our last dinner at the spicy village

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Nizwa, Oman

Wednesday, June 26:  A small group of us gathered for a final meal together at our favorite local restaurant, Spicy Village, on this evening following my last day at the university.  Tahira, Mario and Francois showed up this time around.  Francois is hilarious, and so is Mario; they had us all laughing uproariously, probably disrupting the other diners.  What a great night.  And the food was delicious, except for the bit of stomach upset it caused me all night long. 🙂  Meaning I only got about 5 hours of sleep. 😦

spring rolls at Spicy Village

Don’t ya love Francois’s starfish shirt?

Tahira & Francois

Mario

Mario, me and Francois, with Tahira behind the camera

This ranks as one of my topmost evenings in the lovely town of Nizwa!!

seeking the moonrise on a rocky hill in izki

Tags

Oman, Travel

Saturday, June 22:  Tonight, Mario and I climb a small rocky hill east of Izki to view the  rise of the Supermoon.  On this hazy evening, we wander among fossilized and painted rocks, waiting and watching.  We see several ladies walking across a huge empty expanse in their abayas.  We see a few wisps of clouds.  We see fascinating rocks.  And somehow we miss the moonrise, veiled as it is by the thick haze. Only later, as the moon is rather high in the sky, do we spot it through the haze, and by the time we do, it doesn’t look so super.  Never mind.  At least we saw a lot of nice rocks, something Oman has in great abundance.  A geologist’s heaven, here on earth.

Click on any picture below to see a full-sized slideshow.

fossilized rocks

fossilized rocks

eking out a living

three Omani ladies in abayas walk across a wide expanse

the moon through the haze

sunset

a lost feather

moonrise

❤ = love

weekly photo challenge: the sign says

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postaweek2013, weekly photo challenge

Saturday, June 1: This week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is The Sign Says.

Signs. Funny, poignant, symbolic, incorrect, informative, foreshadowing…there are so many signs in the world.

Like so many signs translated from another language into English, I can’t help but wonder if this one was done by Google Translator.  This sign is at the entrance to the village of Misfat Al Abriyyen in Oman.

I don’t know who translated this sign into English, but it’s a mess!

the ruins and gardens of adam

Tags

Oman, Travel

Saturday, June 1:  This morning, Mario takes his friend Sultan and me to see the extensive ruins in Adam, about 40 km south of Nizwa in Ad Dakhiliyah region.  I am surprised to see such an extensive array of ruins, and to see that they are actually being restored.

the first of three huge sets of ruins in Adam

one of many painted metal doors in the ruins of Adam

We take a long stroll through ancient forts, citadels and towers, mosques and deserted traditional souqs, all surrounded by beautiful gardens of date palms, pomegranates, apricots, figs, bananas and numerous other fruit trees.  Today is about 40 degrees C (104 F) and unusually high humidity for the interior, so we are sweating profusely.  I drink a bottle of water; despite this, my head is pounding.  We make a short detour to the local market for Panadol.  This is not a strenuous hike, mind you, but even a leisurely stroll is taxing in this heat.

ruins and gardens in Adam

arches and gardens

The history of the Wilayat of Adam dates back to pre-Islamic times. Adam has several meanings in Arabic but most likely means “fertile land.” The most notable places are Harrat Al Ain, Harrat al Bousaid, Harrat Al Hawashim & Harrat Bani Shiban, where several archeological sites have been found, and Harr Al Jamii, which is more recent.    About 13,000 people live in sixty villages around Adam. (Wikipedia: Adam, Oman)

Click on any photo in the gallery below for a full-sized slide show.

crescent moon on a mosque in Adam

banana plants

date palms through an arch

Omani door with lock and spikes

dates

gardens of Adam

ruins in Adam, Oman

ruins and gardens of Adam

ruins and gardens

watchtower

ruins and gardens of Adam

ruined door

door lock

arches and gardens

gardens and ruins

ruins and shadows of date palms

layers of arches

watchtower

a stand-alone wall

another watch tower

ruins and arches

arches and ruins

metal gate

gardens

colorful metal door

When Mario visited Adam last weekend, he got a tour of the ruins from a local Omani man who told him about the restoration project.  A large section of the ruins, where we find many painted rooms, has been restored already.  The government seems to be using mud bricks for the restoration, which is same construction material as the original buildings.

mud bricks lined up for the restoration project

Apparently, in March of 2012, a meeting was held between the Ministry of Heritage and Culture (MoHC) and the Ministry of Tourism on restoration and management plans for Al Jame village in Adam and Al Bilad in Manah, where intensive restoration work is going on.  Other members of the committee included the Ministry of Housing, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Regional Municipalities and Water Resources and the Supreme Committee for Town Planning. (Muscat Daily: Restoration of historical sites to be discussed at MoHC meeting).

It’s obvious to us as we walk around how expensive this project must be.  We have visited so many ruins throughout Oman that are in various stages of disintegration, so Mario and I are both pleased to see the government restoring these amazing ruins.  At least these villages can increase local employment and make some money off these tourist sites.  Mario also thinks the ruins could be used in movie sets.

Click on any of the images below for a full-sized slide show.

painted rooms in the restored section of ruins

paintings

wall paintings and niches

carvings on door

painted room

painted ceiling

painted room

painted room

the restored ruins on the outside

another painted room

painted room

painted room

painted room

old door

crumbling watchtower

bicycle in the ruins

This project is just one example of the amazing things Sultan Qaboos has done in this country to bring its people into the modern world.  The list is extensive: excellent roads, hospitals, schools and universities, a huge airport that is currently under construction, desalination plants, dams and recharge dams, and too many other projects to count.  As I have a Master’s degree in International Commerce and Policy, the focus of which is economic development, and as I have traveled extensively all over the world and seen many places where the governments do NOT take care of their people, I have to salute the visionary Sultan and his government for a comprehensive development plan in the midst of a very harsh environment.

painted room and ceiling with Quranic verses at the top perimeter of the walls

We’re exhausted from our 2 hour stroll through these ruins in the heat, so we go to the New Firq Restaurant for an early lunch. On our way, I ask Sultan when he started wearing glasses, as I’ve never seen him wearing them before.  Mario says, “Show her your glasses.”  He doesn’t take them off, but I say to him what I suspected all along: “Don’t tell me those glasses don’t have lenses in them!”  Sultan shows me how the frames broke and the lenses fell out.  I ask why he is still wearing them.  I am reminded of Korean boys who often wore frames without lenses, and I thought that was silly.  Sultan says, “Don’t they make me look stylish?”  I say, “They make you look like you’re trying too hard.”  Mario says, “I said the same thing to him!”

Sometimes, great minds think alike….. 🙂

Mario and Sultan at the New Firq Restaurant

weekly photo challenge: in the background

Tags

Oman, postaweek2013, United States of America, weekly photo challenge

Saturday, May 25:  Friday’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is In the Background: The places that we pass through day after day, or even once in a lifetime, leave in their small way, echoes and traces of themselves upon us. But so often when taking self portraits or pictures of friends, the places themselves become a soft blurred mush of indistinct semi-nothingness, the limelight stolen by our smiling faces. In today’s challenge, let’s turn the tables. Take a picture of yourself or someone else as a shadow, a reflection, or a lesser part of a scene, making the background, or — as in the example above — the foreground, the center of attention.

I’m not sure I really “get this” challenge, but here are a couple of attempts.  Adam, with his mouth watering, is the blurry background with the tofu sandwich as the center of attention.

there’s Adam, all blurry in the background, mouth watering over his vegan sandwich

In this one, taken at the Sahab Hotel on Jebel Akhdar, the blurry background of the Sahab is shown upside down and in the foreground, in the glass of wine.

The Sahab Hotel in the background, and again in the foreground, upside down in the glass of beer

Alex is in the background, covered completely by the glass, but you can see his face in the foreground in the glass of beer

And finally, in this picture of a vintage shop window in Carytown, Richmond, Virginia, it’s hard to tell the background from the foreground.

Vintage Shop window in Richmond, Virginia

And finally, in Dubai, UAE, the Burj al Arab in a mirror, though we’re still in the foreground!

Us in the mirror with the Burj Al Arab in the background

a stroll through al qasha on jebel akhdar & a farewell to old friends

Tags

Jebel Akhdar, Oman, Travel

Friday, May 24:  Today I go up to Jebel Akhdar with my oldest friends, Anna, Kathy and Mario, for a farewell gathering.  Anna is leaving the university at the end of July, a month after me, and Kathy is going on vacation in a couple of weeks.  Mario will still be here for a while, but, regrettably, we will be leaving him behind as we vacate the premises.

the view from Wadi Al Ayn of the escarpment above

Spina Christi

flowering bushes

lovely flowers

flowers

the path down into the wadi

delicate white flower

pomegranate flowers

baby pomegranate

pomegranate buds

I’m thinking it will be the same old stroll we always do, along the villages of rose garden fame.  Anna, however, has other ideas.  She wants to drive past Diana Point down into Wadi al Ayn, park the car and walk through the village of Al Qasha.   Although I like the hikes we always do on the Green Mountain, I am surprised to find a new place to discover as I begin my last month in the Sultanate.

looking up the wadi to Al Qasha

terraces with pomegranate trees

the falaj to Al Qasha

flowering wild bushes

more flowering bushes

a little pool ~ possibly the source of the spring?

“What is that feeling when you’re driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? – it’s the too-huge world vaulting us, and it’s good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”                         ~ Jack Kerouac, On the Road

Kathy and Anna

me

You and I will meet again, When we’re least expecting it, One day in some far off place, I will recognize your face, I won’t say goodbye my friend, For you and I will meet again.  ~ Tom Petty

Kathy

little swimmer

We only intend to do an hour stroll, and that’s exactly what we do.  We descend a rocky path down into the wadi, where we see terraces of pomegranate trees.  We can look up to the escarpment above where the rose gardens and the three villages of Al Aqr, Al Ayn, and A’Sheragah are situated.  It’s strange to see the escarpment from below when I’ve always been up at the top looking down.  We see some beautiful wild flowering bushes, blooming pomegranate trees, and terraces fringed by fuzzy trees.  Eventually we climb up on the falaj and walk along that until we reach a little pool where the spring seems to originate.  Frogs are swimming in the pond.  Other frogs are croaking out a symphony of sorts from a pool deeper in the wadi.   A giant lizard lies placidly in the sun; Mario tells us he’s dead.

pomegranate flower

We make our way back to our car and drive up to the Sahab Hotel for their buffet dinner.

appetizers at the buffet

appetizers and a little donkey friend

our table setting

an Omani door made into a coffee table at the Sahab

During dinner, we share tales of dreams, premonitions and ghosts.  Mario doesn’t believe in ghosts, but he’s dreamt of people with whom he’s fallen out of touch, only to find they die within the next week or so.  Kathy feels there is a presence of some sort in her flat in Oman.  Anna has dreamt of carpets, cars and strange evil men, all of which (or whom) have shown up on her doorstep matching the dream images.  I can’t say I’ve had any of these types of encounters, but I’m open-minded enough to believe there very well might be a different reality than what most of us know.

Strawberry mousse desserts

chocolate mousse desserts

Mario’s plate

Mario, Anna and Kathy

“I’ll never see them again. I know that. And they know that. And knowing this, we say farewell.” ~ Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore

 

friday meditation: my top ten happy memories in the sultanate

Tags

Life, Oman, Travel

Friday, Mary 24: I will carry to America hundreds of wonderful memories of my time here in the Sultanate of Oman.  There are too many to put into one blog post, as I have written over 475 posts during my 20+ months here.  As part of my fond farewell to Oman, here are my top 10 happy memories.

1.  On April 19, 2012, Mario, his Omani friend Sultan and I went on a mis-adventure to Wadi Damm.  It was shortly after a big rainfall and we had to cross about 10 fast-flowing wadis.  It was a foolish exploit, because many people get killed every year in flooding wadis; it rains so rarely here that most of the time the wadis are bone dry and people don’t realize how dangerous they are.  For us on this day, it was a grand & somewhat dangerous adventure.  We laughed a lot and then ended up at my house drinking wine and enjoying the night away ~ high jinks all around.  (an attempted trip to wadi damm ~ foiled by raging wadis)

one of the raging wadis on the way to Ibri

2. On April 26, 2012, two of my friends, Kathy and Tom, and I ventured across the Hajar Mountains in Oman.  We drove over a treacherous dirt road along the edges of steep mountains through Wadi Bani Awf toward an idyllic little village called Balad Sayt.  In order to get to this beautiful village, we had to clamber through a pool-filled canyon to emerge on the other side in an open bowl surrounded by mountains.  The village with all its lush green plantations sits in the middle of this bowl.  Kathy made the mistake of abandoning her shoes beside one of the pools in the canyon.  When she came out on the Balad Sayt side, she struggled mightily to walk over the burning gravelly path up to the village. She devised several methods to protect her feet, using discarded pieces of rotten wood which she tossed ahead of her one step at a time; this painstaking method didn’t work too well.  She finally tied some flexible bark around her feet with old twine.  I know it wasn’t too funny for Kathy, but Tom and I never laughed so hard in our lives! (52 pick up: success (aka overcoming adversity))

Kathy and her bark and twine makeshift shoes ~ at Balad Sayt, Oman

3. On March 28, 2013, Mario and I went up to Jebel Akhdar to see the roses.  The year before, we had tried to see the roses but had come too late.  This time, we were able to breathe in the sweet fragrance and take lovely photos of the pink blossoms.  We had a lovely time walking through the rose gardens and then having wine and dinner at the Sahab Hotel after (the roses of jebel akdhar & a lovely encounter with an irish couple).  We repeated similar amazing experiences on Jebel Akhdar so many other times, I can’t even count them all.

Roses on Jebel Akhdar

Everyone who reads my blog knows that my favorite place in Oman is Jebel Akhdar.  Each time I went up the “Green Mountain,” I had different memorable experiences that I’ll carry in my heart always.  Here are a couple more of my favorite times.

• Taking Beg and Mona Lisa up to the mountain on Valentine’s Day, 2013:  a valentine’s day adventure on jebel akhdar
  

  the terraces of Jebel Akhdar on Valentine’s Day

• Taking Mike, Alex and Adam to the Hanging Villages on January 8, 2013: a hike around the hanging villages of wadi al ayn on jebel akhdar
  

  Alex, Mike and Adam on Jebel Akhdar

• Hiking through Wadi Bani Habib with Mario and his Omani friend Mohammed on Thanksgiving Day, November 22, 2012: thanksgiving day on jebel akhdar: villages of wadi bani habib. {part two}
  

  finding colorful ruins at Wadi Bani Habib with Mario & Mohammed

  

  Mario in the ruins of Wadi Bani Habib on Jebel Akhdar

• Taking Malcolm and his lovely wife Sandy to Jebel Akhdar on a cold December night in 2012: a cold but lovely night at the sahab on jebel akhdar
  

  Sandy & Malcolm on a cold night on Jebel Akhdar

4) On May 11, 2012, Mario and I went hiking on Jebel Akhdar in search of the roses, but we were too late to see them.  However, we had one of many great conversations throughout the course of our friendship.  After our hike, he invited me to come over and share lime-flavored white corn TOSTITOS® tortilla chips (a rare find in Oman), apricot & almond cheese, cheddar cheese and a bottle of wine.  We sat in his air-conditioned living room and talked about the tribal society of Oman and the confining rules under which a tribe must live, a conversation I call “escaping the tribe.”  Sometimes I think I should write a book titled “Conversations with Mario.” (searching for roses on jebel akhdar & a conversation about escaping the “tribe”)

Ruins at Wadi Bani Habib on Jebel Akhdar

5) On January 13, 2012, my sons came to visit me in Oman, and all of us loved our excursion into the watery cave at Wadi Shab (cliff-jumping in the hidden caves of wadi shab).  Stunningly beautiful.

The entrance to the pools at Wadi Shab that you must swim through to get to the cave

6) On April 11, 2013, Mario and I went to explore Wadi Bani Kharous.  Not only did we explore the multitudes of picturesque villages in that wadi, but we experienced some great Omani hospitality along the way. (a trip to wadi bani kharous)

Omani hospitality at Wadi Bani Kharous

7) On Tuesday, February 21, 2013 Mario and I went on a huge road trip, where we explored Wadi Dayqah Dam, among other places, and ended up in Wadi Arbiyyin on the east coast of Oman.  Then we headed to Muscat and had a sushi buffet.  It was the road trip to beat all road trips, and perfectly lovely, except for the gunshots that scared us out of our wits. (wadi arbiyyin >> quriyat >> sushi in muscat. {the road trip: part 3})

Wadi Arbiyyin on the east coast of Oman

8)  When I first arrived in Oman, I coudn’t find anyone who wanted to go exploring Oman on the first National Holiday, so I went by myself. I had a great time at Al Areesh Desert Camp meeting random people and listening & dancing to the Bedouin music. (national holiday chapter 3: sharqiya sands & al-areesh desert camp)

Bedouin singers at Al Areesh Desert Camp

9)  When I went to Jordan over the 2011 Eid, I met an Italian guy, Guido, who came to visit me in Oman in December.  We had a great time going to Wadi Tiwi on his visit here on December 2, 2011. (cathy takes guido to wadis tiwi & shab…and up the coast to muscat)

Exploring Wadi Tiwi with Guido

10) The first time I went to Nakhal Fort, had lunch with an Omani family, then drove through Wadi Mistal to Wekan was simply magical. (nakhal fort, lunch with an omani family & a wild drive up wadi mistal)

My first magical time in Wekan

I’ve been to some of these places many times, and each time was wonderfully special.  I’ve picked my favorites based on a feeling of peace and contentment I experienced during those specific times.

My time here in Oman is coming to a close.  I am ready to leave, but I will carry many happy memories with me. 🙂

travel theme: the four elements

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travel theme

Sunday, May 19: Ailsa of Where’s my backpack? challenges us this week to come up with “an homage to earth, air, water and fire.”

For earth, what else can I post but the mountains of Oman?  Because they’re usually vegetation-free, they’re considered a geologist’s heaven.  Here are the mountains that make up the sides of Wadi Ghul.

the rock-solid earth at Wadi Ghul

One evening, at Dana Nature Reserve in Jordan, the air looked quite unstable and threatening.

Air at Dana Nature Reserve in Jordan

Water filled Santorini’s caldera after the volcano erupted some 3600 years ago at the height of the Minoan civilization.  This was the site of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in recorded history.   Now it is one of the most peaceful and serene places you can imagine, except for the tourists.

water ~ the Mediterranean at Santorini’s caldera

And fire has destructive power, but also provides much-needed warmth on a cold night in Kathmandu, Nepal.

fire at New Orleans Cafe in Kathmandu, Nepal

getting my green fix in the gardens of misfat al abriyyen

Tags

Oman, Travel

Saturday, May 4:  This afternoon, I decide I need a green fix, so I go for a short walk through the gardens of Misfat Al Abriyyen.  I love the broad and lush green leaves of the banana plants, the date palms, and the papaya trees.

The falaj is flowing with water through the gardens and the tank that holds the water for the village is overflowing due to the abundant rain we’ve had over the last week.  It feels like a little slice of paradise.

the falaj flows at Misfat al Abriyyen

the holding tank for water in the village is overflowing

People still live in the old village, even though a lot of the houses and buildings look like ruins.

We come upon an old man singing a song while another Omani man takes a video of him. When I ask the man if I can take a picture of him he giggles like a child and gives me a wide toothless grin.

a friendly old man in the garden

weekly photo challenge: from above

Tags

Greece, Jebel Akhdar, Jordan, Nepal, Oman, weekly photo challenge

Saturday, May 4: This week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is From Above: Change your perspective on something. Share a photo of a subject which you shot from directly above.

From above at the Monastery of St. Barbara, Meteora, Greece

Looking down at Kalambaka from the Monastery of St. Stephen at Meteora, Greece

from above: Nepalese Vegetarian food: basmati rice, black lentils, vegetable curry, spinach green curry, pickle, papad (some kind of mushroom curry?), salad and curd.

the view from above at the Hotel View Point in Nagarkot, Nepal

From above: flowers at Pokhara, Nepal

the view from above at the ancient Crusader castle at Karak, Jordan

from above: the curving staircase at Eikan-do, Kyoto, Japan

From above in a hot air balloon over Cappadocia, Turkey

From above: the “fjords of Arabia” in Musandam, Oman

Omani children at Jebel Akhdar, from above