My first month in Doha.

Now It almost one month since I began at Aspetar Hospital. Aspetar is a world leading Sports Orthopedic Hospital with a mission to assist athletes in achieving their maximum performance and full potential.

When I arrived at Hamad International Airport, early in the morning on 15st January, Doha was covered by a thick fog of sand. A big contrast to the wind and snow landscape I was moving from. Outside the airport, I managed to find my driver, Saroofan. He would be my driver for the first month.

The took me to The Fraser Suites Hotel in West Bay, which was pre-booked by Aspetar. A lovely new hotel, with a nice room, good breakfast, a gym and a pool area.

They day after I had my first day at the Hospital. After all the informal introduction and tour around the hospital, I immediately felt a warm and dedicated atmosphere among all my colleagues.

Due to rules here in Qatar, I had to get a lot of stamps before I can have my license to work. After 4 weeks, I still haven’t had a patient.

The days go extremely fast her in Doha. The sun rise very early and goes down around 5-6pm. Therefore it is almost dark when I get home every night. Lots of my evenings have been spent in the hotel gym or the the malls. I’m also living near the Corniche, a 7K promonade around Doha Bay which has a beautiful view.

In my first weekend, the Danish community invited my on a tour to Zakreet which is in the  Northern-Western part of Qatar. It is basically a tour to the desert. We saw the film city, many incredible rock formations, we spotted Oryx and saw the desert sculpture “EAST-WEST / WEST-EAST” by Richard Serra.

In West-Bay one of the best places is the Corniche, a long waterfront promenade with a nice view over the city. It starts from the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) to the one of the first hotels in Qatar, the Sheraton.

You cannot say Qatar without say sport. Qatar is especially known for their selection for the FIFA World Cup 2022 and when they came second in the handball World Cup some years back. In my first two weeks was there a big tournament (Alkass Cup) with all the best U17 teams. I watch the final between PSG and Kashiwa Reysol.

I also went to the Qatar Clasico where Michael Laudrup’s Al Rayyan was playing Xavi Hernandes Al Sadd. In the stadium, I recognized by a one person I helped and he gave me his Al Rayyan scarf so I could support Al Rayyan. Unfortunately Al-Saad won the match. Next months I am looking forward to Caroline Wozniacki playing. These sporting events will continue.

Before I moved to Doha, I thought It would be a year without alcohol. I got that wrong. There are a lot of great places here. Feel free to visit.