Haffa House Salalah

... 900kms and single track road. Some 200kms road is under maintenance also hence the speed will become slow and the ride will not be smooth. But still the road is ok. Rest of the road is very good. However the overall ride is tiring as this whole 900km stretch of the road is desert with no scenery

... Indio area of California as she walked down the gangplank onto the dock in the Port of Salalah. The temperature felt like that of the Indio area in February when the Indio Date Festival is held. The date trees and general structure of the ground added to the allusion of the Indio Desert area. We were planning on taking the shuttle that was provided to take passengers that were not taking the ship's tour to the front gate of the port. As a commercial container port ...

... were out right angry. I personally could see both sides of the issue, but myself was disappointed. However me and two english girls were lucky enough to have befriended the tour leader and he took us in the private 4x4 while everyone else rode in a bus on the second day. We really had a very good time, but still, while not being the fault of the guides, it wasn't what we were led to expect. Even though it was what was on the itinerary.

... of what it would have been like at the time. Job was really there, only the outside had changed. The mountains have 3-4 foot mounds scattered about. They are natural, caused by blowing sand. They are quite hard and if removed don't return. On board we watch FoxMovies with scantily clad teenager girls frolicking about and being silly and subtitles in Arabic. We asked it people in Oman watch those movies. They are very ...

... the road, we hit some rain and headed down a treacherous mountain to the wadi below. This was Wadi Darbat, the most lush and popular Wadi around Salalah. It is also the place that every local, tourist and visitor decides that a picnic is a must, in the rain and amongst the cows....mind you it is a very picturesque spot (but has no facilities, and with my bladder screaming for a toilet, I could not ...

... into the desert and set up camp for the Kareef season and rent out there houses (entrepreneurs, me thinks!?) Along with these tents are lean to kitchens where locals head to eat freshly cooked camel and kebabs (unfortunately I did not stop to try this, this trip). We headed west to Mugsayail. Along the coast the surf crashes into the cliffs and there is a spot with blowholes that shoot water over ...

... was too risky), dangerous undercurrents and rough seas is not a good combination. Our first night we dined at the Dolphins restaurant, which has a themed buffet each night and overlooks the thundering surf, lit by a massive floodlight. When the tide comes in the waves come right up to the edge of the restaurant. Decided that an early night was in order and I went to sleep listing to the surf crashes onto the beach...bliss.

... A mosque and mausoleum have been built around the site of the tomb in recent years and a lovely garden has been cultivated with bougainvillea, hibiscus, lime trees, and fig trees planted here. The surrounding hillsides are bare-and brown-as this is the dry season, so the improvements to the grounds around the tomb are especially impressive. On one wall is a diagram of a tree showing the common roots of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. To hear the names of the prophets ...

... but had nice distractions nonetheless. Like a couple of afternoons that had schools of dolphins chase our vessel's bow through the water, and a barbeque party on the rear deck on the final weekend of the trip. The sunset that day was breathtaking, as the sun appeared a huge red fireball over sketches of the massive sanddunes of Somalia as we were transiting the red sea onto our port of call in Salalah, Oman. Where was that again...I hear you! Had ...