This safe and (relatively) enlightened Persian Gulf sultanate is an under-the-radar travel gem, from the walled city, souk and museums of capital Muscat to eco/adventure along the coast and out in its desert and mountains.
Cover photo: Andries Oudshoorn
The female security guard discreetly slips me through a side door and gestures for me to sit at the table in the corner. The Arabic music is pulsating and the room is reverberating with the nervous energy of 400 women. Suddenly, the lights dim and everyone turns to watch. A bride, dressed in a Western-style long white wedding gown with matching trailing veil has a death grip on her bouquet of roses as she takes very slow measured steps down the center aisle towards the “Bride’s Love Seat.”…
Read more…Thierry Gregorius With space for 20,000, Oman´s tallest edifice is a whitewashed sandstone affair which was inaugurated in 2001 to mark Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said´s 30th year as ruler of Oman. bright mosaics and intricate crystal work. Its five minarets represent the five pillars of Islam, and two of the most notable features of the interior are the enormous prayer carpet, the world´s second largest, in 29 hues and designs incorporating classican Persian motifs, and the world´s second…
Read more…Hidden among the wild fjords of northern Oman, between the mountains and the sea in a quiet bay, sits the small village of Kumzar. This is the country's northernmost frontier, but Kumzar has a distinct atmosphere from the rest of Oman. In fact, its glorious isolation – the village is accessible only by an hour-long speedboat ride or a 2.5-hour trip on a sailing dhow from the nearest city, Khasab – has led Kumzar to develop a language and culture all of its own.read post
Read more…After arriving on a Turkish Airlines flight from Istanbul, as we drove in from the airport to Muscat's Mutrah district to begin our Oman tour,it struck us that this city of 1.7 million was everything we'd expected as the capital of a wealthy Gulf sultanate in the 21st century - modern highways in perfect condition, lavish buildings, decorative lighting - in addition to the streetlights from the road which give way to the old houses with a European flair (Oman was occupied by the Portuguese,…
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