. Keller II (University of Miami Class of 1991)
BA Double Major Marine Science and Anthropology Minor Biology, MA Anthropology The George Washington University, MA Linguistics University of Virginia, and a BMF besides.
Highlights from the article:
"You've got to back up each other," said Miami quarterback Kyle Wright, who acknowledged he grabbed his helmet and went on the field, but it did not appear he was involved in any altercations. "You're not just going to sit out there and let guys get beat up."
Several players appeared to throw punches, including Miami's Bryant, DajLeon Farr and Ryan Hill, and Meriweather was seen attempting to stomp on FIU players.
Meanwhile, Reddick charged across the field, helmet raised high over his head, and slammed it into FIU cornerback Robert Mitchell.
Images are here. Enjoy them. I certainly did.
And a special thank you to Miami's finest - the men and women of the Miami/Dade police force. The police officers definitely know what University of Miami players, students, and fans are like.
Edward F. Keller II (University of Miami Class of 1991)
BA Double Major Marine Science and Anthropology Minor Biology, MA Anthropology The George Washington University, MA Linguistics University of Virginia, and a BMF besides.
Get ready for Eid-Ul-Fitr with a new outfit!
Get ready for Eid-Ul-Fitr with a new suit from The Wear House, Airport Road, Near McDonald's, Doha, Qatar
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Happy Anniversary - One Year in Qatar
Happy Anniversary
Sung to the tune "William Tell Overture/Lone Ranger Theme Song"
Happy Anniversary
Happy Anniversary
HAAA-ppy Anniversary
Happy
Happy
Happy
Happy
Happy Anniversary
Happy
Happy
Happy
Happy
Happy Anniversary
Happy Anniversary
Happy Anniversary
Happy Anniversary
HAAA-ppy Anniversary
Friday, October 13, 2006
Immunizations
Here is a picture of the new Immmunization and Vaccination Building in Doha. It is a nice building, but that is not all. This is the SECOND building that you have to go to to get immunizations and vaccinations. You have to start out on the other side of the city at the Natioanl Health Authority. There a doctor asks you what immunizations and vaccinations you need and gives you pills (for malaria and such) if you need them. No vaccinations or immunizations are given in this building. The doctor just fills out a checklist of what you need. Then you have to drive to the other side of the city to the new Immmunization and Vaccination Building to receive the immunizations and vaccinations. Why aren't the two services in the same building or at least close to each other? Your guess is as good as mine.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Eating Creme Filled Croissants While Driving in Doha
Creme Filled Croissants...MMMmmm...As John said, "They are so bad, yet so good."
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
How do you get the ingredients without getting bit?
Croc Ball Cereal - tastes and looks like Coco Puffs CerealNo actual crocodiles were harmed or castrated in the making of this cereal.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Margaret, what do you think about Pocari Sweat in the new see-through plastic bottles?
Margaret: "It is lusciously TOO Sweet!"Fast-A-Thon 2006
From the poster:“Fast-a-thon allows non-muslims to experience the spirit of Ramadan and to learn about fasting and charity. Fasting teaches one self-restraint and charity teaches one to look out for others, especially those in need…The fast is to last a day on October 9th, but one can fast as many hours as they feel comfortable with. Companies will donate a fixed sum of money per the hours fasted. All participants and organizers then gather on October 9th to share their experiences and eat ‘iftar’ at sunset.”
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Pocari Sweat Official Partner of the 15th Asian Games Doha 2006
From Margaret, the "unofficial" spokesperson for Pocari Sweat..."When you sweat, you need to drink Pocari SWEAT."
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Fasting Shield
For the second day in a row this week the metal gate has been down over the upper level atrium that has a view of the cafeteria in the LAS Building.Apparently, the sounds, sights, and SMELLS of food coming up from the cafeteria were too much for the fasting muslim staff and students in the LAS Building (where the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar is currently housed) of the Qatar Foundation.
I guess the old adage holds true..."Out of sight, out of mind."
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Mastadon Fossils and Palm Tree Petrified Wood
I talked to an expat today who used to live in Saudi Arabia. She said that there are locations in Saudi Arabia where one can find mastadon fossils and petrified wood of palm trees.
I have found information on the web about where these sites are located (and no I am not going to tell you).
This could be a potential trip into/through Saudi Arabia in February or March.
I have found information on the web about where these sites are located (and no I am not going to tell you).
This could be a potential trip into/through Saudi Arabia in February or March.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
“The darkest thing about Africa has always been our ignorance of it.”
John and I got our tickets to Burkina Faso today.
We will be going at the end of October. We will going through Casablanca, Morocco. We will be in Morrocco for two days. I plan to go ammonite and trilobite fossil hunting. Then flying on to Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. We will be meeting up with John's friend who works for the Peace Corps and spending seven days in Burkina Faso. We plan to see the International Art and Craft Fair, Ouagadougou, better known by its French name as SIAO, Le Salon International de L Artisanat de Ouagadougou, one of the most important African handicraft fairs.
The quote in the title is from George Kimble, geographer.
We will be going at the end of October. We will going through Casablanca, Morocco. We will be in Morrocco for two days. I plan to go ammonite and trilobite fossil hunting. Then flying on to Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. We will be meeting up with John's friend who works for the Peace Corps and spending seven days in Burkina Faso. We plan to see the International Art and Craft Fair, Ouagadougou, better known by its French name as SIAO, Le Salon International de L Artisanat de Ouagadougou, one of the most important African handicraft fairs.
The quote in the title is from George Kimble, geographer.
Monday, October 02, 2006
Funny Joke from Red Green
"Working with Glen was like working with molasses...or any part of a mole really."
Red Green from The Red Green Show
Red Green from The Red Green Show
Ramadan Timings
During Ramadan, since the entire Muslim population, Qataris and Muslim expats (who make up the majority of expats), is fasting during the day, most eateries are closed until sunset. So Kentucky Fried Chicken - closed, Dunkin Donuts - closed, Baskin Robbins - closed, AND Crown Chocolate - CLOSED until sunset.A quote for an old friend, "Mini-Me loves Chocolate..Scotty don't!" (Austin Powers reference.)
Grocery stores and supermarkets are open during the day, but if you want a quick bite to eat at a fast food restaurant, you are out of luck. Sorry, non-Muslim..."NO soup for you!" (Seinfeld reference.)
Also, "timings" is what stores refer to as "hours of operation", "store hours", or "opening/closing times," so a store will say "Ramadan timings" and give the hours they are open for business during Ramadan.
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