Maktaba Qatar - Experience the Joy of Reading!

Four years ago three anxious mothers in Qatar with young children were desperately searching for programs that exposed their children to the joy of reading and encouraged them to fall in love with books. They were also very conscious of the fact that there was very limited access to age appropriate reading materials, particularly in Arabic, in Qatar.

Today, Sarah Champa Al Dafa, Hind AbdulRahman al Khulaifi and and Mohana Rajakumar are the proud Co Founders of "Maktaba" (the meaning of the Arabic word Maktaba is Library) a non profit organization that offers free, regularly scheduled Story Time Sessions at various locations in Doha and aims towards a Children's Lending Library at their own location very soon, offering a variety of reading materials and learning related programs.

Contact details of Maktaba can be found at www.rush360.qa by searching for "Maktaba"

Maktaba is very fortunate to partner with RasGas. Their support allowed Maktaba to launch a website and Maktaba Mobile Application. 

 "Both allow us to bring books and reading tips to children and parents. We have had over 10,000 downloads of Maktaba Mobile in 43 countries; the numbers are increasing," says Sarah.

Sarah is extremely thankful to RasGas and says: "Their generous support allows us to continue to grow and expand our programs year by year and benefit a larger audience of Qatar"

"Our first partners and story time hosts were (and still are) Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art and the Katara Arts Center. 3 years later, our regular events at both locations are very popular." recalls Sarah.

In June 2014 Maktaba partnered with Kalimat Publishing based in the UAE to bring Story Time with Baba to WH Smith. This event focused on encouraging families, especially fathers, to get involved with reading to their children.

What does Maktaba offer?

• Regular Scheduled Storytime Sessions for Children at Mathaf Arab Museum of Modern Art, Katara Arts Center, WH Smith at Ezdan Mall
• Festival and Book Fair Programs
• You can invite Maktaba for a Session at your convenient venue and they would be glad to host a Storytime and craft activities for a very small fee.

Maktaba's Calendar is available at their website and they keep everyone up to date on all their activities via social media accounts including Facebook and Twitter. 

Great news is that  children are not required to bring anything to the sessions. Maktaba provides all the reading and crafting materials. When possible, through the generous support of partners and sponsors, they also do giveaways of books or reading related materials. Isn't that just awesome? Do not miss the next session! Keep an eye on their calendar!

We asked Sarah to describe a typical Story Time Session, and this is what she had to say:

"Each story time has a few key activities. we read a story in both English and Arabic. We try to choose stories in both languages under a shared theme. We then work together on a related craft activity which could be book making, shadow puppetry or drawing. "

Our goal is to encourage kids to reflect on what they have heard and respond through crafts. At the end of each session we ask the participants to present their work to the group. We find this is a great way to reinforce the value of their work and build self confidence".   

"We focus on reading in Arabic because there are fewer programs supporting reading in Arabic. All of our sessions are bi-lingual Arabic/English so everyone can participate and even learn a few new words in either language."

One of the applauding achievements of Maktaba was the Guinness World Record! In April Maktaba partnered with RasGas, the Supreme Education Council and Bloomsbury Qatar  to break the Guinness World Record for the largest Children's Reading Lesson.

 

When asked, what were or are the challenges Maktaba faced and facing in this journey?, Sarah confidently says: "Starting something new is always a challenge but we have been pleased by our progress and the interest of the community"

"There is an expanding interest in reading and supporting a culture of reading in Qatar. There are amazing on-line resources available from the Qatar National Library for example (follow @QNLib for more info). There are also some great book clubs such as Qatar Book Club and Khair Jalees." 

Our sincere thanks to Sarah Champa Al Dafa for sharing these much valuable information about Maktaba with Rush360 inspite of her busy schedules. We wish Mataba all success in this noble Journey!

PS: Locations of Mathaf Museum of Modern Art, Katara, WHSmith can be found at www.rush360.qa with accurate maps and details!

Fuwairit Beach - Qatar

The Sand may brush off,

The Salt may wash clean,

The Tan may fade,

But the Memories will last forever.

Fuwairit Beach in Qatar is no exception for the above! Indeed a place full of memories!

Location details can be found at www.rush360.qa  pin your current location and set the radius to above 100KM (all this could be done by clicking the "Advanced Search" button just next to the Search Bar) then do an exact search for "Fuwairit Beach". It takes about 1 to 1.5 hours to get their from Doha. If you have a full tank of fuel its just fine to go and come back to Doha without a problem even though you do get Petrol Stations on the Shamal Road. 

Neil Mcbride shared with us this direction and some tips "" Fuwairit beach is very easy to find, simply head north on Al Shamal Road and exit at junction 79 (signposted Fuwairit). Follow the road to the end (just before a small village) and turn left. Travel for approx. 1km (its hard ground so no need for a 4x4) and you will see the car park. It is a good idea to park as far back, and on high ground, if possible as the car park does flood regularly".

Fuwairit beach is usually packed during weekends, people engaging in various activities! Most of the part of the beach is crowded with bachelor's having a lot of fun, but you could also see some families on one side where children are thrilled with water fun! 

There are no facilities like toilets, or BBQ sheds or anything else available there but nevertheless the water is so wonderful and a great place for Swimming, Water Sports, Snorkeling, Picnic, Sunbathing, Kite Surfing Camping and for BBQ with you own equipment. 

The local awsome Eco Adventure Company Entalek organizers Snorkeling Trips at Fuwairit Coral Reefs on and off. Like their Facebook Page and keep updated of their activities!

 

Details about Entelek can be found at www.rush360.qa  pin your current location and set the radius to above 100KM (all this could be done by clicking the "Advanced Search" button just next to the Search Bar) then do an exact search for "Entalek".

Fuwairit Beach is one of the places for witnessing the amazing event of Turtles nesting and hatching too! Read more about it here!

And its a great place to collect loads of beautiful shells! Kids will really enjoy the collection and it can bring out Art and Creativity too!

The immediate vicinity of the Fuwairit Beach looks like an abandoned Village area, so in case of an emergency to get water, soft drinks or other small grocery items you can head to the other side of Fuwairit to a small town called Ain Sinan and you will find Al Rashidi Cold Stores.

The location details of this store could be found at www.rush360.qa pin your current location and set the radius to above 100KM (all this could be done by clicking the "Advanced Search" button just next to the Search Bar) then do an exact search for "Al Rashidi".

The Store has some basic items you would need and seems like the only store available until you reach further noth for anything you would need if you are in Fuwairit!

Also at Ain Sinan you get a nice Masjid (Mosque) with separate prayer place for Ladies. The good thing about this Masjid is that the Toilets are clean and even have a shower in them. Ideal to get all your sand off or get the kids cleaned up and get ready for prayers!

Location of the Masjid could be found at www.rush360.qa by searching for "Masjid - Ain Sinan"

Finally, close to the Masjid is the cozy beautiful Ain Sinan Park! A great place to have the kids enjoy after the water fun at Fuwairit Beach! We saw this park going through some renovations or still under construction, but looked almost complete. The park has Prayer areas for Males and females with Bathroom Facilities and Children's Play Area. Find the exact location at www.rush360.qa by searching for "Ain Sinan Park".

Enjoy!

5 Simple Steps to find a location using www.rush360.qa

Qatar Turtle and Marine Watch!

Did you know that Turtles nest on various places around Qatar? Are you interested in knowing more about Turtles nesting and hatching and witnessing it? What about exploring the beautiful sea creatures of Qatar and much more! Read on to know more.......

Nudibranch in Qatar Waters

Neile Mcbride a resident of Qatar had a passion to share information regarding Turtle Nesting and Hatching in Qatar. In April 2014 he started a Facebook Group "Qatar Turtle Watch" so that people could share information about the amazing event of turtles nesting and hatching as well as get involved. Details about "Qatar Turtle Watch" can be found at www.rush360.qa

When Neil started the group the feedback he received was overwhelming and never thought it would be big as today. Qatar Tutrtle Watch Facebook group has 2400 plus members and more are joining and sharing information everyday. Neil says, "To be honest, I am happy there are so many people out there who share the same passion"

According to Neil, the type of turtles that are found in Qatar are Hawksbill Turtles. They nest on various sites around the peninsular, but the only one that public have access to is at Fuwairit beach The rest are beaches that form part of private company land.

Picture Courtesy of Entalek

 Find Fuwairit Beach Location at www.rush360.qa  pin your current location and set the radius to above 100KM (all this could be done by clicking the "Advanced Search" button just next to the Search Bar) then do an exact search for "Fuwairit Beach".

Fuwairit Beach

Directions and some tips by Neil with regard to Fuwairit Beach : " Fuwairit beach is very easy to find, simply head north on Al Shamal Road and exit at junction 79 (signposted Fuwairit). Follow the road to the end (just before a small village) and turn left. Travel for approx. 1km (its hard ground so no need for a 4x4) and you will see the car park. It is a good idea to park as far back, and on high ground, if possible as the car park does flood regularly".

So when do turtles nest and hatch at Fuwairit?

 "Turtles nest around May-July, and hatch for about a month or so at the end. The season may vary by a few weeks every year of course, but this is the general period. Luckily there are people who are kind enough to give us lots of information so we are able to pass this on and keep wasted journeys to a minimum. Its not an exact science of course, as nature never has, so we cant issue any guarantees I’m afraid" says Neil.

Qatar Turtle Watch is not limited to online only they do organize and arrange activities and field trips as well. This year they organised a beach clean up at Fuwairit, and helped people find the beach, so that many can witness the nesting and hatching. 

"Its so rewarding to see families and children on the beach and really enjoying themselves", says Neil and he continues,  "This year the wardens and marine biologists had things ready up there for the children. They had plastic trays for them to hold the newly hatched turtles in their hands….an experience I think they will remember for a long time to come. Maybe, in future years, we can expand this and include other activities? Who knows?!" 

 

We asked him what are the problems and harms that the turtles are exposed to over here, and this was his reply. "The biggest problem the turtles face, like all marine creatures, is from pollution. People can help by not leaving their litter on the beach when they use it. Plastic bags pose such a threat to turtles as they can mistake them for jellyfish and eat them. Imagine eating a plastic bag? 

Like we always say….

when you visit the beach please, take only photos and leave only footprints!

Isn't it great to have something like this in Qatar and a nice way to keep the inquisitive kids busy too during the hatching seasons.

Neil has also started a another Facebook Group "Qatar Marine Watch" as a way of expanding the activities of Qatar Turtlewatch to include all marine life. Details could be found at www.rush360.qa 

He started it with a view of replacing Turtlewatch, simply because the name limited their activities somewhat. Neil says, "Sadly, as we had already passed the 250 member mark, we could not simply change the name of Qatar Turtlewatch as the rules prevent it (although I am not a 100% sure why?), My original plan was for this to take over, but now we will run both at the same time so that we can reach a wider audience.

Neil has also started a website  so that they can reach out to people who are not on social media. If you are interested to know more and keep updated you can join the two groups too and yes, witness the next Turtle Hatching and Nesting!

The Rush360 Qatar team would like to thank Neil Mcbride for sharing all this wonderful information with us and we wish him all the best. Here are some Sea Creatures of Qatar that Northern Divers Qatar  happily shared with us! 

Mantis Shrimp