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(144): Doha Debacle: My tedious transit at Hamad International Airport

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  Doha Debacle: My tedious transit at Hamad International Airport By Muhsin Ibrahim I was filled to the brim with boredom and regrets about my choice to transit at Qatar’s Hamad International Airport when a smiley, albeit timid-looking guy threw a question at me, “Are you Muslim?” I answered in the affirmative. He saw the name on my boarding pass that I put beside me while calculating how to spend 24 hours at an airport. I knew no pastime could take away my angst and anguish during this period. Still, I was determined to survive it. “My name is Fahad Muhammad, and I am from Pakistan”, he added. In sum, despite his faltering, heavily accented English, he helped me kill more than an hour. He was glad, even fulfilled, that he spoke with a Muslim [ South! ] African, meaning an African. Thanks to cricket, many average Pakistanis and Indians see all blacks as South Africans! But, unknown to him, I was happier, for I was going through something akin to depression. I began foreign t