There are some of us Western Expats who come here for a learning experience and a life adventure. My family being one of those, we have learned some surprising lessons from being here.
One is that we are experiencing what we call "reverse discrimination". What I mean by that is compared to the US, things are geared here for the Qatari obviously, which there is nothing wrong with that, but after living in our home country, we were the ones who saw other nationalities in the US being discriminated against.
For example, I was born and raised in South Texas. There is a large number of Mexican Americans living there as it is only 3 hours away from the Mexican border. Many people in S. Texas are upset that every time they call a place of business, they hear a recording that says "Press 2 for English". In other words if you don't press anything, then you are connected to someone who speaks Spanish. Many people back home have joined a movement where if Mexicans want to live in the US, they should learn to speak English. I was never one of those people as living in a community that had many Hispanics living there, I learned Spanish naturally by being exposed to it all the time.
Living here in Qatar gives me a unique perspective in that being an expat, my language is not the native language here, and it is difficult at times for me to communicate with people at places of business, or doctor's offices. I can completely understand how the Mexican American feels now. Arabic seems to be a hard language to learn when you have never been exposed to it before, especially since there are many different dialects being spoken here.
I could go on with other comparisons, but that will make this post even more lengthy than it already is. Suffice it to say that some expats come to Qatar with good intentions, to better their lives, broaden their knowledge, and have a unique experience. Being here has made me a better person in effect.
There are some of us Western Expats who come here for a learning experience and a life adventure. My family being one of those, we have learned some surprising lessons from being here.
One is that we are experiencing what we call "reverse discrimination". What I mean by that is compared to the US, things are geared here for the Qatari obviously, which there is nothing wrong with that, but after living in our home country, we were the ones who saw other nationalities in the US being discriminated against.
For example, I was born and raised in South Texas. There is a large number of Mexican Americans living there as it is only 3 hours away from the Mexican border. Many people in S. Texas are upset that every time they call a place of business, they hear a recording that says "Press 2 for English". In other words if you don't press anything, then you are connected to someone who speaks Spanish. Many people back home have joined a movement where if Mexicans want to live in the US, they should learn to speak English. I was never one of those people as living in a community that had many Hispanics living there, I learned Spanish naturally by being exposed to it all the time.
Living here in Qatar gives me a unique perspective in that being an expat, my language is not the native language here, and it is difficult at times for me to communicate with people at places of business, or doctor's offices. I can completely understand how the Mexican American feels now. Arabic seems to be a hard language to learn when you have never been exposed to it before, especially since there are many different dialects being spoken here.
I could go on with other comparisons, but that will make this post even more lengthy than it already is. Suffice it to say that some expats come to Qatar with good intentions, to better their lives, broaden their knowledge, and have a unique experience. Being here has made me a better person in effect.
Motherhood...The hardest job you'll ever love! : )