Final Days with HBKU

After many months of confusion and uncertainty I was notified last week that my last week of work with the Qatar Foundation and Hamad bin Khalifa University would be at the end of May. While this comes as a bit of a surprise, and earlier than I had hoped, I think it is for the best in the long term. It has been an amazing journey working with QF and HBKU these past four years and as the organization moves in a new direction I was no longer a part of that picture. As with any story, there is much more to this one. I am happy to share with people individually over time as I try to wrap my own head around the last few weeks.

For now our plan is to stay in Qatar until Kristal’s contract ends in October. In the meantime we will be wedding planning; I will be seeking short term employment in Doha, and making the most of our last few months in Qatar. I want to specifically thank Curt Kenoyer who first hired me to come to Qatar, my supervisor Melissa Winter, all of my amazing colleagues, the Education City community, and the great students I have had the privilege of working with. These won’t be my last words about my experience so stay tuned for more posts in the coming months.

Sawittzke Tours: Qatar

Kristal and I have been very fortunate to have a revolving door of visitors these past few months. First there was Rebecca and Lucas from Germany/Switzerland, then there was Jen and Kyle on their way to Bali, then there was Ben and Yve from London, and finally this past weekend we hosted Kristal’s brother and sister traveling from Minnesota. It has been such a blast playing tour guide and getting to give our friends and family a glimpse of day to day life here in Qatar. 

 

For our friends that come into Qatar we have pretty much perfected the 3-4 day visit. We go camping and dune bashing in the desert, we have dinner in the Souq, walk along the Pearl, take a Dhow boat out on the cornice, show off our offices in Education City, explore the Museum of Islamic Art, and whatever other bits we are able to fill in. It is a breath of fresh air having visitors because all of the sites are new and exciting. People take countless photos of the things we might normally just walk right past. Doha is such a unique place and has so much to offer within such a small space.

This past weekend Kristal’s brother and sister surprised her and came to visit. Well technically Kristal knew that Turner was coming over but had no idea about Kelly. While they were here we took the Doha visit to a new level packing in visits in Doha, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi in just four days. It was a full throttle pace but we were able to get an amazing amount done. The first stops were in Doha as we had dinner in the Souq, explored nightlight in Qube, and then spent the next day/night camping in the desert. It wasn’t the best weather for camping but we made the most of it and had a great time. The following day we did more of a driving tour of Doha to take in as many sites as we could. We made it a bit of an early night because we had a morning flight to catch to Dubai.

The flight to Dubai only takes about 45 minutes and couldn’t be easier. When we landed we rented a car for our two days and set out on the city. First stop was Abu Dhabi (just over an hour’s drive from Dubai) to see the Sheikh Zayed Mosque and followed by lunch at a beach along the corniche. The mosque is absolutely stunning and you could spend hours just walking around trying to take it all in. We were in a bit of a rush leaving Abu Dhabi because we had reservations for happy hour at the top of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa. We took the elevator up 123 floors to the At.Mosphere restaurant for drinks and snacks as we looked down on Dubai’s other skyscrapers. After the Burj we went out in Dubai Marina at a Tiki Bar near our hotel before calling it a day. 

The next morning we had coffee along a beach front area called the Jumeria Beach Residences and

then had a traditional breakfast at the Center for Cultural Understanding (CCU). At the CCU we were able to have some great Q&A with a young Emirati college student about her culture and experiences growing up in Dubai. The second half of the day was spent mall hopping from the Mall of the Emirates with its indoor ski resort to the Mall of Dubai with its aquarium, fountains, and ground views of the Burj. Turner continued to have a field day taking as many photos and videos as he possibly could. We had to move quickly to fit it all in and by midafternoon we were already making our way back to the airport for Doha.

Kelly and Turner flew out from Doha that night after one last Souq visit, souvenir shopping, and Dhow boat cruise along the skyline. It was the perfect end to a perfect visit and we are so thankful they were able to come and see our lives here. Both of them left feeling incredibly surprised at how beautiful, safe, and interesting everything is over here. It was a trip full of memories that I am sure we will talk about for years to come. So thanks not only to Kelly and Turner but to all of our visitors recently who have shared their time with us here. Our doors are always open!

We Are Leaders @ Qatar

This past week was Spring Break here in Education City. Over the years I have had the privilege to travel to Nepal and Tanzania but this year the focus was on Qatar. All across Qatar schools look internationally to run outdoor leadership programs but never within our own country. This year we created a program called We Are Leaders @ Qatar which gave students the opportunity to spend six days and five nights in the desert working on personal and team development. As with any firs time programs, there were some bumps along the way but I can truly say this was one of the best programs I have had the chance to run in my time here. 

Over the course of the six days students completed many challenges that included rock climbing, long treks, mountain biking, and a business simulation. The program also had a lot of firsts for students. First time cooking for themselves, first time putting up a tent, first time walking 10km, and even first time cleaning a toilet. It was amazing to see from day one the learning that took place and I think it was an experience that no one will forget.  

For me personally the program came at a time when I was feeling quite low on my work responsibilities in Qatar. I won’t go into it in full but I was stuck in a negative cycle of emotions that WALQ helped me to break out of. In my time in Qatar I have been able to develop and deliver some amazing programs but WALQ will always hold a special place in my heart. I want to thank Red Rock International who helped deliver the program and all of the students for being outstanding over the course of the week. Video and photos coming soon!

Georgia: A cheesy, snowy heaven

What can I say about Georgia? It was on our bucket list of Doha travel for a while now, and once we found some airline tickets on a sale we decided to pull the trigger! Kristal played travel agent for this trip and was able to find an amazing little ski town called Gudauri, about 2 hours outside of Tblisi.

Our first Georgian experience was at passport control where they took our passports, gave us a stamp, and then handed us a bottle of Georgian wine while saying “Welcome to Georgia”. Not only were we shocked but this kind of hospitality was experienced over and over in our time there. On that first day we drove through a snow storm, on a windy two lane road, to the town of Gudauri. Visibility was poor and our driver took the turns at high speeds considering the conditions. We were thankful to make it to our hotel which include breakfast and dinner so we washed up before grabbing a meal.

When we woke up for the second day of our trip we were shocked to see the storm had passed and we were faced with bright blue skies and stunning mountain peaks. We spent the whole day on the ski slopes, with me learning and Kristal being patient. The cost of the ski resort was like a $12 shop. Lift ticket: $12, Rentals: $12, Lesson: $12, Experience: Priceless (I couldn’t help myself). The slopes were scattered with bars and restaurants pumping house music, $1 coffees, and Katchuporis. Speaking of, Katchuporis are the national dish of Georgia and essentially is a cheesy bread that comes in different forms. Check out the photo.

 

The mountains were so incredible that we wanted to maximize our time there and cut out some of the time we were supposed to spend in Tblisi. The morning of our second day we actually decided to Paraglide from the highest peak down to the bottom of the slopes. It was my first time Paragliding and it could not have been a better place. We have videos that we hope to post soon. After our paragliding session it was down to Tblisi for our own eating tour of the town. We only had one night in Tblisi so we could only scratch the surface of what it had to offer. Cobblestone roads, history, beautiful churches, food, drink, and ice cream were all around us. As we got ready to hop in a cab back to the airport we wished we had more time, although we say that every time.

 

If you get the chance, Georgia is a gem. From what we hear surrounding countries like Azerbaijan and Armenia are incredible as well. We were thankful to even get a few days there and hope to get back one day. A Katchupori magnet proudly hangs on our fridge to commemorate the few days there!

UK and Irish Holidays

As Christmas and New Year’s approached this year, Kristal and I hoped to be able to travel for it. We started to explore some options when we found out that our friends Laura and Paul would be getting married in Belfast on December 22^nd and the decision was made for us, it would be a UK Christmas!

One of the big themes from this trip was having the chance to visit and catch up with friends each stop of the way. Our first stop was in London to visit Kristal’s old flatmates from New Zealand, Ben and Yve. While in London we got to see the Book of Mormon, visited Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, and toured the Tower of London. One of the big highlights was the Bavarian Village in Winter Wonderland that came equipped with an Oktoberfest tent!

From London we hopped on a quick flight to Dublin to begin the Irish road trip part of our trip. We rented a car and drove up to Belfast for the wedding. We spent about three days in Belfast doing some touristy things like a Black Cab Tour and the Titanic Museum, but mostly we were there for the wedding! We got to celebrate Laura and Paul while we shared an apartment in the city with our friends Eunan and Hannah. 

 

After the wedding festivities we dropped our friend Eunan at his parent’s home in Donegal County before driving down the coast to Galway. Galway was a quick overnight before driving down to Cork to meet up with Ben and Yve again as they rented a beach house with two other Kiwis to celebrate Christmas. Christmas Eve and Day were spent in a sleepy beach town called Ardmore that hosted a polar plunge on Christmas Day and had next to nothing open while we were there! We got to cook a Christmas dinner, spend all day in PJs, and watch the best in holiday cinema like Christmas with the Cranks! The best part of Christmas was getting to Skype with both of our families back home as well. Nothing replaces being there in person but we really appreciated seeing people open presents (especially Jaxon and Alexis!). Next year we hope to be home for the holidays to join in the fun!

We left Ardmore with Ben and Yve on Boxing Day/St. Steven’s Day to drive up to Athilone to meet up with the one and only Will Nestor. Will and his partner Deborah met us there and we had a great night exploring the town and catching up. The following day we were back on the way to Dublin for our last two nights. The trip could have ended here and we would have still had an amazing time but Edinburgh awaited!

Ben, Yve, Kristal and I flew from Dublin to Edinburgh on the morning of the 29^th. When we arrived we had blue skies to welcome us and we began exploring the city. It was my first time there, although Kristal had been a few years back. We spent the next few days on walking tours, visiting castles, and sneaking into pubs. We were also there for Hogmanay, which is the city’s New Years celebration. There were three days of events which included a torch procession, massive street party, and city wide scavenger hunt. Hogmanay was absolutely the best New Years celebration I have been too and I was able to enjoy it wearing a kilt! Some of the highlights from Edinburgh were great free walking tours, fireworks over the Edinburgh castle, visiting Doune castle (the location of Monty Python), and visiting our friend Robert for a ceilidh (traditional group dance). 

 

 After our time in Edinburgh came to a close we made a quick stop in Istanbul overnight to visit our friend Cagri and to buy some decorations for the wedding. By this time in the trip we were run down, sniffly, and ready to get back to Doha! 

All in all it was an amazing way to bring in the New Year. We have a few photos that we have shared but we also made a little highlight video to show some of the fun. While we had a great time we really missed friends and family during the holidays. Thanks to everyone for all their holiday wishes and stay tuned for more adventures!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a358J1OhCU4