Al Khor, here we come!

Hello friends!
Things have been hopping since we got back! We worked for two weeks attending workshops, meetings, prepping for class, etc. and are now on Eid holiday until we start teaching on the 27th of September.
The big news is that we are moving to Al Khor, 40 km north of Qatar University.
Websites with info and photos:
http://www.pbase.com/bmcmorrow/alkhor

This translates to 20-30 minutes driving time as there are only 2 or 3 roundabouts, less traffic, it's straight down to the south....we found a villa that is such a great bargain, I can't believe our luck. We'll be sharing the villa with Nettie and Thai, and have a couple of single friends interested in renting rooms, too. There are 3 stories, 6 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms and an open roof. The majlis (a traditional men's sitting room) is huge, has a separate front entrance plus entry to the house and could be an extra bedroom. There is also a maid's quarters separate from the house which is a room and bath, not that big but not part of the house. There's so much room for sitting outside, downstairs or on the roof, which has the benefit of a wonderful breeze although a good shamal will have you picking dirt out of your teeth. I noticed today the amount of sand that blows up against the outside wall is substantial. We decided we can live with it...I'll think of dust storms as warm snow storms that don't melt. :) Hmmmm....
Anyway, there are lots of beach areas, a small Corniche, play areas for kids, fishing, a pier, a great little fish market, lots and lots of stores to buy what we need (probably cheaper!), all the favorite restaurants (McDonald's, Burger King, Papa John's, KFC, plus lots of ethnic restaurants and cafes), and they're building a small mall...it's great. Perfect. Quiet. On the edge of town. Today we saw a horse not far from where we'll be living...means there is a stable nearby and we are going to hunt it down! There's a nice little resort there which offers memberships to their fitness gym and the most beautiful pool I have ever seen in my life. Maybe I haven't lived much. I don't know. Some people are shocked that we are moving. Some people are excited for us. We are both.....Nelson still has not heard about that stupid job, so we are done waiting and moving on to the next stage of life. Something else apparently is in store for him. We will wait for it. But we are moving on, or rather up, north.
Well, that's enough for now. We'll take photos when we go again and post them here. We'll update as often as we can during moving. We probably will be done by mid-October. They are still have to finish putting in the appliances and A/C and then clean it up before we move in. Stay tuned for NEWS! :)