84
JANUARY 2013
•
HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
MAD STASH
A royal’s personal museum
pushes the boundaries of taste
If the Museum of Islamic Art’s
holdings are the most famous
of Qatar’s art collections, then
Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al
Thani’s personal stash is perhaps
the most infamous. Located
on the edge of the city, the
sheikh’s namesake museum
keeps irregular hours, but for
those who make it inside, a real
eye-opener awaits.
Over the years, the sheikh
has amassed a huge treasure
trove (there are tales of cargo
containers of purchases arriving
every month), and items on
display encompass everything
from U.S. muscle cars to
Islamic manuscripts, nautical
equipment, rugs, stamps, coins,
bowling balls and virtually any-
thing else that can be collected.
The museum’s centerpiece,
though, is an array of Saddam
Hussein memorabilia, which
includes items of the Iraqi
dictator’s clothing. It’s a puzzling,
even unnerving thing to behold.
As one visitor was overheard to
wonder:
Why?
Of course, that
same visitor continued to gaze
upon these artifacts for a good
while, effectively answering her
own question.
THREE PERFECT DAYS
||
DOHA
in artistic and scientific development. The
intricate weapons on display, meanwhile,
remind you of the region’s corresponding
military might.
Exiting the museum, you swing right
and stroll the palm-lined Corniche, a
favorite gathering spot for Doha society
in the coolermonths. You stop at a café for
a restorative chai—sweet, spiced tea—then
cab it back to
Souq Waqif
,
where you navi-
gate awarrenof shops hawking everything
from gaudy fabrics to sticky sweets. Wiz-
enedporters thread their barrows through
formations of black-cladmatrons, watched
by officers of the mounted Amiri Guard,
resplendent in their white kaffiyehs and
gold-framed aviator sunglasses.
For lunch, you go for adventurous: baby
camel tagineat the stylishMoroccaneatery
Tajine
,
located on Souq Waqif’s main drag.
Served with a mixture of mezes, it’s rustic
and very tasty—think mutton rather
than lamb but leaner, richer and, thanks
to hours of stewing, far more tender.
ThoughDohahas a reputation for being
fast-paced, locals have made an art form
of going nowhere slowly. Accordingly, you
linger at one of the cafés lining the main
street, where you spend a sedentary hour
smoking a
shisha
,
an aromatic water pipe,
and playing “guess the nationality” as a
diverse parade of people passes by.
A short taxi ride takes you to the
Arab
Museum of Modern Ar
t
,
also known as
Mathaf, which is stacked with excellent
examples of Arab modernist art (you are
particularly taken with the “Tea With
Nefertiti”
exhibition, which showcases
Egyptian art fromthe age of the pharaohs
totheArabSpring).Anothercabwhisksyou
through the city’s high-risemonuments to
wealth and on to West Bay Lagoon, home
to the second hotel of your stay.
The
St. Regis Doha
is a paragon of Gulf
bling: a fleet of Rolls-Royces and Jaguars
outside, acres ofmarblewithin.
Youpush through the sprays of
aromatic flowers and emerge
into the gli ering lobby, where
a female harpist who surely
moonlights as a supermodel
plinks melodiously. Soon you
are approached by a phalanx
of liveried staff, one of them
your butler, and are led to your
gold-tinted room.
If you want a drink in Doha,
the big hotels are pre y much
your only option. So, after a
sunset dip in the Olympic-
size pool, you head for the St.
Regis’
Jazz at Lincoln Center
Doha
,
a new club launched by
its New York namesake, where
GRAND BIZARRE
Inside the Sheikh
Faisal bin QassimAl Thani Museum
GREAT CATCH
Above, grilled prawns at L’wzaar SeafoodMarket; opposite, clockwise from top left,
traditional pigeon towers in Katara; a selection of water pipes, called
shishas
;
the Al Jasra Boutique
Hotel’s over-the-top lobby; a sampling of SouqWaqif’s wealth of traditional crafts
