Comparison between Honduras and Qatar

At first thought you wouldn't think there would be many similarities between Qatar and Honduras but after almost two weeks here my wife and I have found there are several. This post will point out the similarities and differences between the two countries in a variety of topics.

SAFETY AND SECURITY:
QATAR: I have been pleasantly surprised on how safe and secure we are here in Qatar. Guns are forbidden in this country. The policement don't even have guns...at least not in plain sight. We have felt incredibly safe. I even withdrew money from an ATM at the mall and didn't feel like I was about to get mugged. That was nice.

HONDURAS: It can be a little dangerous. A person just needs to be aware of his or her surroundings at all times and try to act low key to avoid any special attention.

TRAFFIC
QATAR: Wild and crazy! There are these roundabouts everwhere and there doesn't seem to be any rules around the roundabouts at all. People drive fast here and there are a lot of Toyota Landcruisers.

HONDURAS: Wild and crazy but I eventually understood it. I lived in Honduras for 8 years without one accident. I thought that this would prepare me for driving here in Qatar but I don't think it translates.

FOOD
Qatar: I love the food here. There is a lot of lamb and salads. The Indian soups with curry and spices is just amazing! I have had hummus and raw veggies everyday as part of my lunch. YUMMY! The grocery stores have their own YOGURT sections. You can buy a tub of Yogurt here and it is very inexpensive. The downside is that raw veggies and fruits are expensive in the stores.

Honduras: I loved the food there. The fruits and veggies were out of this world and at a fraction of the cost to here.

COMMUNITY
Qatar: We live in the Education City Community Housing. My understanding is that everyone that lives in these two community lots works at Qatar Foundation. It is truly an international community. We have met people from Germany, Australia, New Zealand, UK, Scotland, Pakistan, India, Canada, all over the US, and Lebanon...and this is just in the first 10 days! The community has a recreation center and a social club.

Honduras: We lived in the El Mochito compound. It also was an international community but to a smaller degree. We certainly miss our El Mochito friends!

SCENARY
Qatar: Doha, Qatar is an up and coming city in the Middle East. There is construction EVERYWHERE. If there isn't construction it is basically desert. It actually reminds me of Star Wars and Luke Skywalker's planet that he grew up on......very unscenic

Honduras: In Honduras we lived in one of the most beautiful locations probably on earth. The mountains and the green were everywhere!

The People
Qatar: We have been impressed by how friendly everyone is here. From the workers at the grocery store to the people at the health center....everyone has been very very nice. And everyone has some level of English. It is going to be very very difficult to motivate myself to learn Arabic.

Honduras: I do miss the people of Honduras. We really loved our 8 years there and I think a main reason is the people there.

So..there you go..A basic comparison between the Middle East and Latin America. We have had an easy transition and we do think our time in Honduras has helped us prepare ourselves for this move.

Cheers!
Noah