A New American Dream
Hiwet Samimi, Qatar
Hiwet Samimi is a homemaker, volunteer, and plays football for PSG’s women’s team in Qatar. As part of the GOALS program, Hiwet tells the story of finding a new community in Qatar, returning to football in her 40s, and her hopes for the World Cup.
My name is Hiwet Samimi, and I was born in New York, USA. When I was younger, if you had told me I would spend years in Qatar building a family life, I would not have believed you. It is the last place anyone thought I would be.
Growing up as a US citizen, the Gulf had many associations with war; the region would be unfairly branded with this negative association. Only now do I fully appreciate how every country in the Gulf is unique to its culture and people.
Moving to the Gulf in 2009 was not the expectation my parents had. They were born in Ethiopia and invited to stay in the US after their family lost everything in Ethiopia amid civil unrest. Between 1974-76 in Ethiopia, my grandparents lost everything that they worked for and owned.
It was an easy choice for my parents to stay in the US compared to what might have happened to them if they returned. My path to the Gulf was not the American Dream they had struggled to create for their daughter.
However, recently with events back home in the US, moving to another country has become our new American Dream. So now we live in Qatar, we are proudly raising two sons here, and we believe that the education and experience acquired living abroad are truly special.
As a first-generation American, in my youth I was exposed to travel in Europe and Africa to see family. I now realize how important this experience has been. It has helped me become more accepting of living abroad, and encouraged me to establish my new life in Qatar.
As a family, we have found that the schools in Qatar have a student population that is diverse both nationally and socio-economically. The school system here (and living abroad in general) has shown my children how to appreciate differences in culture, language, food, and even currency!
I do admire the Qatari commitment to family and children. Without a doubt, this is a very child-friendly country, so we appreciate raising our sons here in a community that supports them.
In Qatar I have focused on building a community around my family. With neighbors and friends constantly moving away, keeping a solid community life is a battle. I have learned over the years to avoid allowing this cycle to hold you back and becoming a hermit; you need to join in with lots of activities.
It is almost like I am a teenager again, looking for the right club to join. This has become a blessing in disguise. This need to look for community keeps you focused on what makes you happy, moving, socializing, and young. For instance, I never thought in my 40s I would go back to playing football as I did in my youth! Qatar has rekindled my love with the beautiful game.
I was hesitant to join PSG’s women’s team here in Qatar. I waited a couple of months before committing to a year of playing. My goals for joining PSG were to increase my cardio exercise, establish some friendships with other women and simply have fun!
I am happy to say that all three of my goals have been accomplished.
As we age and get busy with our personal and professional lives, we tend to become less active and more sedentary, sitting at desks and in our cars. This is why keeping our body always working and in check is so important. Football is a great way to ensure that I remain active every week.
One week at a rainy practice, I was transported back to the early 90s and our late August pre-season muddy training back in the US. August has always been a rainy month in the Northeastern part of America. As you can imagine living in Qatar, we hardly ever see rain. However, this time we were practicing on a world-class, freshly maintained field with a fancy sprinkler system.
I had a feeling of nostalgia for my home country that I can only now appreciate after being an expat for so many years.
In 2021 we also joined the volunteering program at the Afghan Compound since my husband is a Farsi speaker and would be able to communicate with the children easily. This was a perfect opportunity to help out together.
We spent nights at the Compound playing chess and doing arts and crafts. There was a rush of relief and excitement but also a ton of anxiety around the children. Some of my favorite memories are of the children dancing to their favorite Afghani music and doing the traditional Afghan dance. Qatar did an amazing job at helping the children every day with English lessons, performances, meals, movies, and football games for several months.
Football has been a great icebreaker for meeting new people; it is a fun way to connect and build friendships. For the first time in years, I am playing football and doing this in the first country in the Middle East to ever host a World Cup. I would have never imagined that I would be able to play on the same training ground that the Argentinian team will use when they arrive.
It is a wonderful year for our family to be in Doha, we have managed to get tickets to USA v Iran. What a game that will be!
It is so exciting that fans from around the world will come here to enjoy the FIFA World Cup. My message to them would be to be open-minded and visit all of Qatar. Get out in the desert to see the natural beauty and appreciate how far Qatar has come to host one of the biggest tournaments in the world.
