Cathleen & Colleen in Oman
We chose Oman as the venue to celebrate our 63rd birthday.
The "progressive kingdom" on the Arabian Peninsula is an apt description for Oman, home to some three million residents. The country is certainly more progressive than Saudi Arabia to the northwest and Yemen to the southwest, and thankfully, far less commercial than Dubai and Abu Dhabi to the north. Many come to Oman for its abundance of enticing nature destinations. Oman's official title is the Sultanate of Oman. In a quiet palace coup in 1970, Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said dethroned his isolationist father who had fostered diplomatic relations with only three foreign countries. Sultan Qaboos essentially brought a nomadic mass of desert into the modern era. As befitting a very wealthy country, we saw no homelessness, no beggars, no stealing, no crazies, no road rage, no stress. It is also an extremely safe country, both politically in spite of its geo-strategic location, but crime-wise as well. We felt totally safe sleeping all alone on the beach. With gas only 49¢ a liter, there were many vehicles on the sleek toll-free interstate highways, especially 4 x 4s. A disconcerting Omani habit is to keep the engine on while tending to errands. We watched one man leave his SUV running a good half hour while he conducted business at a travel agency. The Omanis are incredibly kind people, often going out of their way to help us. We were told they are just as kind to each other. Hitchhiking is common. We picked up many men on the road, and every one of them shook each our hands when they exited the car. Our biggest disappointment was the gender apartheid. Women were shielded in what must be excruciatingly hot black abayas(some fully covered, others face-free), while men wore light flowing white robes that were in tune with the desert heat. This second class status disappointed us immensely as we imagined how repressive we as women would feel to live such a circumscribed life as it appeared so many Omani women lived. On the positive side, women are widely employed, can drive cars, and are out and about everywhere, albeit in abayas. As per the Sultan's mandate, women who work in the government must have their faces uncovered. All to say, it's not like Saudi Arabia, but still . . . |
Our Itinerary, 2017
March 25 Istanbul - Muscat
March 26 Muscat March 27 Muscat March 28 Muscat March 29 Musandam March 30 Musandam March 31 Nizwa April 1 Nizwa - Birthday! April 2 Nizwa April 3 Nizwa April 4 Wahiba Sands April 5 Wahiba Sands April 6 car camping April 7 flight at 1:00 am April 8 |