What am I doing here, travel diary, day 28: the afternoon when hundreds of Messi went to a museum

Here I go against the tide. I will not talk about Argentinawhich is in the semifinals of world. Nor will I speak (indeed, write) of Messi and his new recital in this one Qatar 2022, with football and the courage to carry his team forward. Nor will I describe the two monumental shortcuts of the Dibu Martínez on penalties. Nor the final auction of Lautaro Martinez which became the bridge to cross the Rubicon and also the outlet for a bad scorer. For this there are almost all the notes you can read on the website of clarion and also in the print edition. There are many and very good ones.

After these 121 words in which I speak of what I promised you I will not speak to you, I will tell you about an experience I had before that frenetic match which was the duel between Argentina and Holland at the Lusail stadium, the same one in which La Scaloneta will play on Tuesday against Croatia for the pass to the grand finale on December 18th.

It was a cultural experience, though not a supernatural one. Enriching. I had already told them about the five must-see street art works in and around Doha. Now is the time to speak Qatar National Museuma wonderful place, which allows you to begin to understand and understand the history and culture of a country in an hour and a half walk.

A country that was truly forged out of nothing after some nomadic tribes settled in the middle of the desert and which, after years of fighting, with various tragedies behind it, has become a global economic powerhelped by the wink of nature to have under its surface of 11,571 square kilometers one of the largest reserves of oil and gas on the planet.

The first thing that catches the eye of the museum is the unprecedented design of its building. It is an architectural jewel, another one from this country of sumptuous buildings. The work was entrusted to the French Jean Nouvel and to his studio, who tried – and clearly succeeded – to evoke a desert rose to represent the past, present and future of this small country. It was built next to the palace which was owned by Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani, the former Emir of Qatar, which is also part of the permanent exhibition.

The museum, which opened three years ago, impresses with its external beauty, but drives you crazy with the interior layout. The interior design was done by the studio of the Japanese Koichi Takada. Each of the halls of these impressive 40,000 square meters is a majestic staging with giant screens and ambient sound that allows you to recreate every moment of the country’s history, as well as more than a thousand archaeological and ethnographic pieces and all the documents that give documentary value to the tour that gets you out of the building with a little more knowledge. That’s what museums are for, of course..

Between so much football and soccer, the museum is a must. However, football was also present during the visit to the Qatar National Museum. It’s just that it was impressive, almost as impressive as the exhibit itself, the number of people who toured the facilities and tried to learn something about the history wearing the T-shirt of the Argentina national team. But it wasn’t simply the blue and white shirt or the blue one. It was Messi’s number 10 shirt. For every 50 Messi shirts, one appeared from Brazil. This was the report shortly before the match against the Netherlands was played.

It will not be strange that a gallery will soon be added that tells how Qatar became the world capital of football for about a month. And, as the hand comes, Messi will certainly have his place. Because what you’re doing here is too worthy of being exhibited as an inheritance for all generations to come.

Doha, Qatar. Special delivery.