The Director in Zoo!

Today, I visited the zoo... again. My second visit in the past two weeks.

I'm about to do a feature on the Doha Zoo, which is home to 144 different species of animals. No doubt, I haven't seen a zoo as good looking as this one. Of course the Singapore Zoo was much much classier - huge, different tree plantations to suit the animals living in that particular part of the sprawling artificial piece of land. But the Singapore Zoo, well, looked artificial. Too- toooo classy. Didn't look real. More like a dream when you sit in a slow train that takes you all around stopping midway to show you the animals, while a guide sitting in the front seat with a microphone attached to his ear tells you everything there is to know about the animal.

The Doha Zoo, on the other hand, is a lot more real. There is a wheeled-tram for sure, but it's much better to walk around it.

Anyway, this was my second visit not because I love going to the zoo and staring at animals. But coz, I needed some official information about the zoo. What took me so long to get to an official is that I needed to take writen permission from the Qatar government before anyone (human) at the zoo would talk to me.

Did it help? Uh, no.

Apparently, what apparently, certainly, the director of the zoo does not know anything about the zoo he heads. He has absolutely no idea.

He's been given a great cabin, a super salary (because he's Qatari), and that's about it. I asked him a little bit about the history of the zoo. He doesn't know. How many animals there are, and he needs a peon to answer that for him, what are the future plans of the zoo, and "it's a surprise", he replies. I am sure it's a surprise for him too - the future plans.

I mean, how in the world am I supposed to do a feature?! And while I was leaving, the bugger has the audacity to ask, "When will my picture appear in the paper?"

That's a regular Qatari for you - a regular working Qatari. All he has to do is reach office. That's it. End of story. To know anything, is not his job.

I'll still do the feature.

But I'll quote the peon instead of the Director.