Scorching school holidays in Doha or costly flight? ‘Y

ESSSSS! School’s over and it’s the summer weekend.” Fiveyear-old Yaqeen is excited about the last day of school. He’s right about it being the summer, but he’s in for a surprise if he thinks he’s only getting the weekend off.

Summer holidays for Yaqeen and his older brother and sister, 11-year-old Aqeel and 8-year-old Saabirah, started this week, and they’re only due back at school towards the end of August.

That’s a whopping two-and-a-half month vacation, and typical for the Gulf, where academic school years run from August or September until June.

There tends to be an exodus of expats from Qatar as soon as the schools shut, with many returning home to spend the last few days of Ramadaan and then Eid with loved ones, while others use the opportunity to travel to more temperate climes.

It’s easier to disappear for a couple of months when only one parent in the family is working, allowing either mom or dad to pack up and go with the kids. Less so when both parents have demanding jobs, which is the case for Shihaam and me.

The past couple of Gulf summers have seen us fortunate enough to spend large amounts of time with the kids in Cape Town, but it involved a few flights back and forth as we had to break up our trips for work purposes.

Costly at the best of times, ticket prices seem more expensive this year. This may partly be due to the ongoing land, sea and air blockade imposed on Qatar by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt, which hit the oneyear mark on June 5 and has limited flight options for those exiting Doha.

This year we plan to spend most of our summer in Doha, hoping to take advantage of the holiday camps and activities on offer, weather permitting. After seven years in the Gulf, battling the heat in the middle of the year still takes getting used to, though.

Growing up in Cape Town, June through August was associated with howling winds, torrential rains and cold conditions – and the odd tornado.

When I lived in Joburg, the rain and wind would make few appearances, but the cold was icier. Fast-forward to June this year, and the environment here couldn’t be more different.

Kids battle with being cooped up in the day; it’s sometimes too hot even for a dip in the pool. Indoor play areas at least give children an outlet for their energy.

Many play areas are open until 1am in the summer, with families choosing to get a late start to the day – or early start to the night. I can’t imagine letting Aqeel, Saabirah and Yaqeen ride bumper cars and play ten-pin bowling at that hour.

One thing’s for sure – it’s going to be a long, hot summer. If you’ll excuse me, I think I’m going to check those flights again.