Salmiya

  I had missed Sultan Qaboos' Grand Mosque when in Oman last time, about 7 years ago. We visited the marvellous mosque, which has been finished only in 2001, on Christmas Eve. It now harbors the world's second largest hand-woven carpet and chandelier (after those in Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan mosque in Abu Dhabi which has been installed only in 2010). The mosque in Oman features architectural gems and recalls, at the same time, Cairo's Ibn Tulun and Esfahan's Shah mosque, the Timurid floral and Arabesque tiles in its Friday mosque, Safavid muqarna s, Persian weaving art and a Paradise garden.          On Christmas Day, we attended the mass in the Protestant Church in Ghala, at only a couple of hundred meters distant from the Grand Mosque (although heavy construction work would have made it impossible to walk). I was not really prepared to meet an evangelizing Christian there who ...

What can you do in Oman when you have just a couple of days? We were lucky that Ahmad, a fisherman from beautiful Sur and cousin of a friend, promised to drive us to Nizwa. Friday market with cattle and goat on sale. Many tourists and generally no collectible souvenirs. We had lunch in a restaurant only with separate rooms for families.       We then went to Misfah, a small village in the mountains with spectacular views into canyon-like wadis with subtropical (actually tropical!) vegetation. The road to Al-Hamra and Misfah offers spectacular view at Oman's highest mountain, Jebel Shams (3009 m).       Ahmed Saleh Al Araimi may be hired as guide also for longer tours by emailing him: teenh2001@yahoo.com . 

A couple of weeks before the opening ceremony, I stumbled over the brand new Opera House in Muscat on the internet. The program included Turandot, Carmen and, well, Pjotr Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake . When it was dead-easy to purchase tickets online, I planned to spend Christmas once more in the Middle East. The performance of the world class Mariinsky Ballet on opening night was marvelous, and so was the opera house in Al Qurum.                  

Beware of the Omanis! I was told by one of my students. Witchcraft, she whispered mysteriously. Well, I am not superstitious. For many of us, Oman had been a dream destination. Sinbad the Sailor, frankincense, seducing perfumes, beautiful silver daggers called khanjar . And spectacular landscape, dhows , sandy beaches, sea turtles. We were told, Omanis ware different. They are diligent and eager to learn. They are used to work hard. And they are as friendly as their neighbors on the Arabian Peninsula. I spent only a couple of days in Ruwi and Mutrah. It was a holiday trip, Kuwait’s National and Liberation Days , when it used to be a good idea of expats to better leave the country and let them celebrate. Even in late February, it was hot and humid. Muscat lies in fact exactly on the Tropic of Cancer. Skies were rather cloudy. Tropical thunderstorms at night. Oman is a great trading nation and big vessels as well as dhows and fisher boats were seen in the huge natural harbor when wanderi...