Land for sale? You will never find that here- Doha Notebook 21
A Kenyan marshal ushers in people at a Metro station in Doha, Qatar.
What you need to know:
- Locations and roads are named after the family name of the landowners dating back generations, for example, Al Aziziya, Al Khali, Al Wakrah and Al Shaween
- Hubert Bihler, a 76-year-old volunteer from Germany, is participating in his fifth Fifa World Cup in Qatar
- Any visitor with a Hayya card, the single entry document for all persons in Qatar for the World Cup, can use the public transport for free
Land for sale? You will never find that here
*****
Unlike in Kenya where many are obsessed with buying and selling land, or plots, as we like to call them, here in Qatar buying and selling of real estate is unheard of. First, land is owned by families. Secondly, these families never really sell the land but will allow development to be done on it. Locations and roads are named after the family name of the landowners dating back generations, for example, Al Aziziya, Al Khali, Al Wakrah and Al Shaween. No foreigner can own land in Qatar no matter how much their offer price. What a contrast with the man-eat-man society of Kenya.
World Cup’s most capped volunteer
*****
Hubert Bihler, a 76-year-old volunteer from Germany, is participating in his fifth Fifa World Cup in Qatar. Bihler is one of more than 20,000 volunteers at this year’s World Cup. He is supporting media operations in stadiums. Speaking to Fifa media he said he had been a football enthusiast all his life and worked as a sports and mathematics teacher before he retired. “I began to volunteer in mega events and my first experience was the 2006 World Cup in Germany.” He said he fell in love with the experience and as a result volunteered at four other World Cups: in 2010, 2014, 2018, and now in 2022. He also volunteered at the 2011 Women’s World Cup.
Public transport free for all World Cup visitors
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Visitors coming to Qatar for the World Cup may complain about the high accommodation prices. However, one thing they will not complain about is transport. Not only does Qatar offer an excellent road network, it also has a newly built underground railway system serving all the major metropolises. Any visitor with a Hayya card, the single entry document for all persons in Qatar for the World Cup, can use the public transport for free. Many, brand-new e-buses are on the roads to transport fans from metro stations to stadiums and from one venue to another. A visitor can ride for as long as they want, and as far as the vehicles can go.
