Oman
– January/February 2020 – Part I
A few years ago
while in Dubai I booked a trip to the Musandam peninsula in Oman, filled with
fjords and beauty but the guide never arrived so it has been on my mind every
since. This year I decided to visit Oman and see those
fjords for myself. Some friends of mine
did the trip on their own but mentioned it would have been a lot better with a
guide. This information I took to heart
and decided to do some of the trip on my own and some with G Adventures.
Left SNA on
January 27 and arrived in Muscat
on January 29. Many long flights and
layouts but as I used my United miles the trip was essentially free!! I booked an airbnb in Mutrah near the souq
and my host picked my up at the airport.
The airbnb was about a 15 minute walk to the corniche, the fish market,
etc. which was a really good location. I
walked to the fish market to see the fresh fish and vegetables and then into
the souq selling Omani and Indian artefacts and one of the oldest marketplaces
in Oman dating back two hundred years.
Climbed up to the Mutrah fort built by the Portuguese in the 1580s and
then into the Ghalya’s Museum which I thoroughly enjoyed. This delightful museum is a reconstruction of
what an Omani house would have looked like between 1950 and 1975. There were beautiful wooden doors crafted
from East Africa and some lovely jewelry and garments
used for weddings.
Walked back to the
souq along the corniche and found a little café upstairs where I had a nice
Greek salad out on the patio. Later that
evening I walked to Bait al Luban, a traditional Omani restaurant, near the
fish market and had a delicious shuwa lamb dinner on the patio.
In the morning I
had some baklava and coffee with my host and then we visited the Al Bustan
palace, a beautiful hotel set along the beach.
Stopped to see sohar, a replica of the boat which sailed to Guanzhou in China. She dropped me at Bait al Zubair, a fabulous
museum in old Muscat
where I spent a couple hours learning about the life of the Omani with displays
of traditional handicrafts, traditional clothes, face masks, swords and a
replica of a traditional Omani house.
Walked to the Sultan’s palace and then took a taxi to the “cave” area
where there are a lot of restaurants and had a nice Greek salad outside on the
top at a Lebanese restaurant. Taxi back
to the souq and then walked to the Al Riyam Park where I started a walk back to
the souq but it seemed too dangerous so I gave it up…
Later that evening
I had a wonderful Indian dinner at Mamtaz Mahal. My tandoori roasted cauliflower and tikka
masala chicken with garlic naan were very tasty and I enjoyed the relaxed
atmosphere.
Worked something
out with a friend of my host so didn’t have to rent a car. He dropped me in the morning at Starbucks on Qurum Road near the
beach and I had a “real” coffee and muffin.
There are no coffee shops in Mutrah and I had missed a cup of good
coffee to start the day. Wandered along
the road to Qurum beach and found some cute little restaurants and shops. Had a coffee and cake at Costa Coffee
overlooking the sea and then walked to the Qurum Natural
Park and enjoyed the
beautiful waterfalls and paths filled with plants and flowers.
Dinner at the
Turkish House was really nice. Decided
to dine in the old part serving seafood and started with a meze platter filled with
hummus, eggplant and Turkish bread followed by nicely grilled fish.
Another delicious
coffee and muffin at Starbucks the next morning, before being dropped off at
the Grand Mosque, a gift from Sultan Qaboos to mark his 30th year of
reign. He died this year and was much
loved. The mosque can accommodate 20,000
worshippers and the prayer carpet is a major feature of the design of the
interior. Also of note is the
extraordinary chandelier above the praying hall. While visiting the mosque was the only time I
needed to wear a head scarf.
Got a ride up to
the Al Ameen white marble mosque on the hill.
I was fortunate it was still open so I could see the hand carved works
of art in stone inside in the form of Islamic patterns and calligraphy. Breathtaking inside and out. Caught another ride to the Royal Opera House
and took a guided tour. Considered one
the most beautiful and technically advanced opera houses in the world, it was
fascinating to see how many ways it could be transformed. Because Sultan Qaboos was so musical no music
or musical performances are allowed for 40 days in Oman out of respect for this great
man…
In the afternoon,
I walked along the Qurum
Beach to Costa Coffee
where I enjoyed a delicious coffee and cheesecake overlooking the sea. Taxi back to Mutrah. Got a ride to Shabestan, a Persian restaurant
later that evening and had an excellent meal, i.e. side platter of arugula,
feta, olives and bread, chicken kebabs marinated in lebnah, saffron and lemon
and three rice.
Walked along the
corniche almost to old Muscat
and back in he morning and then was dropped off at my new hotel where the G
Adventures trip would begin. I had
thought about renting a car and doing this part by myself but decided I would
probably miss many things without a guide and a 4 wheel drive car. Walked to the beach nearby and stopped at the
W Hotel to see their lovely bar/tapas area called Living Room which was very
ecletic. On to Costa Coffee for a coffee
and chocolate cheesecake, always enjoying the view of the sea. Our group meeting was at 6 p.m. There will be 12 of us, some from Australia, England,
Scotland,
etc. Our guide was from Oman. Got a nice briefing of what’s to come and
then I walked down to LoKanta where my former host works and she sat me at a
lovely table upstairs. It is an upscale
Turkish restaurant and I enjoyed my meal, i.e. meze platter with hummus,
eggplant, yogurt and cucumbers and roasted pepper dip with warm bread, grilled
lamb kebabs with vegetables and a spectacular dessert called kunafe made with
kadif and warm cheese drizzled with a light syrup.
Nice breakfast
buffet in the morning and then to the Grand Mosque again, this time with a
guide which made the visit more memorable.
Dropped by the souq in Mutrah where I had already been and then to the
Museum in Old Muscat where I had also been but enjoyed seeing some of the
exhibits again. Lunch at Le Cave at a
Turkish restaurant where we all shared a large meze platter, lamb and chicken kebabs,
grilled fish, salad with feta cheese and cucumbers and a light mango custard
for dessert. On our own for the
afternoon. Took a walk to the beach as
it is close by and made some flight reservations for my upcoming trip to
Salalah.
In the evening I
walked up to the Crown
Plaza hotel on the hill
and had a delicious tuna tartar outside on the patio overlooking the sea. Unfortunately my chocolate dessert was
terrible and I had to send it back but on my way out I was offered some nice
Arabian desserts which I ate on my way back to the hotel…
In the morning we
drove along the coast towards the picturesque Bimmah Sinkhole, a limestone
“lake” of turquoise waters about 60 m deep, perfect for swimming. Continued on to Sur, stopping along the way
at a local restaurant where I had delicious grilled fish with naan bread and a
simple salad. Stopped at the Dhow Shipyards
to see how craftsmen build dhows, the teak boats the traditional way, without
plans. Unfortunately now people prefer
to build fiberglass boats because they are much cheaper to make and easier to
maintain. Drove along the corniche to
our hotel. Had a nice Omani date cake
and ice cream with tea before leaving for Ras El Jinz about 8:30 p.m.to visit
the turtle sanctuary. As it was not the
season to see the turtles it was a futile trip as there were none to see…
After breakfast on
the patio, we drove in 4 wheel drive cars towards Wadi Bani Khalid, a rocky
oasis nestled in the East Hajar mountains
filled with natural pools. There was a
rather difficult walk to a low cave which was interesting to see if you had a
flashlight. I crawled in just far enough
to see inside and it was worth the walk.
Stopped for a snack and then into the dunes where we climbed around and
watched the sunset before settling into our desert lodge at Wahabi Sands.
Met in the lodge
for a buffet dinner, i.e. chicken kebabs, rice, cucumber salad, breads, hummus
and several cakes and Arabian desserts.
Pancakes and honey
for breakfast with delicious dates served at every meal. Leaving the desert behind, we headed towards
Ibra and stopped to visit the Jabrin castle which dates back to about 600 years
ago and has undergone an extensive renovation.
It is filled with history of how life was in Oman and there are many rooms inside
all of which served a specific purpose, i.e. a special room where dates were
crushed into liquid. We spent about an
hour enjoying all the lovely rooms.
Stopped at a little café for a falafel sandwich and then at the historic
fortress of Bahla but didn’t go in unfortunately… Saw some racing camels with remote controls
which was very interesting. Children
used to ride them but now it is done by remote control!!! Arrived in Nizwa about 5 p.m. and wandered
through the old and new souqs, sampling dates and halvah. We had time on our own so I visited the Nizwa
Fort and Castle which was fabulous. The
castle part was filled with interesting exhibits about making indigo, how the
palm trees are used, etc. housed in the beautiful rooms of the past.
Picked out a fresh
fish for dinner at a little restaurant nearby and had it grilled along with a
Greek salad. Checked into our hotel, a
bit far from town.
Early breakfast
and then into Nizwa for the goat market which was great fun. People were crowded around as goat sellers
paraded their goats calling out the price until someone was interested. Also stopped by the vegetable and fish markets
and the weapons market where antique guns and knives were sold. Stopped by LuLu Hypermarket to pick up a
salad for lunch and then on to Al Hamra to visit the traditional mud houses of
Misfat Al Abriyeen. The village boasts
amazing agricultural terraces, beautiful alleys and old houses built on top of
solid rocks and learn about the Falaj network, Oman’s ancient water supply system. Returned to Nizwa via Jebel Shams where we
had a picnic overlooking Wadi Nakhr known as the Grand Canyon of Oman and then
walked down into the “snake point” of the gorge which was a really nice walk.
In the evening we
all met in the lobby and drove to a nearby Turkish restaurant where we had a
delicious dinner outside. I had chicken kebabs with yogurt sauce and Arabian
bread and part of a spinach and cheese filled Turkish pizza which was really
nice.
After breakfast in
the morning, we drove through Wadi Bani Awf which offers some of the best
off-road driving with beautiful scenery and stunning cliffs and canyons
throughout. Took a nice walk along the
creek and continued to Snake
Canyon where we picked up
ice cream to hold us over until our late lunch.
Stopped at a really nice Turkish restaurant where we shared a kebab
platter, meze of spreads, selection of breads and salads. It was really delicious. Arrived back in Muscat and had a few hours to take a walk
along the beach.
Later I walked down
to Lokante where my friend works and had kanafe, the delicious dessert I had
last time I was there and a cup of hot tea.
In the morning I fly to Khasab and finish the remainder of my time in Oman on my own
which I am truly looking forward to!!!
