Muscat, Oman

The morning after leaving Dubai we had a “Piracy Drill” in preparation for sailing through the waters near Somalia. When the Captain gave a special code word, we all had to head to our staterooms staying clear of windows and balconies, and await further instruction. We had to prop our door open so that our room steward could come and check and make sure we were where we were supposed to be. Ultimately passengers end up lying on the floor on one of the lower decks, but thankfully the drill didn't get that far! Pretty thrilling stuff!

On Friday we arrived at the port of Muscat, Oman. It is located in a beautiful natural setting stretched out along a series of bays and harbours with austere mountain ranges rising behind and date palm trees waving along the shore. Gone are the skyscrapers of Dubai, to be replaced by the one and two-story whitewashed square buildings in the traditional Arabic style. After a 40 minute drive past elegant government buildings, colourful mosques with domes in gold leaf or blue and green enamel, and residential districts with lovely parks and gardens, we arrived at the Grand Mosque which was built in 1992 of Indian sandstone with marble stairways and floors. It is a truly beautiful structure with long tree-lined walkways leading up to the main stairs, inner courtyards filled with leafy vegetation and palm trees and lovely arched hallways throughout the interior. Unfortunately our bad mosque luck continued! As it was Friday, the Islamic holy day, we were not allowed in but could only peer longingly into some parts through the iron gates. Our next stop was at the Muttrah Souk, a marketplace much in the style of those mum explored back in 1971 when she was in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia – narrow, covered, stone-paved alleyways lined with tiny shops selling spices, jewellery, clothing, shoes, souvenirs and handicrafts. The air was full of the sweet smell of incense and the lanes were crowded with shoppers and shopkeepers hawking their wares. We had a wonderful time exploring, examining the merchandise and exchanging remarks with the shopkeepers. It was one of the best hours we've spent so far! It's so interesting to see the locals dressed in burqas, bedouin robes, and the long tunics, loose pants and oval hats that many of the men wear. I bought a small brass Aladdin lamp and mum bought some frankincense and sandalwood incense and a small vial of rose perfume from a shopkeeper in a tiny store where he was pleased to open numerous samples of different incenses and perfumes for us to sniff. When we came out of the souk around 11:00 am the temperature had risen to a whopping 47 degrees Celsius! By the time we returned to the ship it had gone even higher, to 50 degrees – the hottest we've ever experienced! Our third stop was at the Bait Al Zubair, a private museum which chronicles Oman's history, culture and folkways. The weapons, costumes, art and household artifacts were very interesting to see. This museum is usually closed on Fridays, but they opened it especially for us. Last of all we stopped at the Al Alam Palace, the official residence of Sultan Qaboos bin Said when he is in Muscat (he has seven palaces in all). The palace was fairly unassuming as palaces go, but the huge courtyard flanked by long arched marble walkways was quite spectacular. We also got a good look at the two 16^th century Portuguese forts in the same area. All too soon we had to return to the ship. Everything in Muscat closes at noon and reopens at 4:00 pm because of the tremendous heat in the middle of the day, otherwise we certainly would have returned to the souk for more shopping and exploring! Our drive back to the pier took us past the giant white replica of an incense burner perched on a rocky hill near the shore. It really stands out when you're sailing into or away from Muscat, and I think I've probably got about 40 pictures of it from various angles!