I do not intend to come off as an ultra conservative person when I address this issue, but it is something that I have been wanting to write about.

As a collective society where everybody gets in the way of what you're doing, people do exercise a level of privacy in public areas.

I went with my friend to a restaurant in The Pearl and it was kind of crowded. The waitress took us to a table where a Qatari couple were dining right across us.

My friend and I quickly agreed to request another table because we knew sitting in front of them could make them feel uncomfortable while there were other empty tables.

However, in a situation where there are no other available tables, we would not give up the table but would still be considerate enough to change our seats. We will make sure that our backs face the female partrons so she feels totally comfortable and her privacy is maintained.

It is unfortunate that there are restaurants in Doha today that do not have appropriate spaces for customer privacy. While I'm surprised that we still have unspoken codes of ethics in our culture, I like them and they remind us of respecting others privacy.

Editor's Note: As a Muslim non-local female, often if I'm dining with my family, we will see Qatari males get up and change their seats if I am seated within their vision. It's like clock-work, if I am already seated and they are entering they will always ask the waiter to seat them far away from me or ensure they sit next to each other (side by side) and I am out of view.

What would you do in similar situations like these in your culture?