"Babymoon" in Doha

I had never heard of a "babymoon" until getting pregnant. It's pretty much a trip you take with your husband to relax, unwind and indulge before the sleepless nights, constant diaper changes and feedings begin. Since I am almost 8 months and didn't feel like traveling for more than 5 hours in a car or airplane, we chose Doha, Qatar for our 4 night getaway.

Beach at Intercontinental Resort and Spa

This trip almost didn't happen for us because a week before our trip the embassy issued a travel ban. There was a terrorist threat and it forced the State Department to make a decision to close 19 embassies in the Middle East and Africa region. This included the embassy in Riyadh. For 6 days we were quarantined in our residential area. There were restrictions of going into the city, as well as, traveling, which meant no Doha. We called our hotel and canceled our reservations. 

On the 7th day there was a meeting and the travel ban was lifted. Thankfully the ban was lifted one day before Eid, which coincidentally was when Billy had asked for time off. Eid, is the last day of Ramadan and it's a one week holiday in Riyadh; the embassy is closed during this time. That very day Billy re-booked our hotel, found a pet sitter for Dante, and we were off the next day. Doha is only a 5.5 hr., by car from Riyadh, so we decided to drive. 

Downtown Doha

It was a little surreal for me to be in Doha because for almost 4 years my dad had lived there. Unfortunately he's on the other side of the world living in Brazil now. It's just kind funny how things happen sometimes. 

Our trip to Doha was purely to relax and spend time with each other. If lounging in the pool with lemon/mint coolers was all we did then it would have been perfectly fine with me.The weather was extremely humid and hot, so during the day we did hang out by the pool and drink coolers, but in the evening we explored and had great food (Thai, Mexican, Syrian and Seafood).We visited the souq, the grand mosque, the Islamic Learning Center, Katana, and a few other places in the city.

Souq Waqif

The day before our departure we pampered ourselves with a 2 hour massage and a fine dining experience at the "Fish Market". I even had a glass of red wine with my dinner without an ounce of guilt. It tasted so good! Some time in January we'll be ready for another trip. Only it will no longer be just the two of us traveling. We'll have a little sidekick by the same of Lucas Mateo tagging along with us for a while.