Muscat, Oman

We went to Salalah two years ago and will revisit that town in a few days, but this is the maiden call in Muscat, the capital of Oman, for the Queen Victoria.

Oman is a sultanate, the oldest Gulf State….its earliest settlement dates back 5,000 years, which puts in on the pages of the Bible. It has been an important trading post between the east and the west for centuries, especially during the years of the frankincense trade, a commodity which was as valuable as gold in the early Christian era. It was ruled by indigenous tribes, Persia and Portugal at various points in history. Portugal was driven out in the 17th century; the power vacuum that followed let to the emergence of the Al Bu Sa’id Dynasty which has ruled Oman ever since. Oman re-established its naval and military supremacy in the 19th century. Friction with the imams of the interior, conflicts among the various tribes and the failed assassination of the sultan let to the Dhofar Rebellion in 1962. With the help of the British the rebellions were quelled and in 1970 Qaboos bin Said, son of the sultan staged a bloodless coup…once again with the assistance of the British. Qaboos renamed the country Oman, consolidated tribal territories, established new ministries for social services and generally oversaw the development of Muscat as a trade and tourist center. Oman’s vibrant economy, based on petroleum, porting and trade and multi-ethnic society is the legacy of this forward-thinking sultan.

We docked in Muscat at 8:30 am and the approach with the white buildings nestled at the base of the stark grey cliffs was spectacular. Old towers dot many of the hills. Muscat is divided into three main districts: Muscat, the oldest part, Muttrah, the old walled port which contains the Sultan’ palace, courts and government offices, and Ruwi, the modern business district.

Ross, Colin, Bea and I took the shuttle to the Muttrah Soukh where we bargained for a taxi. What a scene – the haggling, the yelling…not us, the drivers….furious when we didn’t pick them!!! Anyway, off we went with Abdul who was very informative and took us too all the places on out list, most of which were off- limits and only photo-ops.

Our first stop was the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, which closes at 11am for prayers, so we had to hurry. Women have to be almost completely covered to enter the mosque. I wore an Indian outfit I bought Mumbai. Bea had a scarf, but had a short-sleeved top. Abdul opened his trunk a produced a black burka. Photo below – she looked very authentic.

The massive Sunni mosque is stunning. It spans an area of 416,000 square meters and took over 6 years to build. It was completed in 2001. It is built of 300,000 tons of Indian sandstone. The main musalla or prayer hall, for men only, has a central dome rising to a height of 50 meters above the floor. It is carpeted with the world’s second largest hand-woven carpet, woven by Iranian women on site – it is one enormous carpet – no joins. It weighs 21 tons and measures over 70x60 meters. The chandelier over the musalla is 14 meters tall and is the tallest in the world. It weighs 8.5 tons and is made of Swarovski crystal with gold-plated metalwork. IK contains 1200 dimmable halogen lights, triggered by more than 36 switching circuits. The main musalla can hold over 6500 worshippers; the smaller women’s musalla, outfitted with TVs, can accommodate 750 worshippers. The outer paved area can hold 8,000 worshippers and there is additional space in other courtyards making a total capacity of 20,000 people.

We stayed quite a long time admiring the chandeliers, coffered ceilings, carpets, wooden doors, bronze fittings, Islamic designs an writing….and pages of the Koran which we were not allowed to touch, but which Adbul showed us. He explained that there are many names for the God, not just Allah, and showed them to us, printed in red in the Koran. We left just before the call to prayer, but we heard it on the radio in the car.

On our way back to Muttrah and Muscat, we drove past mansions of the rich and famous, mainly consulates, and along the corniche and the public beach. The water is turquoise and the sand blindingly white. We then visited the Sultan’s Palace in old Muscat– from the front, along with everyone else, and from the rear (thanks to Abdul’s friends in security), where we could see the private lawns and the machine gun emplacements. Muscat Harbor is flanked by two Portuguese forts – Mirani and Jalali – which are used for military purposes and which guard the Sultan’s Palace.

Next stop, lunch at the Al-Bustan Palace…a beautiful hotel on the water, which I had sussed out on the Internet. When I mentioned it to Abdul, he immediately approved!! He waited for us while we partook of the excellent buffet – both continental and local cuisine – at a table overlooking the pool and the beach. Stunning! And we had Um Ali for dessert - a local version of bread pudding - fantastic!

Last stop – and farewell to Abdul – the Muttrah Soukh again – where we poked around for a while. A very old and interesting warren of little shops and flea-bitten cats (very sad!!). I bought nothing; Bea got a “Rolex” watch and Ross got a mosque alarm clock that wakes you up with the call to prayer. I would go mad if I heard that every day!!

Back to the ship for an early sailaway….we were all meant to meet for drinks and then figure out where we would eat a light dinner. I, however, spent the afternoon with Montezuma and so did not show. It must have been something I ate at lunch….I was really ill. Then it was all over…and I had a decent night’s sleep.