Wednesday, December 26: After eating a lunch of chicken soup, an omelet and chapati at a typical Arab restaurant in Ibra, we head down the road from Ibra to explore some more ruins in Al Mudaybi.
ready for lunch
drinks, anyone?
While heading in that direction, we come upon brown signs for Al Rawdah Fort. We park in the village below, along the falaj, and children simultaneously getting off their school bus happily greet us: “How ARRRD you? How ARRRD you?”
Mario & the children in the village near Al Rawdah Fort
We take some pictures with the exuberant children and then climb up steps to the fort. We’re greeted by a gentle curator who doesn’t speak much English. He takes us around the quiet fort, which we have all to ourselves; at the top, we have fantastic views of the village, random ruins and date palm plantations.
Click on any of the pictures below for a full-sized slide show.
After this we poke around in the falaj, finding an interesting insect that looks like a deformed blade of grass.
interesting little critter
We then continue our drive in the same direction, where we come upon Bait al Khabib. It is not only closed but the entire village seems to be deserted. We walk around the outside and walk briefly through the attached village. We don’t see a soul in sight as it is probably nap time.
Bail al Khabib
cannon at Bait al Khabib
Bait al Khabib
Bait al Khabib
Bait Al Khabib is built on a solid rock foundation
I love the wispy feather-like clouds
yet another interesting metal door in Oman
and a carved wooden door
and this one would be really cool if it wasn’t covered with chain link fence!!
I’m ready at this point for a nap myself. Though we intend to drive on to Al Mudaybi, I just don’t have the energy for it. At this point it is 2:30 and, as is usual with my frequent bouts of insomnia, I have been up since 4 a.m. We decide to call it quits and head back to Nizwa. Between our explorations of the fantastic Ibra ruins earlier, and these amazing forts, it’s been a wonderful day-after-Christmas adventure.
a nomad in the land of nizwa 
What a beautiful fort and you captured the light SO beautifully!!! I love the children to!
Thanks so much Jasmine! I guess we just lucked out with perfect light and the right time of day. 🙂 The children here are really cute.
IT was a BEAUTIFUL shoot! I aam jealous I didn’t get to see it!!!
You can always come to visit and see it firsthand… 🙂
I know don’t tease me!!! DING DONG!!! OH What’s that I’m already there?
All right! 🙂
More fabulous doors! Thanks for showing us these places. 😉
Thanks, Ruth! I’m so glad you like them. 🙂
I feel like I am reliving our holiday in Oman when I read your blog. Aren’t the doors lovely. I wish now I had taken more photos of them when we were there, but I guess I didn’t know then that I would be writing a travel blog three years later.
I know what you mean! When you start blogging, you notice things you might not have noticed before. Or maybe you noticed but didn’t think of photographing. Before I started blogging or even getting into photography, I traveled to France twice, Mexico, the Bahamas, all over the US, and I hardly have any pictures to show for those trips. And what pictures I do have are mundane and unimaginative. I’m always trying to notice things more, to try for better composition, unusual subjects, and perfect light. I think practice at seeing makes us better travelers…. 🙂
Definitely and better writers too.
These pictures are just wonderful and I have added Oman to my bucket list!
Thanks, Kathryn. Great! I think you would love it! If you make it in the next 6 months, come visit me. 🙂
I might really do this…
Ok, I’m waiting. 🙂
I am too 🙂
This looks almost as interesting as the Jordanian forts! The doors are beautiful.
Thanks! I love the Jordanian forts too. You and I do share a fondness for Jordan! I love those interesting doors too! 🙂
Great photos! I think that critter is a type of grasshopper – like you said somewhere, when you blog you start noticing so much!
Thank you, Lynn! I was thinking it was a praying mantis, but I think you’re right, it’s a grasshopper. Yes, photography helps you notice things you might not notice otherwise. I love it. When I think of all the things I’ve missed in my life, it makes me wistful….