Mac Moments

Wow, another year behind us! Is it just me or do the years go by in a flash now.  2014 ended very quietly for us as we settled into apartment living for three months before our villa became available, moving in at the beginning of March while they were still painting and fixing it. A rather frustrating first couple of months, trying to get through the bureaucracy of the schooling system here.  We at last managed to get Sean back into Doha College and Jess into Compass International School, but a year below where they were, as the SA system for maths, science and English are a year behind. Sean would have had to write exams to get into IGCSE's two months after starting school here and he just would not have caught up in time.  They have both settled in nicely now and are doing well overall. Next year will see Sean having to decide on which subjects to take for GCSE's and ultimately A levels, gulp!  Our doggies joined us in March in the villa and after an extende...

Merry Christmas What a strange year this has been.  While contemplating writing my annual year end letter I kept thinking how little we had actually done this year, then one of those Facebook yearly roundups kept popping up showing me everyone else's year.  So without much enthusiasm I got it to show me mine......  And this is what I had forgotten..... SEAN       Yip, what a great year for this young man.  Being chosen as a Prefect was a highlight for Sean at the end of last year, he was once again chosen as House Captain in 2014 and Swimming Captain for the fourth term of the year. Having discovered swimming in the last term of 2013, and with a deepening passion for it, Sean has had an awesome year in the water.  The first term of school galas saw him winning a variety of medals and placing first in most of his strokes, he began Open Water competitions in February resulting in him improving his times at each event, placing 6...

We are into our second week back at work and school and home number 1. When the realisation came that it is time to categories which place we are in at which time of the year! The more I think about it the more I know that the amount of time we spend in each place determines its number of importance of time spent in it. So Doha would be in the number 1 spot, Cyprus 2nd and South Africa 3rd. I suppose that would mean that I would now need to call Doha my home? Doha has brought with it a change in the focus of my life. I was brought up in a small mining town in the middle of South Africa, Welkom (meaning welcome in English). It is in the heart of the Free State in the middle of no where, with roundabouts and one  traffic light.  It. Was. Small. We would have family from all over South Africa around for Xmas holidays and spend the smoldering hot summer days lazing around the swimming pool or playing cricket or table tennis in the sprawling back garden. Else we ...

Summer in Doha is not for sissies, with temperatures hitting a cool  53 o  C  this weekend it is certainly time to stay out of the sun.  If however, you are going into the sun make sure you have a very high sun protection on. For those of us that prefer to keep indoors, you have to start questioning what exactly there is to do in Qatar with the temps so high?  Considering Villagio and City Center are both closed with rumors of Landmark and other shopping malls following suite, trawling malls, watching movies, going ice-skating and to the indoor entertainment centers looks pretty dismal. Although, honestly we very rarely (if ever) take the children to any of these as they are always over crowded and unpleasant. With all this in mind, I went on a search to see what we could do for the three weeks that we will be here for and this is what I found. Firstly, we love sport and in July we will definitely be watching the finals of the Euro 2012, while  Wimbledo...

January was a flutter of activity for us, we were flung back into the swing of routine far too quickly and the running around began once again.  New Years resolutions were left spinning in confusion and life proceeded between rushing from work to children duties all over again.  That is Federer on the left Two realisations struck me, or was it that tennis ball to the head!  Winter is the most amazing time in  Qatar  and you actually don't want to stop to take a breath, just in case you miss out!  This month saw us going to the Qatar ExxonMobil Men's Open Tennis Champs, The Vienna Boy's Choir, a UK Boarding School Seminar, Qatar International Falcon Competition, the Qatar Motor Show, lunches with friends and heading off to Abu Dhabi to  Ferrari World  for a weekend to celebrate Steve's birthday.   Ferrari World Happy Birthday my wonderful husband, who continues to spoil his family every day wit...

Each year I feel like I say the same thing: whew another year gone too quickly, as usual. It has been a rather busy one for us with loads of changes, fun and growth. TRAVEL We spent Christmas 2009 in Sri Lanka, a country of contrasts, poor yet giving, quiet people yet noisy, beautiful yet devastated. My heart opened up to the beauty of the landscapes, tea and rice plantations, game reserves and spice gardens and in the same breath ached at the stories of the tsunami and great loss that was experienced. We went on a safari and stood on one of the beaches where tourists and guides were having an early morning picnic, all were lost while guides stood further up on the hills, having reached safety and watched as their friends’ lives were taken and there was nothing they could do. There are hundreds of these stories, each of them sadder than the next, it is amazing how the Sri Lankans’ have rebuilt their lives and just how happy they are with how little they have. We spent a long weeken...