Qatar Calling

It was nearly ten years ago that we left Qatar, but I still get e-mails and other messages from teachers who are interested in teaching there.

Dear Simon,

I hope all is well with you, the wife and the dog.  I have been following your blog and the badminton 'court' looks great.

You probably don’t remember, but I was due to go to Haileybury, Almaty with my family before Covid and then Hangzhou this year.  Hangzhou didn’t happen, as the school could not get visas for the kids, so we have ended up in one of your old stomping grounds, Qatar.

To say we are underwhelmed is an understatement.  Both Qatar and the school area are major disappointments. The positives about the school is that it is truly international and our two primary-aged kids have settled well. We were told that the school was one of the better schools in Doha and had a good reputation.  If this is good, I wouldn’t want to see a bad one! From a teaching perspective, it is tough.  They have the longest day in Doha and the workload is incredible. Back in Ireland, I had 22 hours per week contact time with no duties.  Here it is 26 hours, plus two after school clubs, mentoring duties, and four supervision duties per week. Morale in the school among staff is very low. My wife and I are constantly asking ourselves, “What have we done?”

Qatar itself is a building site due to the World Cup, the bureaucracy is a nightmare and the way migrant workers are treated is appalling. People also tell me the cost of living is much higher post Covid.  We have found there is very little to do for families, even now that we have a car. 

We always wanted to try international teaching but I fear that Covid has changed the landscape for the worse.  Our contract is permanent, not for a fixed time, so we can leave with one month's notice.  At this stage, we are not sure we will see out the year, but are aiming to stay until Christmas and re-evaluate.  Thankfully, we are on a 'career break' (in Ireland, you can take up to a 5-year career break from your school) from our jobs at home and can return to work in August 2022.  If nothing else, this has given me a new found appreciation for both Ireland and my own school. 

In the meantime, we will take it one week at a time and try to make the most of this experience.  Getting home at Christmas is keeping us going. Apologies for the negativity!

Keep writing the blog and enjoying life in Bulgaria.

And I wrote back. 

Yes, Qatar is not the easiest place to be and the general consensus seems to be that "international packages" are not what they were, alas. Lots of schools are trying to cut this, trim something else and shave off another thing as well, in order to keep staffing costs down. On the other hand, I do think that it is still possible to save some serious cash, although this does not happen overnight. Instead of going back to the Emerald Isle for Christmas, how about a holiday in Sri Lanka instead? Or Egypt? One of the positive things about Qatar is that it is easy (but not very cheap) to go somewhere else. I suppose that rather depends on your ties to friends and family back in Ireland. Teaching in international schools is not for everyone and it is particularly difficult if you have lots of contacts that keep pulling you back.

Yes, I did warn teachers (and anyone else) in my blog that Qatar can be tough. It is not so bad in the winter, when you think about everyone freezing and getting soaked back home, but it certainly is not much fun in the summer. I used to get up at half-past five in the morning, in order to go for a walk along the Corniche. It was just too hot if you went any later. In China, we found the locals to be very kind and friendly to foreigners, but alas this is not the case in Qatar, especially if your skin is the wrong colour.

After Qatar, you will want a contrast and yes, you could go back to Ireland. Maybe you are missing all that rain and the forty shades of green. On the other hand, how about Bulgaria? Or China? 

Keep reading the blog! It is very encouraging to get some feedback from someone who has actually read it (perhaps there are one or two).

Last year we sold our old house in Kalotina, about 60kms north of Sofia, and we bought another one in a place called Daveri. Not bad for 81,000 euros. (That will probably buy you a semi-detached rabbit hutch in Ireland.) Anyway, I am sending you a few photos, just to make you jealous. On the whole, I would say that being retired is a lot easier than teaching.

Best wishes from Bulgaria,

Simon (aka the Hippo)

And here is the reply.

Dear Simon, 

Thank you for your response and the photos. I am not at all jealous, just absolutely happy for you that you have found a place that you are content with and has the added bonus of being a bargain. 

Frustratingly, I think international teaching IS for us, but just not in this school, in this country. 

It is not horrific, as the money is above average and the kids are good; but my goodness they are getting their pound of flesh and then some. The workload is not sustainable and there is an inspection in March. My wife has taken over a computers department that had nothing left at all. Not a single resource or scheme of work. 

We are probably too well off in Ireland. My dad is a farmer and we were fortunate to be able to build a lovely home in the countryside. We have a much better quality of life in Ireland than in Qatar. 

This was all about the experience rather than the money and we are just disappointed with things thus far. We were completely sold on Kazakhstan and can't help thinking, "Was it the one that got away?" 

On the plus side, reading your blog has encouraged us to cast our net further in search of a holiday home. Bulgaria is definitely on the list.

Enjoy your evening.