Qatar

Overview

Qatar is increasingly opening up to outsiders, so while attractions may seem restricted currently this is likely to change. The capital, Doha, often has quite a hold on visitors who can relax on the long Corniche or promenade. There are the Qatar National museum and Ethnographical museum if the sun gets too much and the visitor wishes to learn more about the country itself. Within the city there are contrasts between the traditional Grand Mosque and Abu Bakir al-Siddiq Mosque and souqs with the shopping complexes and high end hotels. Other museums around the nation are the Al Kohr weaponry and Al Wahra. The Doha Fort and ruined fort at Umm Salal Mohammed are not actually museums but serve to present a small look at the relatively recent past. The sand dunes at Kohr Al Udeid are beautiful and if that is not enough sand there are beaches at Umm bab, Dukhan and Salwah. Animals can be seen at the zoo near Doha, the Almaha Sanctuary at Shahaniya and camel racing around the country. There is also the opportunity for pearl hunting.

History

Ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Qatari economy was crippled by a continuous siphoning off of petroleum revenues by the amir, who had ruled the country since 1972. His son, the current Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, overthrew him in a bloodless coup in 1995. In 2001, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Oil and natural gas revenues enable Qatar to have one of the highest per capita incomes in the world.