Oman...it's been a while
After only about month I've already begun to be lazy with my writing. Self-fulfilling prophecy I suppose, but I have a good excuse, I promise. Tourist visas for EU/ American citizens last only 30 days. Unlike other countries where one has to leave the new locale of choice for a considerable amount of time, here you can literally just cross the boarder and come right back. I have an acquaintance whose less-than-thoughtful boyfriend accompanied her most of the way on the couple hours drive from Dubai to the Emirati-Omani boarder, and dropped her off a few hundred meters away from the checkpoint so that she could walk there, get her passport stamped, and then come right back. His argument, I suppose, was that the boarder police wouldn't ask any questions as to whether or not she were living in sin with her significant other, but I don't think he reflected at all about how all the more unusual it would seem to see a scantily clad Eastern European blond walking the desert in stilettos to renew her visa. Luckily, this is not what I had to go through. I was fortunate enough to spend the weekend in Muscat, the capital of Oman, which was quite a delight.
After a flight that lasts only about 40 minutes one can enjoy a change of scenery from soaring sky-scrapers in a city that boasts recently-accrued abundant wealth to far more quaint architecture in a land that has always been relatively wealthy, and thus shows it off less than its neighbors to the North. In my case, the travel time as a bit longer, as some not-so seasoned traveler, or terrorist as the case may be, tried to board the plane with a forbidden object and when the presence of said item was discovered, the nice people at airport security had to kindly escort him, his checked-luggage, and illegal paraphernalia off the plane. Why and how he was actually able to board the plane is a (worrying?!) mystery to me, but either way I got there in one piece.
Muscat has a tiny airport that reminded me of those in the Caribbean where everything is out in the open since there is hardly any rain or snow or other meteorologic conditions that would necessitate the presence of such shelter. Upon leaving the plane, everyone bum-rushes the sole shuttle bus that is intended to take us to the terminal. There were very few people on the flight, so getting on this bus was not a problem, but apparently should there ever be a flight with enough people for two busses, sometimes the unlucky travelers that miss the first bus have to wait for the first one to fill up, drop-off its first passengers, and come back. So I'm glad that all went smoothly.
Arriving in the terminal, the first thing you notice are pictures of the Sultan everywhere, with saccharine phrases about how overjoyed his people are to have him home. They are big on the sultan in Oman: I thought these homages would be limited to the airport in the same way that many other countries decorate their transportation with hubs with official pictures of their leaders welcoming you to their land, but no, the Sultan is ubiquitous in Oman.
Unless you have done so before leaving, you have to pay for a tourist/ landing visa which is not done at any official office, as I thought would be the case, but rather at the money-exchange counter that has absolutely no indication that this is its other, perhaps even more important, purpose. Inevitably, you have swarms of tourists looking very confused as to where they must go or what they must do at this point. Worse, others will just make a beeline for the customs queue, wait for about 30 minutes, and then when the officer asks for their papers, are forced to go back, find the exchange counter, and wait on the customs line once again. I am very fortunate to have been with an experienced Dubai-Muscat visa renewal veteran who guided me through this with ease.
Despite the fact that at this point, it was past midnight and all wanted was a stiff drink and to crash into my tightly-made hotel bed with smoothly ironed sheets, I had a strange sense of joy throughout this experience as, for one, I finally received a new stamp in my passport! Living and traveling in Europe makes one forget that crossing boarders usually necessitates such documentation, so I am happy about the prospect of finally having all those extra pages I paid for filled up.
Indeed, the whole weekend I felt like I was in some kind fantasy land in a different time. The Sultan has required quite a while ago that all new construction had to be faithful to the traditional architecture of Oman so one feels a far more homogenous style in Muscat than in Dubai. Dubai, with the exception of the Deira and Bastakia quarters around the Dubai Creek, and some newer areas that wanted to don themselves with a quainter style, is essentially tall steel and glass constructions. Dubai, having more recently come into money, and a great deal of money at that, very much tries to show off its wealth and power and abilities, and it succeeds. Oman, which has historically had more money than the Emirates isn't, in my opinion, going through a flamboyantly flashy period that its adolescent cousin is currently experiencing; Oman in is far more sage than that. Discreet.
At the Southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, it is farther away in distance and culture from anywhere else I have lived for an extend period of time. But there's more, there is a kind of timeless almost placeless concept. While it is a modern country with all the proper amenities one would need, it has a strange kind of colonial feel. It is of course the Middle East, but it does appear at all how we see some of the surrounding, at war, countries. Nor is it very extreme in its views and rules on dress or imbibing; You can sense the Western influences of places like Britain (for one, everyone speaks English), yet is is neither over-developed nor does it show too strong of an influence from any one place. It has this naturally inconspicuous way about it that remains true from the arid hills, to the nearly virgin beaches and even to to simple architecture.
A lot of it reminded me of what places like St. Tropez must have been like before hotels and a good reputation ruined them. I probably shouldn't even be telling you about this now, who knows, maybe by my next visa run (gad fabid) Oman will have started to welcome avid Dubai Impressions blog readers. We'll start a colony! In the meantime, feast your eyes on some of my experiences.
Since the above photos are mine, but I see that they don't quite paint a full picture of my weekend, I found a few others of notable sights to give you an idea of what I saw..
Muscat has a tiny airport that reminded me of those in the Caribbean where everything is out in the open since there is hardly any rain or snow or other meteorologic conditions that would necessitate the presence of such shelter. Upon leaving the plane, everyone bum-rushes the sole shuttle bus that is intended to take us to the terminal. There were very few people on the flight, so getting on this bus was not a problem, but apparently should there ever be a flight with enough people for two busses, sometimes the unlucky travelers that miss the first bus have to wait for the first one to fill up, drop-off its first passengers, and come back. So I'm glad that all went smoothly.
Arriving in the terminal, the first thing you notice are pictures of the Sultan everywhere, with saccharine phrases about how overjoyed his people are to have him home. They are big on the sultan in Oman: I thought these homages would be limited to the airport in the same way that many other countries decorate their transportation with hubs with official pictures of their leaders welcoming you to their land, but no, the Sultan is ubiquitous in Oman.
Unless you have done so before leaving, you have to pay for a tourist/ landing visa which is not done at any official office, as I thought would be the case, but rather at the money-exchange counter that has absolutely no indication that this is its other, perhaps even more important, purpose. Inevitably, you have swarms of tourists looking very confused as to where they must go or what they must do at this point. Worse, others will just make a beeline for the customs queue, wait for about 30 minutes, and then when the officer asks for their papers, are forced to go back, find the exchange counter, and wait on the customs line once again. I am very fortunate to have been with an experienced Dubai-Muscat visa renewal veteran who guided me through this with ease.
Despite the fact that at this point, it was past midnight and all wanted was a stiff drink and to crash into my tightly-made hotel bed with smoothly ironed sheets, I had a strange sense of joy throughout this experience as, for one, I finally received a new stamp in my passport! Living and traveling in Europe makes one forget that crossing boarders usually necessitates such documentation, so I am happy about the prospect of finally having all those extra pages I paid for filled up.
 |
| A real visa stamp like in the days of yore |
Something else I forgot about was changing money. I had only just started to get used to using Emirati Dirhams and here I was needing Rials and Balsa for my weekend getaway. Life is tough. For the first few times I purchased things in Oman, I admittedly had to show the cashier the money all I had so that he or she could take whatever was needed to pay for what I owed, since I didn't quite understand their monetary system. Beyond that, their currency changes color and size with value, so it kind of felt like monopoly money.
Make it rain, Qaboos bin Said Al Said, make it rain!
Indeed, the whole weekend I felt like I was in some kind fantasy land in a different time. The Sultan has required quite a while ago that all new construction had to be faithful to the traditional architecture of Oman so one feels a far more homogenous style in Muscat than in Dubai. Dubai, with the exception of the Deira and Bastakia quarters around the Dubai Creek, and some newer areas that wanted to don themselves with a quainter style, is essentially tall steel and glass constructions. Dubai, having more recently come into money, and a great deal of money at that, very much tries to show off its wealth and power and abilities, and it succeeds. Oman, which has historically had more money than the Emirates isn't, in my opinion, going through a flamboyantly flashy period that its adolescent cousin is currently experiencing; Oman in is far more sage than that. Discreet.
Goood morrrning Oman!
At the Southeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, it is farther away in distance and culture from anywhere else I have lived for an extend period of time. But there's more, there is a kind of timeless almost placeless concept. While it is a modern country with all the proper amenities one would need, it has a strange kind of colonial feel. It is of course the Middle East, but it does appear at all how we see some of the surrounding, at war, countries. Nor is it very extreme in its views and rules on dress or imbibing; You can sense the Western influences of places like Britain (for one, everyone speaks English), yet is is neither over-developed nor does it show too strong of an influence from any one place. It has this naturally inconspicuous way about it that remains true from the arid hills, to the nearly virgin beaches and even to to simple architecture.
A lot of it reminded me of what places like St. Tropez must have been like before hotels and a good reputation ruined them. I probably shouldn't even be telling you about this now, who knows, maybe by my next visa run (gad fabid) Oman will have started to welcome avid Dubai Impressions blog readers. We'll start a colony! In the meantime, feast your eyes on some of my experiences.
Appartently this is a busy day
No filter, just sun and palm trees at the end of the day at the beach
Not the best video quality, but just listen to the music
And yet, despite how everything seems to be in a different time, they still have classy little modern places like this one that has pool side beds,
since sipping a martini in a chair is far too exhausting
Since the above photos are mine, but I see that they don't quite paint a full picture of my weekend, I found a few others of notable sights to give you an idea of what I saw..
Old Port of Muscat with a view of the fish-market, a traditional fishing boat, and the blue mosque
(Photo courtesy of Panoramio)
Grand Mosque of Muscat, also known as the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque
(Photo courtesy of mrgoodlife.be)
The Main Gate of Muscat
(Photo courtesy of azeric.com)
View of Old Muscat at night with mountains in background
(Photo courtesy of National Geographic)
The Royal Opera House, established under the patronage of the Sultan
(Photo courtesy of abt.org)
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