Al Shiraa Hotel Apartment Muscat

... along nicely. Thankfully the car doesn't have a hand brake or she would have been tail-sliding it round the hairpins. Further up we came to the village of Az Zamah, another remarkably lush oasis in the hot, dry mountains. Initially we missed the turn to head further up the mountain, and followed the main wadi to a dead end. There we found a spectacular gorge heading off deep into the surrounding rock. The first few hundred metres were flooded due to a man-made damn but ...

... into the mosque but this one allows tourists to visit in the morning, with the proviso they are modestly dressed. Andy and Duncan wore long sleeved shirts and pants, and Maddie and I had armed ourselves with pants and long sleeved shirts, head scarves, and Jessie pulled out 2 black abayas to fully cover ourselves (and prevent any unnecessary temptation to all those otherwise devout men who might be unduly titillated by a glimpse of exposed female flesh). We paused at the ...

... runs etc (oh, and finishing my Uni assignments! - this serves as a reminder to me!)   Well, I am being reminded of the removal men's efficacy...I have only one pair of cool trousers! Rubbish. Again, that will teach me to be more organised at removal time (hopefully that won't be for a LONG time - within Oman or back home!) It does of course mean a shopping trip. City Centre (name of a mall) has lots of lovely clothes shops. It has an unusual (ok ...

... I seem to have lost a little weight. My jeans were looser when I put them on this morning. Not quite sure how THAT's working. Time for breakfast so I have to go. will update again tonight or tomorrow. Couple more pics: Syria and the Aussies in front of me The Omani head of the Cavlry and the General.

... they hurtle along at 30km per hour. In Oman they drive new cars from all over the world on smooth, pothole free roads following road rules that say they are to drive on the right hand side of the road (we've yet to hear a horn being blown). - Stress factor India would give an aspirin a headache. Oman would put you to sleep. - Man's best friend India has cows. Oman has camels. - Accommodation India has €5 guesthouses with questionable ...

... to experience it for yourself. Our journey begins in Muscat, as virtually all Omani journeys do. It starts, I suppose, once the bus takes me from the plane to the terminal and I've successfully rented the 4x4, with the drive into Muscat. The infrastructure is modern (again with the love affair with roundabouts -- and placing things in the middle, ranging from fountains to an entire sailboat). But Muscat is an amazing city. It started with a protected harbour, as ...

... the Emirates, Oman is well-developed: people live in nice houses or appartments with AC, there is running water which is generally safe to drink, there are health inspectors in the restaurants, the cars are from the 21st century, and everything else you associate with a developed country. Being a desert city, there was, however, one thing which no one felt it was ...

... coastal road, the Corniche, completely built from landfill. Our last stop was at the Sultan's palace The absence of a flag in the far center indicates that His Majesty in not at home. We could get no closer from this side. Around the back however, (no video allowed) we were able to get some (now deleted) shots including the royal logo partially obscured by the photographer's reflection. This was a great 4-hour tour. Back to the ship.

... day was spent in the pool. Friday we got up at 5:30am and went to catch the bus to Dubai. Which is where we are now. We are only here for the weekend so I will send another email on Tuesday or so telling ya all about it! We are officially in our 5th country of 15, my 6th. We have 10 countries and about 1 month and 28 days left. I just looked at plane tickets back to Korea and am planning on leaving Dec.20 arriving prolly the 21st. Can't wait to be back I miss you all ...

... for the Sultan was very evident during our visit. One of our guides told us that, although the Sultan has 3 palaces in Salalah, he should have 12 because he is so generous to the people. Muscat For those of you yearning for a unique place to travel where there is lots of history and beautiful beachside resorts, this is the place. We didn't have any expectations as Oman was never on our radar screen, but from the moment we arrived in the port of Muscat and ...