The Islamic world's first wellness manuals
Also this week: family craft workshops, Arab music tributes, Spanish flavors and anime nostalgia.
Welcome to Al-Monitor Doha.
The Museum of Islamic Art Library opens its rare book collection this week, revealing centuries of wisdom about medicine, food and wellness. Across town at Liwan Design Studios, mothers and daughters gather to sew matching headbands under the guidance of fashion designer Ikhlas Elhassan. The week's soundtrack ranges from Zade Dirani's emotive piano at QNCC to a 40-piece ensemble honoring Abu Bakr Salem's Arab musical legacy, while the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra turns childhood anime nostalgia into orchestral grandeur.
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1. Leading the week: "Cures, Remedies and Recipes"
A vintage French menu from the late 19th century, part of the collection at Qatar Museums. (Photo courtesy of Qatar Museums)
The Museum of Islamic Art Library is doing something quietly fascinating this season: pulling rare books and manuscripts from its collection and asking visitors to reconsider what they thought they knew about medicine, food and wellness. “Cures, Remedies and Recipes” isn't just a display of old texts. It's an invitation to trace how people across centuries and continents understood health not as something separate from daily life but woven into it through what they ate, how they prepared it and the knowledge they passed down.
At the heart of the exhibition sits the Tacuinum sanitatis from 1531, the Latin version of Ibn Butlan's 11th-century Arabic medical manual “Taqwim al-Sihha,” which translates to "Maintenance of Health." The Baghdad physician's work appears alongside other foundational Arabic medical texts like Abu Bakr al-Razi's “A Treatise on the Smallpox and Measles” and “al-Dakhira” by Thabit ibn Qurrah, revealing the scientific rigor and wellness philosophy that emerged from the Islamic world.
But the exhibition doesn't stay in one geography or tradition. English household recipe books from the 17th and 18th centuries sit near richly illustrated 19th-century French menu albums created by Viscount Frederic de Janz. There are etiquette manuals from England and Italy that shaped how people dined and interacted. Even a page from Beethoven's 1825 household ledger appears, offering an unexpectedly intimate glimpse into how the composer managed domestic life in his final years.
Date: Until Dec. 30
Location: Museum of Islamic Art Library
More information here.
2. Word on the street: Mommy & Me: Sew & Design
General view of the coworking studio space at Liwan Design Studios and Labs in Doha. (Photo courtesy of Liwan)
There's something powerful about creating alongside the people you love, and that's exactly what Liwan Design Studios & Labs is offering this weekend. Mommy & Me: Sew & Design isn't your typical craft workshop. It's a deliberate space for mothers, daughters and female guardians to slow down, work with their hands and make something beautiful together.
Fashion designer Ikhlas Elhassan guides participants through the fundamentals of design: selecting fabrics, playing with color and learning simple sewing and gluing techniques. The goal is straightforward but meaningful: Each pair creates two matching headbands personalized with trims and embellishments they choose themselves. It's learning that results in something you can actually wear, a tangible reminder of time spent creating rather than consuming.
What makes the workshop resonate is how it bridges generations. These aren't just accessories being made — they're physical representations of shared experiences, of knowledge passed through doing rather than telling. The program provides all materials and guidance, so skill level doesn't matter.
Date: Oct. 11
Location: Liwan Design Studios & Labs
More details here.
3. Doha diary
Photo of Zade Dirani at the piano. (Courtesy of Zade Dirani website)
- Zade Dirani
Billboard charting artist and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Zade Dirani arrives in Doha for an inspiring evening of global musical fusion. Known for stirring works like “Princess of the Night” and collaborations with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, his performances tell stories that cross cultures and continents. From classical elegance to contemporary fusion, this rare concert promises to uplift and connect audiences through the emotional power of music.
Date: Oct. 10
Location: Qatar National Convention Center
More information here.
- A Tribute to Abu Bakr Salem
An evening devoted to authentic Arab music honors the legendary Yemeni and Gulf singer Abu Bakr Salem, whose career spanned decades and shaped generations of artists. Distinguished singer Adel Almas brings his timeless melodies to life, accompanied by a grand ensemble of nearly 40 musicians and vocalists under the baton of Maestro Dr. Khaled Nouri. The concert celebrates a legacy that influenced voices like Abdullah Al-Ruwaished and Rashed Al-Majed, offering a night where nostalgia and artistry unite.
Date: Oct. 9
Location: Qatar National Convention Center
More information here.
- Eat Spain Drink Spain Qatar 2025
Qatar embraces Spanish culinary culture with a two-week gastronomic festival celebrating the country's finest gourmet products. The event features themed menus at prestigious venues like The Cellar and BiBo Doha, live cooking demonstrations by Spanish chefs and exclusive tastings showcasing halal-certified Spanish products from artisanal Manchego cheeses to Andalucían extra virgin olive oils. Taking place across The Pearl, Katara Cultural Village and Msheireb Downtown, the festival invites food enthusiasts to discover Spain's culinary richness.
Date: until Oct. 15
Location: multiple venues (The Pearl, Katara, Msheireb)
More information here
- Animated Vol. 2
The Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra returns with an electrifying celebration of anime and cartoon music, featuring iconic themes in Arabic, English and Japanese. Grammy-nominated Maestro Alastair Willis conducts this family-friendly concert that journeys from childhood nostalgia to present-day favorites, uniting anime fans, cosplayers and music lovers for an unforgettable night. The evening brings generations together through beloved soundtracks that have defined countless memories.
Date: Oct. 10
Location: UVenue
More information here.
4. Film of the week: “Teta, Alf Marra”
“Teta, Alf Marra” (“Grandma, A Thousand Times”) offers an intimate portrait of 83-year-old Teta Fatima, a Beiruti grandmother navigating the quietness of a home once filled with life. This 2010 documentary, co-produced by Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Lebanon with support from the Doha Film Institute, weaves together three generations through memory and music. Director Mahmoud Kaabour, whose features are said to resemble his late grandfather, a violinist who passed two decades earlier, incorporates previously unpublished violin improvisations into this meditation on loss and continuity.
The film made history as the first locally produced documentary to screen in cinemas in the UAE and the first Gulf Cooperation Council documentary to qualify for the Academy Awards. Winner of the Audience Award at the Doha Tribeca Film Festival and Best International Documentary at DOX BOX, it captures how family stories persist across time, even as the world transforms around them.
5. View from Doha
The sun sets behind a mosque in Doha on October 7, 2025. (KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)
6. By the numbers
- Qatar ranked third among GCC countries in tourism revenues in 2024, with $8.4 billion, according to the World Tourism Organization.
- Qatar ranks second among Arab cities in CEOWORLD magazine’s list of the World’s Top Sports Cities for 2025, with a score of 88.94 out of 100.