Once upon a time there was a happy little family that had recently moved to Shaker Heights, Ohio. Even more recently, as in this past April, that same happy little family had moved out of a tiny apartment and into a fabulous three story house on a beautiful tree-lined street just around the corner from a top-notch elementary school and a block away from our beloved preschool. We signed a two year lease, put down carpet in the basement, and began unpacking our boxes, breathing a round of happy sighs.
And then, out of the blue, the husband got contacted about a job in Qatar. Hilarious, we thought. What the heck, we thought. This will never amount to anything, we thought. What could one interview hurt, we thought. And so, at 6am on Memorial Day, the husband had a brief phone interview that he thought went pretty badly. And we moved on with our comfortable lives.
Only apparently the interview didn't got badly at all. We were called and offered the chance to come to Qatar for the first week in July (getting in just before Ramadan!) for a round of formal interviews. And we've never been to the Middle East, and someone was going to pay our way there, business class no less, so we made some fast arrangements (thank goodness for fabulous Aunties who can fly over on short notice to watch the boys) and got ready to go.
And our trip was memorable, to say the least. Business class on Qatar Airways is like flying in a ritzy hotel in the sky. They gave us pajamas, "amenity" packs filled with everything we could need in-flight, virgin cocktails and amazing food, our own private seats-turned-beds, and noise-canceling headphones. This was traveling in style, believe me, even if it did feel a little like a big slumber party once we were all changed into our PJs!
And the five star treatment didn't stop with the plane. Once we landed, someone else handled all our paperwork, whisked us through customs and immigration, went to pick up our luggage from baggage claim for us, and called our own private driver who was waiting to take us to our hotel. And by "hotel" I mean a three bedroom apartment in a luxury apartment building where room service was on the house. 3 full and 2 half baths all to ourselves? Our first time away from the kids together? Amazing views of the aquamarine Persian Gulf? Two balconies on the 18th floor? Love it!
The husband was busy with interviews most of the first two days, but we did have time to tour the city, visit a few important sites, check out some sample housing options, and eat lots and lots and LOTS of great food. I fell in love with a drink they call "lemon mint," basically lemonade with a heavy helping of crushed mint, sometimes frozen, always delicious. It's one of their signature drinks in Qatar, apparently, and I could drink it all day long. In fact, most days, I did. Later, during our last day of free time, we went to visit the cacophonous Souk Waqif, a modern bazaar rebuilt in the old style on the site of an ancient bazaar, and the impressive new Museum of Islamic Art. I'll have more to tell about all of this later, but soon enough it was time for us to fly home.
Somewhere over Africa on our return trip, I had the distinct impression that no matter what they offered us, if they offered us a job, the husband was going to take it. I cried for a few minutes, mourning the perfect little life we would be leaving, but then I gathered myself, had another lemon mint (we were still in Business Class, after all), and began to think about all the ways in which such a move would change our lives for the better.
We have always wanted to live abroad but thought it was impossible given the husband's career, pharmacy, not exactly a profession practiced the same (or at all) globally. And now here was our chance. We love traveling and have lamented the fact that our children haven't been able to do as much we'd wish. And now here was their chance. We both have student loan debt that equates to a second mortgage payment every month that we would love to get rid of and put that money to better use. And now here was a chance. In the end, it took a lot of soul searching and prayer to make this decision, largely because our life and the husband's job here really are close to perfect, but we felt like we had to take these chances and watch what happened.
Ready or not, here we come!
And then, out of the blue, the husband got contacted about a job in Qatar. Hilarious, we thought. What the heck, we thought. This will never amount to anything, we thought. What could one interview hurt, we thought. And so, at 6am on Memorial Day, the husband had a brief phone interview that he thought went pretty badly. And we moved on with our comfortable lives.
Only apparently the interview didn't got badly at all. We were called and offered the chance to come to Qatar for the first week in July (getting in just before Ramadan!) for a round of formal interviews. And we've never been to the Middle East, and someone was going to pay our way there, business class no less, so we made some fast arrangements (thank goodness for fabulous Aunties who can fly over on short notice to watch the boys) and got ready to go.
And our trip was memorable, to say the least. Business class on Qatar Airways is like flying in a ritzy hotel in the sky. They gave us pajamas, "amenity" packs filled with everything we could need in-flight, virgin cocktails and amazing food, our own private seats-turned-beds, and noise-canceling headphones. This was traveling in style, believe me, even if it did feel a little like a big slumber party once we were all changed into our PJs!
And the five star treatment didn't stop with the plane. Once we landed, someone else handled all our paperwork, whisked us through customs and immigration, went to pick up our luggage from baggage claim for us, and called our own private driver who was waiting to take us to our hotel. And by "hotel" I mean a three bedroom apartment in a luxury apartment building where room service was on the house. 3 full and 2 half baths all to ourselves? Our first time away from the kids together? Amazing views of the aquamarine Persian Gulf? Two balconies on the 18th floor? Love it!
The husband was busy with interviews most of the first two days, but we did have time to tour the city, visit a few important sites, check out some sample housing options, and eat lots and lots and LOTS of great food. I fell in love with a drink they call "lemon mint," basically lemonade with a heavy helping of crushed mint, sometimes frozen, always delicious. It's one of their signature drinks in Qatar, apparently, and I could drink it all day long. In fact, most days, I did. Later, during our last day of free time, we went to visit the cacophonous Souk Waqif, a modern bazaar rebuilt in the old style on the site of an ancient bazaar, and the impressive new Museum of Islamic Art. I'll have more to tell about all of this later, but soon enough it was time for us to fly home.
Somewhere over Africa on our return trip, I had the distinct impression that no matter what they offered us, if they offered us a job, the husband was going to take it. I cried for a few minutes, mourning the perfect little life we would be leaving, but then I gathered myself, had another lemon mint (we were still in Business Class, after all), and began to think about all the ways in which such a move would change our lives for the better.
We have always wanted to live abroad but thought it was impossible given the husband's career, pharmacy, not exactly a profession practiced the same (or at all) globally. And now here was our chance. We love traveling and have lamented the fact that our children haven't been able to do as much we'd wish. And now here was their chance. We both have student loan debt that equates to a second mortgage payment every month that we would love to get rid of and put that money to better use. And now here was a chance. In the end, it took a lot of soul searching and prayer to make this decision, largely because our life and the husband's job here really are close to perfect, but we felt like we had to take these chances and watch what happened.
Ready or not, here we come!
We have moved to so many different places, as well as visiting our kids all over the world. Nothing can compare to the education that travel, and even more so, living in different places gives you. I think your children's lives will be forever enriched by this.
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