I saw this picture on my friend Mohamed Isa's Facebook recently and it made me remember the famous Omani Hospitality I experienced on my several trips to Oman when I lived in the Middle East. I stayed in Muscat, and Salalah and visited Nizwa and Mirabat.
A Majlis at the Fort in Nizwa which I visited on my first trip in 2010
On my last trip , before I moved to the Philippines, I completed my PADI open water diving course at the Crown Plaza in Salalah. In Muscat on my first trip I stayed in a friend's apartment when my colleague from Campus Veolia, Anuj, was running some courses there.
After Anuj finished work we would go for a swim and out to dinner
The next time, in 2013, I stayed in Ruwi ( at what was once a Novotel) and met up with a Pinoy friend , Rey, who was a nurse there. I went on the Big Bus tour and we went to the Royal Opera house to see a Flamenco Jazz performance.
TBK, looking smart, at the Royal Opera House, Muscat
In 2014 I flew south to Salalah and stayed at an apartment on the beach during Ramadan , and walked along the beach to the Crowne Plaza to use their gym and have their Iftar Buffet.
Iftar Buffet at the Crown Plaza in Salalaeh in 2013
A few years later I returned to Muscat and stayed at the Crown Plaza next to the convention centre with another Pinoy friend, Gabby. The hotel was so nice that I returned in 2021 and stayed there before flying down to Salalah again. This time I celebrated my 61st Birthday with my Pinoy friend Mark at the Crown Plaza at Quorum Beach. In the evening we went for dinner at The Wave.
Birthday dinner with Mark in Muscat in 2021
On every trip the Omanis were so hospitable and so I totally agreed with Mohamed when he wrote:
"I just got back from a quick 2-day trip from Muscat, Oman. My friend Sayed Abbas and I did not have any plans. We booked the tickets and the hotel on the fly.
After lunch, we took a walked to the Taxi station. We were lucky to have Mohamed Bu Meshaal as our taxi driver.
He took us to the Marina for our sunset boat tour and offered to pick us up when we finish because it would be challenging to get a taxi in the area.
Liked all Omanis, he was generous. He invited us for lunch at his house. We politely declined his offer in the interest of time and to catch up with our hiking plans in the afternoon.
He insisted many times. And then, he said, if not lunch, at least have Omani Coffee in my house. And we did. He treated us to several types of delicious homemade sweets.
While many of us in the Arab region speak highly of Swiss hospitality, I would say:
Look no further than Oman, for hospitality inspiration.
Thanks a lot, Bu Meshaal!"
Like Mohamed I did a couple of tours with Omani guides. Most of the taxi drivers, all of who are Omanis, offer tours of the local area both in Muscat and in Salalah. Usually I am not a big fan of organised tours but Oman is different as they take you in their own car and know all the short cuts, best places to go, and speak excellent English. My first driver in Salalah in 2014 , Rashid, took me along the coast and we visited the Blow hole where the water is forced up through the top of the cave and as you stand and watch the sea shoots out like a Geyser.
Marneef Cave And Blow Hole
Mughsayl Beach
On my second trip another driver took me to Wadi Darbat (The Darbat Valley) where the water roars down from the mountains after 3 months of rain ( The Kareef) and the whole area turns green ( its normally a dry brown dessert) .
Sadly I cannot find the photos I took on this trip so this is from the site:
We also went to another mountain stream and had some food at the roadside. On the way we passed the site of his new house ( most Omani Taxi drivers are in the army and drive part time) which he was having built for his retirement. He insisted I came in and gave me a tour of his new place.
I spent endless hours walking on the beach in Salalah on both my visits and collected lots of shells which I still have on my bookcase here in Palawan!
Breakfast at the Salalah Beach villas in 2014
In Salalah the first place I stayed only served breakfast so I asked Rashid to recommend a restaurant in town. He suggested a Chinese place near his home and he dropped me off there after our tour. When I finished my meal he returned to take me back to where I was staying. We also went up into the mountains, saw the Zig Zag road and the place where there is no gravity and your car moves without the engine on!
My first guide, Rashid, showed me where Frankincense comes from
Oman is famous for Frankincense and we went to see where it came from and then to a market where I was able to buy some and the Frankinse burner which I still have!
My Frankincense burner
My second Guide took me to the Frankincense museum so I could learn more about it. It was a fascinating experience and behind is a historic walk along rivers and lakes to the sea.
Over the 12 years that I visited Oman there was a huge investment in Tourism in the south with new museums, hotels and restaurants
Overtaken by a camel on the way to Mirabat
I learnt in Salalah that there are more camels per head of population in Oman than anywhere else in the world. In the old days they used to be treated badly like elephants, carrying heavy weights long distances, being raced, and ridden and paraded on the beach for tourist photos. However now in Oman they have the same status as a cow in India and are treated with great respect. As you drive down the highway and a group of camels are grazing in the central reservation the traffic puts on hazard lights and slows down to pass them. We also stopped for cows and goats.
One of my first ILM delegates in Bahrain, Sajid Hamed, who worked for Bapco and then was seconded to Tatweer and moved to Oman and so we kept in touch and met for dinner a few times when I visited.
There are many mosques, forts and Palaces all over Oman and during my visits there I went on the Big Bus tour twice and also travelled to various places by Taxi like a big Damn and nature park about 40 mins drive from Muscat. On one trip Gaby and I were the only people on the Bus and the driver said we cold spend as long as we wanted at each stop! "We owned the bus" Gabby explained!
Resting in the shade in Muscat
You will notice that in most of my pictures I am wearing trousers and shoes and a long sleeve shirt. People often asked during my 12 years in the Middle East what it was like, and how the GCC countries differed. Bahrain, where I lived was very relaxed with Alcohol and Pork on sale in certain outlets, and cinemas and Malls. It was where the Saudis came to " Chill out" at the weekends. Saudi was ultra strict with shops shutting 5 times a day for prayers and no cinemas, alcohol or pork. Dubai was a strange mix with bikinis worn on the beach but not allowed in the restaurants and malls. In all mosques the legs and shoulders must be covered and on my first visit to Oman in 2010 I got told off for wearing shorts to the malls. Here in the Philippines I only wear shorts, sando and tsinellas ( flip flops/sandals) unless I am visiting a government office ( Visa, Police etc )
Salalah Beach villas where I stayed in 2014
Back then I used Booking.com for all my hotel reservations . In Salalah, having visited the Crown Plaza in Muscat , I looked at the price of the CP in Salalah but it was very expensive ( it has a pool, gym, several restaurants, golf course and is in large landscaped grounds by the sea). Then I noticed the beach villas, a short distance on the beach which was much cheaper ( and I got a 3 room flat overlooking the sea with pool and kitchen, lounge and 2 bedrooms!). So I stayed there and walked on the beach to the Crown Plaza and paid a day rate to use the gym and facilities. On my second visit I stayed in a cheap 2 star hotel in town and had taxis to the CP to use the pool and gym. This time , 6 years after my first visit, the day rate was the same ( 10 OR/BD - £20 or 1500 pesos a day) but I later found out the monthly rate was cheaper and got me discount in the restaurant. On my last visit to Muscat I stayed at the cheaper Exhibition Centre Crown Plaza and then paid the day rate for Mark and I to go to the Quorum CP on my birthday .
The older CP in Muscat is perched on a cliff with its own private beach below
Rey swimming in the pool at the CP in Muscat
Another nice thing about my trips to Oman is that all the guys I met there ( Rey, Sajid, Mark) are still in touch to this day! Mark is about to move to Croatia and Rey is back home in the Philippines teaching, and Sajid is still working in Oman while he finishes his house in Kerala!
I hope you have enjoyed my walk down memory lane as much as I did finding the old photos and reminiscing. As Mohamed said its a lovely place and the Omanis are very hospitable so if you get the chance please pay them a visit.
As usual if there is anywhere else you would like me to "Remember" please let me know before I get to old and dementia sets in!
Hello, I am The British Kabayan! Feel free to read my stories.
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