Corniche Muttrah

... primed, throttle open, throttle closed, all to no avail. Thankfully the spare engine started with a quick tug, so every 10 mins or so we would flash it up, head away from the rocks the wind was blowing us towards, then shut it down and reconnect the fuel to the main engine to try again.


Alas, we couldn’t get the damned the thing started. Our maiden voyage ended with us chugging back at 5 kts on the little 30hp spare. I sat on the swim deck keeping ...

... with no headscarf, some abayas have been anoth** colour or even patt**ned. One was a beautiful Chinese floral print all ov** on black. The young** girls, around 10 or 11 years old wear their own clothes with headscarves. I can't decide yet wheth** it is a case of 'anything goes' or the styles are according to age/family/staus/moth**/married...I am embarrassed to say that it is c**tainly highlighting yet challenging my v**y little knowledge of Islam.

... this was only the culmination of various similar processes to get a resident visa, sponsorship letter from my employer, photographs of a suitable size and background, and an employee ID card, all of which were convoluted procedures involving lots of official stamps, assorted signatures and much pacing up and down outside obscure offices. Thank goodness for the sun, the pool and the beach. And the cold beer in the club bar.

... I like this place, I couldn't live here with the humidity or heat.  Ugh. I think we saw the royal yacht across from the souk but shopping was more of a priority.  Again, the souk was not that open as it was still Eid and many places were closed for the holiday.  I was expecting a HUGE souk like Istanbul or Jerusalem but it was more on the scale of a small, organized souk.  One of the first vendors had frankincense and myrrh along with saffron from Iran.  He wanted us ...

... cake etc. I'm not sure who they thought we were, or if this was normal Omani hospitality, but bring on the fawning and boot-licking I say. The room was very pleasant with a balcony looking out over the hotel pool, beach and north along the coast. We met up with Kym's business contact for a drink then had a nice meal in the Italian restaurant, finishing with a cleansing ale in the English-style pub downstairs - we were very surprised to walk in there and see Omani ...

... in Baghdad! I said, Pull over. I got out of the car and threw a fit--how am I supposed to trust two drunk guys driving a car at 100 miles an hour, who are above the law? I plunked myself right down by the side of the road and refused to move, and told them to go away. Heck, I do dumb things sometimes (like taking a ride from them in the first place!), but I'm not suicidal, nor do I even wish to have physical or emotional harm inflicted ...

... has a wonderful walkway with some statues. Families were all over the place strolling around and enjoying the cooler air. It was cooler that it was during the afternoon, but it was still hot and thick. It felt like we were swimming through the air. In Jordan everyone starred at us. Here, it was if we were not there at all. I'd grown used to the stares and being ignored was ...

... to convince me to accept he said: "Take it as a gift from Oman to Canada." The man was so genuine that I couldn't refuse. What a great guy. He explained that he was the owner and introduced me to his son, adding: "If you need anything in the next days come see him and he'll get it for you." Of course, after such a good gesture I was embarrassed to ask for more so I did not. But I'm sure there would have been nothing they wouldn't have done for me. This is Oman !!! Andre.

... on the south there are mountains with fresh water. So some hundreds of years ago the water pressure from sea towards mountains, and water pressure from mountains to sea caused a big crater, say 50 m, looked like some meteor fall. That was a good thing to venture. Then we followed another rough patch of stones and dust to reach a place called Wadi Shab. On the way we also saw beautiful blue sea, and a nice white sand beach. Wadi Shab is a beautiful place between a narrow valley ...

... Beyond that, there's very little else. There are a few old merchants' houses, three of which were once used by the British, French, and the Americans as embassies, which look fairly impressive. Then there is the odd government building plus a few mosques and a few more houses. Otherwise nothing. There arent' even any real shops. The reality is that Muscat may be the titular capital, but neighboring Muttruh, Ruwi, Al-Khuwair, and Madinat As-Sultan Qaboos are where the "action" is.