As a teenage girl, one of my weekend activity was « malling with my friends ». As we got older, we preferred going on road trips, going to the beach, and having parties, but I’ll never forget that part of my life where I would get all excited about meeting my friends (and boys …. ssshh!) at the mall. It’s funny because we wouldn’t even shop for stuff, we just liked walking in circles around the mall. Oh and the drama – we loved that a lot too!
Up until late last year, there was no real shopping mall where I live in France. Then, the Muse finally opened, but it still wasn’t what I was used to. This is in no way a critic, as I find shopping in the city center of Metz pretty enjoyable too, especially in good weather.
Anyways, this is to say that it was only natural that we would go and check out the malls in Doha, Qatar. We indeed went to several but the one that probably had the most impact was the Villaggio Mall, which was officially declared open in 2006.
Just outside the mall, you can see the Olympic Tower (see photo above).
The mall has a very Italian-feel and if you look above you can see the sky and its cloud artistically painted on the ceiling.
It was going to be the UEFA Euro 2016 a few months after this. Sadly, I had the impression that Qataris were not that into soccer.
We did a lot of eating at the Villaggio. If you know me well, you know that I’d rather spend my money on food than materials. Don’t judge me! 😜
One evening, we decided to have dinner at P.F. Chang’s. I had heard of this place for a while. This is a Chinese restaurant chain which can now be found worldwide.
It was quite dark inside the restaurant, so the photos didn’t turn out the way I wanted. Too bad for me.
The first thing to arrive at our table was a Trio of Sauce.
Then the dishes started arriving at our table.
First things first, their signature dish – Dynamite Shrimp.
Yummmm ….
Crab Wonton
Wok-Charred Beef.
Crispy Honey Chicken
Sweet and Sour Pork
Singaporean Street Noodle
Seared Ahi with Chili Lime
And of course, as we are Filipinos – steamed white rice to go with all of that delicious food!
Baby Girl went absolutely crazy with doughnuts during this trip. I have to admit I went a little nuts too.Krispy Kreme, please open in France – pretty please!
I got a box full of my absolute favorite ones – the Original Glazed.
Baby Girl, of course, got a box full of Chocolate Doughnuts. Doesn’t this look just too pretty??
We also stopped by Dunkin Donuts. If I’m not mistaken, there is a Dunkin Donuts in Luxembourg which is less than 2 hours from where I live.
We also had some more at Starbucks, but these were not good compared to Krispy Kreme and Dunkin Donuts. Sorry guys!
Coldstone Creamery. Where do I begin? You get delicious ice cream, sure. But before that cup actually goes in your hand – you also get a whole floor show. The ice cream scoop is thrown and caught in the air from one person to another and you’re there mouth wide open wondering if that ice cream is going to fall on the ground or will make it to the cup. And you wait, and stress, and wait, and finally it is handed to you. Hallelujah, you think, finally, while releasing that breath you were just holding.
It was all about frozen yogurt when I left the Philippines in 2011. That trend has just arrived in France. Can you believe it??
Pinkberry. This is how I like my frozen yogurt. Lots of fruits – mango and blueberries are my favorites. Almond slices for that little crunch.
Almandarin– the home of refreshing drinks. This is Strawberry, Mango, and Vanilla ice cream.
To end the day – a sweet Gondola ride around the mall.
Unlike the Villaggio Mall, the Landmark Shopping Mall was less flashy, less luxurious, and less extravagant. But I liked it too.
The new mall in Metz, France will unfortunately probably only have French stores and I doubt it will have a Victoria’s Secret store. So of course a visit here was a must. I love everything about it, especially the smell when you go inside. It’s hard not to get out without buying something. I behaved and only came out with 1 bottle of body mist.
After our little shopping spree, it was time for lunch. We had our lunch at Wrap It! which was located in the food court.
My Husband is a big fan of all that is wraps, gyros, burritos, shawarma, ….. So he was quite happy to be eating here. I was happy to have something light, in contrast to how much we’ve been eating so far in this trip.
It’s amazing to see the number of Filipinos workers here in Qatar. Almost feels like home. Filipinos are the best – never complaining, flexible workers, and always smiling. I may be biased – but it is the truth!
Meat Shawarma with Cucumber, Tomato, Bell Peppers, Onions, Fresh Greens topped by Arabic Garlic Mayo. 2 thumbs up! 😊
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