Peter Alagos

The Friday afternoon sun casts a warm, amber hue across the rustic landscape of Doha’s Al Rumailah Park. The faint sounds of children playing and a merry group of teenagers singing “Happy Birthday” have muffled the honking of cars traversing the Corniche, providing park visitors a laid-back ambience.

But seemingly unknown to many visitors, the park will be closed indefinitely from today to make way for renovation of the area, as announced earlier by the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning.

Moosa Kurumberi, who managed the Yes Cafeteria at the park for eight years, expressed hesitation and uncertainty when he was initially informed of the park’s closure.

“Business here has always been good and we always had enough customers perhaps because the products available in the cafeteria are reasonably priced,” he told Gulf Times yesterday.

While the planned renovation has forced the proprietor to close the shop, Kurumberi said that Yes Cafeteria employees would be transferred to other business establishments of the owner.

“There is a slight feeling of distress now that we are closing the shop because we have been expecting an increase in sales since the weather is cooler and more visitors  visit the park this time of the year,” he said.

Precy Cunanan, who arrived in Doha five months ago to work for an international food chain,  was surprised to know that the park would be closed indefinitely.

“I am saddened by the news. This park was among the first local attractions I visited since I arrived in Doha and I fell in love with it as soon as I set foot in it,” Cunanan said.

She said Al Rumailah Park brought back memories of her own hometown in the Philippines where she would take regular strolls with her two children in a smaller but similar park.

The 29-year-old  mother said she used to visit the park during her days-off to “find peace of mind” as she struggled to ward off  feelings of loneliness and homesickness.

“But the spectacular view of the Doha skyline from the park also makes me thankful that I have the opportunity to work and provide for my family back home,” she stressed.

Delu, who hails from Bangladesh, said he preferred the park compared to the nearby Corniche. He believed the park was safer for children who could even run around it unattended.

“Compared to the Corniche, traffic is not a distraction and danger because of the distance from the main thoroughfare. Also, the sea breeze is filtered by the trees and there’s always a new spot for picnics,” he said.