Dorothy Cottrell

It was lovely to see friends and family when I went back to Scotland for Christmas, especially to be in the same room as all my family in the world – my daughters and son, their spouses and my 4 grandchildren. What was not so nice was the weather – lots of snow and freezing temperatures, slippery roads and pavements like ice rinks. I flew back on New Year’s Eve, from Glasgow to Dubai and then on to Doha and celebrated the start of 2010 at the gate in Dubai waiting for the doors of the plane to open. Flying via Dubai meant I saw the world’s tallest building, which is amazing, and sights like the palm tree complex. A similar group of teachers who went to the England v Brazil football match here went to the Qatar Open Tennis Championships last night. Last year I saw Roddick, Nadal, Federer and Murray in the quarter-finals. This time we saw Nadal win and Federer lose in the semi-finals from fabulous seats near the action. We also saw the mens’ doubles final which two Spaniards won. Each match was more exciting than the one before. I wish a Happy New Year to all of you who are reading this !