This was a travel to another world, to the magical Arab world. Omani people are the most kind, attentive and friendly people I had ever meet. Not only in Arab countries, but worldwide. The lengths they go to make you feel welcome and special is incredible. It is in the little moments of great meaning.
This was another trip with my mom. We organized ourselves, but joined various tours there. We stayed 8 days in Muscat. We stayed in a nice hotel next to Mohammed Al Ameen Mosque, which is beautifully lit at night. I took photos of it from almost every angle at different times.
On our first afternoon we decided to go on a sunset dhow cruise. Honestly, it felt expensive for just a boat cruise and some snacks. Anyway it was worth doing to enjoy the sunset and the views.
Our first night we went for dinner to our neighbors, Al Luban Land Restaurant. The first night we tried some camel meat. We went there once more to have some seafood. It was nice and cheap.
There was another nice neighbor restaurant, Samakmak. There you had fresh fish on display and we chose what we wanted to eat. It was delicious. We went there twice more. The first visit was less than 20 €, the second two were less than 10 €. In both restaurants were many locals eating. That is normally a sign for good food in my eyes.
Our first morning was diving (snorkeling for mom) at Daymaniyat Islands. The 2 dives were lovely. I saw a huge stingray and a peppered eel. There were 2 honeycomb eels, many fish, and 2 turtles as well. Unfortunately no leopard shark, but I still enjoyed very much. The dive masters from MolaMola Diving Center were very nice and friendly. They also took very well care of my mom when snorkeling.
We used Otaxi app to get around Muscat. It is like Uber, convenient and affordable. We used it the next day as well to get to Qurum beach, where we had a nice walk around.
At the end of our walk we visited Ramssa restaurant for lunch. We ordered a set menu, so we tried some of everything traditional and local.
After our lunch we took another taxi to visit Ghubrah Beach and Mall of Oman. It is the biggest mall in Muscat. They even have a hall with artificial snow.
We had some nice views from our hotel, in the night, for sunrise or for sunset.
The next day we had a private tour of Muscat. We visited the Sultan Qaboos Mosque, the fish market, old town of Muscat, Mutrah Souq and Al Alam Palace. At the end we went for lunch at Bait Al Luban restaurant. There we tried shuwa. It is marinated meat, traditionally made in a fire pit for over 6 hours. The tour was really nice and informative. Our guide Basheer was very knowledgeable and friendly.
Our next day we went on a trip to Nizwa and Jebel Shams. It is a 2 hour drive one way from Muscat. Although we had a peculiar guide that day, the trip itself was nice. The Grand Canyon of Oman was really impressive. I just couldn’t believe I am standing on 2000 m without any snow around me.
Nizwa Souq:
At Nizwa Fort our guide made sure we also tried some Omani bread, which was very tasty snack.
The views of the Grand Canyon from Al Haym and Al Khitaym.
The next day was the nicest of trips, besides diving of course. We went to Wadi Shab and also Bimmah Sinkhole at the end. Our guide was super nice and we had some nice lunch. Wadi Shab consists of walking and swimming. Before starting there is a very short boat ride to the entrance of Wadi. The swimming part has 3 pools. At the end of the third pool, there is a very narrow passage. This leads to a smaller waterfall and a cave. My mom was a bit nervous of this last part, so to make it easier we rented life jackets. Wadi Shab is quite popular, also with non-swimmers. Having a life jacket saved us some stress. It was also easier for me to take photos. I had to hold my phone in my hands all the time, because my phone case didn’t have a string. We paid 2 rials for the jackets and left. Looks like they don’t have trust issues.
Some views of Tiwi Beach before reaching the parking for Wadi Shab.
The boat and walking part:
The swimming part:
The last pool with the cave:
When we returned to the van, we had some delicious lunch. After that we went to our last stop – Bimmah Sinkhole. There we had a fish pedicure. Some fish were already quite big, so it hurt a little.
Another 1.5 hours and we were back at the hotel. The next day we had another easy day, meaning no organized trips. We went to take a look at Mall of Muscat. There they don’t have artificial snow, but they have an aquarium. We went for lunch to McDonald’s, because we wanted to try it there. We had some peri-peri chicken wrap and burger. It said halal on it. We also ordered karak chai.
On our last day we enjoyed a 4×4 jeep ride in Wahiba Sands. Before that we stopped at Al Mudayrib. It is a place where they are trying to keep the old settlement and atmosphere. Later, in the dessert we also enjoyed our last Omani coffee with dates. We loved it, we ate and drink so much of it every day. We said hi to some dromedary camels. It was fun. After that we went to Wadi Bani Khalid, which is much less prettier than Wadi Shab. The water is quite warm and dirty from people soaking in it. We decided not to have a swim there. We walked around a bit though. On our way back to Muscat (2.5 hours) we stopped for karak chai on a gas station. By the way, the fuel there is 0.40 € per liter.
Our amazing 8 days of Arab world went by really fast. We are full of impressions and memories.
Anjability 