18 Dec 2019 - Cruise Day 8 (Doha): City Tour caught in a Massive Traffic Jam

From Villaggio Mall, we boarded the bus for a drive tour through the city.  Along the way, we saw many nice structures and buildings such as stadiums, gardens, fire station etc.

As we approached the West Bay area, we passed by a number of luxurious hotels such as Intercontinental and St. Regis.

At this point, we were caught in a massive traffic jam.  According to the tour guide, this is expected on Qatar National Day whereby Qataris will drive through the city without a destination in mind.  Many of the cars had the sunroof opened for the kids to stand out waving their national flags.  This is one way how Qataris celebrate their National Day.  Horning and roaring the car engines were also a way for them to spread the joy of their National Day.

Sad to say, due to the delay caused by the traffic jam, we had to skip a few places of interest.  That had caused some unhappiness to some in the tour group.  For me, it's ok as I find it a unique experience.  How many people have ever celebrated with the locals during their national day?  :-)

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