Whole new city built from scratch, roll on 2022

MANY of us know the pain of home renovations and construction, from the stress of dealing with contractors to the paint fumes. The day that first wall gets knocked down is the day you wish you were able to live elsewhere until the job is completed. All you’d like to do is hand over the keys and come back when the last bit of rubble has been carted away.

Now, imagine living in a country that seems to be in permanent renovation mode or, in some cases, building entirely from scratch. Welcome to Qatar, where construction is visible everywhere, and there’s no escape from the dust and the debris.

Once you’ve cleared the sand from your eyes, it really is a fascinating sight to behold and shows you what’s possible when a country has both the wealth and the willingness to spend it on creating an infrastructure that will better benefit its population.

New rail system? Check. New football stadiums? Check. New city? Check.

Yep, in addition to building transport and stadium infrastructure with an eye on the 2022 World Cup, Qatar is witnessing the development of an entire new “Smart City” called Lusail, which will host both the opening match and the final of the tournament.

Now, the city concept in this Gulf state is a little different from what you and I are more accustomed to in South Africa. Lusail is a short drive away from Qatar’s capital city of Doha, and the aim is for it to eventually be home to more than 200 000 residents, surrounded by skyscrapers, golf courses, theme parks, beaches and marinas. “Century City on steroids” might be one way to describe it.

The compound in which my family and I live has not been immune to the effects of the construction taking place across Doha. A road is being widened at the back of the compound to ease traffic congestion in a busy school and residential area, meaning some units have had to be vacated ahead of being demolished.

The community is quite anxious to see exactly how this is going to affect dayto-day life. Most of the units, including ours, have not been directly affected, so there is thankfully no need for home renovations. That’s the last thing I’d want to deal with.

My phone rings. It’s Shihaam. “Did you see the email from the agent? She says our tenants have sent a list of things that need to be done at the house.

“Apparently the gate isn’t working properly and needs to be serviced, there’s quite a bit of damp in the bathroom and the whole house could probably do with a paint.

“Oh, and if we’re going to be getting work done, we might as well check the cost of putting in that extra bathroom…”

Groan. Even though we’re living overseas, the pain of renovations is still striking close to home.