Greetings from Qatar

Following her late July/early August visit to Evanston, new Qatar Library Director Gillian Westera headed off to her new assignment. She sends this update from the desert:

My trip to Evanston was a wonderful start in preparing me for our Qatar campus. Everyone has been great in assisting the start-up of the library here and it was excellent meeting staff in person. Being able to put faces to names also makes me feel part of the wider Library community.

Life in Qatar is very different. My glasses fog up every time I step outside (it's extremely humid). The sand whips up pretty easily and everything is covered in a fine dusting of sand. I plan on buying a sand-colored car.

There are few trees. Fortunately, Education City has some greenery and I know it will become greener in time. The heat is hard to handle, but being accustomed to this region, I find it pleasant to go walking in the cooler evenings when temperatures hover in the mid-90s. And while the birds pant during the day, their morning and evening music makes me glad to be here.

Cheers,

Gill

(Photo by Mary Bradley)