An Argentinian woman living in Qatar, Valeria Teplitzky, rushed to search for her country’s flag as soon as she entered the newly-opened flag Plaza in Doha on Wednesday.
Teplitzky was surrounded by her three children, all searching for her country’s flag with great excitement as the World Cup gets closer.
“It is amazing and also we were looking for our flag even though we live here we are from Argentina we were like where our flag is and look all these flags and they (her children) were asking this is the whole world yes. These are flags representing all the countries in the world. It is amazing!” says Teplitzky
James Tenyenhuis, a senior associate at James Corner Field Operations, which designed the plaza, said the idea of the venue is to provide families with an outdoor space to enjoy.
“We are responsible for the design of the flag plaza here which is a collection of flagpoles that houses various flags of countries that hold relationships with Qatar but also participating in the World Cup. The primary idea is a gathering space for the people of Doha. You’ll see a number of spaces for families and children together and feel comfortable be outdoors. The misting effect here is part of that quality to try to create comfort in the outdoors,” adds Tenyenhuis.
Meanwhile, fan zones in Doha were seen being constructed in preparation for the tournament, which starts on November 20.
Qatar is the first Middle East country to host a soccer World Cup and the smallest nation to do so.
With a population of less than 3 million people, it will host an influx of about 1.2 million fans, an unprecedented challenge for the Gulf Arab state.
