MEDINA CENTRALE – A LITTLE SLICE OF EUROPE IN QATAR

Imagine this. You are enjoying a walk in December along a cobbled path amidst the trees and colorful buildings. You sit at an outdoor café whist people watching. Children are riding their scooters and women window-shopping. Sounds like La Rambla in Barcelona? Nope, it’s here in Doha at The-Pearl Qatar’s Medina Centrale.

Medina Centrale is a little slice of Europe now that it’s become a pedestrian zone on weekends.

Now that the weather is getting cooler, one of my favorite activities to do with my family is to go for long walks around The-Pearl Qatar (TPQ), where we live. It’s a welcomed change after months of hiding indoors form the heat. I follow TPQ’s Instagram page and saw their recent announcement of transforming Medina Centrale into a pedestrian zone on weekends and it got me really excited especially that the area is walking distance from our house. We go to Medina Centrale all the time but what a big difference it made having no cars around. No signs of Lamborghinis revving their engines – if you’re a resident of The-Pearl Qatar, you know what I’m talking about.

I felt immediately relaxed and could take in more of my surroundings. I suddenly paid attention to the details of the buildings, soaked up the beautiful weather and walked at a leisurely pace. We parked our Bugaboo stroller in the piazza and Naomi watched the kids play while I grabbed myself ice cream with Lotus sauce from Forty Fruity. I think Naomi enjoyed her time so much that she didn’t want to nap!

We continued walking towards Souq Al Medina and spotted a kiosk stand with big buckets of Nutella. I didn’t need to know what they were selling; I’ll have one. I convinced Anthony to buy mini pancakes from Proffertjes Qatar with Nutella so I can have a taste (by taste, I mean finish half of it).

We visited Souq Al Medina for the first time and beelined straight to the massive fountain at the very end. It was so refreshing to see families sitting on benches just watching the fountains and so we did the same.

Before heading back home, I stopped for some Churros because why wouldn’t you?

We bumped into some friends of ours who also sang praises on how they’re really enjoying their time. Being here in Doha sometimes makes you miss the simple pleasures of life like spending a day outside in a beautiful weather.

If you are like us who would rather avoid going out of The-Pearl Qatar on the weekends because of traffic, I recommend heading over to Medina Centrale instead. Here’s what you need to know:

TIMINGS:

It’s car-free zone starting from Thursday at 2:00 PM and ends on Saturday midnight.

GETTING THERE AND GETTING ABOUT

You can either walk to the district or make use of the number of parking blocks around the area and you can hop in one of the golf carts to take you around Medina Centrale.

THINGS TO DO

There are a number of activities to do like watch a movie at Novo Cinemas or go bowling at Megapolis. There’s even a soft play area for kids in Cool de Sac. But the best part for me is simply being able to walk around the area and enjoying a nice ice cream at the piazza or sitting in the fountain area while having kiosk food.

WHERE TO EAT

(Click on the link for google map location)

Medina Centrale also makes for a great weekend dining spot. Go for an Arabic breakfast at Zaater w Zeit or head over to Eggspectation for brunch. If you fancy an al fresco meal in this beautiful weather, there are a number of options that include Nandos, Sammach, Arabic restaurant like Debs W Remmam or Biella and La Casa 28 that serve Italian dishes. You can also try the new Turkish place called Hasan Kolcuoglo at Souq Al Medina that has a stunning view of the piazza.

Don’t have time to sit down or prefer a more laid back option, there’s my favorite fast food joint Fatburger and other casual dining restaurants like Applebee’s or Lord of the Wings.

And let’s not forget desserts! Mokarabia is a hit among visitors and residents and there are gelato and ice cream shops in every corner.

Stay Up To Date

For more updates on what’s happening at The-Pearl Qatar, make sure to follow them on Instagram and check out their Instagram Stories. You can also download The Pearl-Qatar App for accessible information at the touch of your fingertip. And when you want to capture your time in Medina Centrale on Instagram, don’t forget to use the hashtag #tpqmoments and #medinacentrale