Muscat, Oman

Today the ship arrived in Muscat, the capital of Oman. The first thing that hits you as the ship nears the port is the striking volcanic mountains and the huge incense burner on the side of the port’s entrance (in Mutrah – just a few kilometres along from old Muscat). There are old Portuguese forts from the 16th century around the edge of the city.

A small group of us took a taxi to see the sites.

It’s the architecture and the money that stands out as we tour the city – of course very Arabian. All the buildings are white, flat roof with very decorative edges; except for the Sultan’s palace and many of the mosques.

The major roads are perfect – but don’t break the law as even travelling through a red light and you will loose your car for 2 weeks and spend a few nights with local establishment.

Very little old – with all the money used to replace with new. Throughout the city you see McDonalds, Subway and KFC – a sign of the modern times in this modern city.

The Grand Mosque (Al-Ghubrah) is the largest in the region and has a huge 2 tonne chandelier (sic) in the centre and many smaller ones around the edge. It took six years to build and has a single Persian carpet 70m x 60m (making it the largest carpet in the world) taking 600 women four years to weave. Truly spectacular – another you need to look at my pictures (will upload when I can).

A quick stop at the Al Buston Palace Hotel – consistently voted the best hotel in the region. See the pictures to get a feel for it.

The people respect public modesty and cover their heads, arms and legs when in company. The male outfit is all the same and normally white with a few slight colour versions for different jobs.

The roundabouts throughout the city are all decorated – incense burners, one with a ship and water flowing under it, art – all very beautiful (more pictures).

The seaside Sultan Al Alam Palace of His Majesty, Sultan Qaboos bin Said is huge as it stands between steep rocky hills.

The picture of the Sultan is seen through-out the city, as is his name on many of the government buildings – eg Sultan Qaboos Stadium.

They only let you see what they want you to see. Everything is covered, eg power transformers are hidden behind walls, air conditioners are all covered.

The taxi tour went for almost three hours.

A quick visit to the famous Souq at Mutrah – it was just before 1pm when all the shops and stalls close ready for prayer. Still very interesting to see and smell the environment - perfumes, silver, a little gold, myrrh and frankincense – lots and lots of frankincense. And yes, it’s believed the three wise men came from this region.

The common perfume is not a smell that appeals to me and as such I didn’t buy any gifts of it (as I thought I might).

All the Internet cafés closed too, but I found a hotel and a friendly manager with Internet and was able to finally send my first spam and upload a few pictures.

Travel behind the major roads, along the narrow alleys and it is less pristine, and more of what I’d expect – that lived in look and feel.

All in all a lovely city with friendly people well worth a visit.