Oman Part 5: Other stuff

Alright, I really must finish with the Oman pics now, as I am finally moving into a house in Woburn Sands, about 10 mins from the Open University, and I know that you will want to see pics of that....

In June 2007 Cyclone Gonu ripped through Muscat and the surrounding area causing devastating floods. The tarmas is often just a thin layer on top of gravel, so when it rains, it all gets washed away.... Here are a few remnants of the old road in Bandar Khayran. the new patch is visible to the left.

This house in Al Khufayki suffered pretty badly...

Here's a cool salt-water rock slug. The beach in Bandar Khayran was covered in them and we only noticed them when the beach started to move... I think we must have stepped on a few by accident.

Oman is an interesting mix of new and old. This house is made of mud and palm leaves, yet there is a pretty shiny car parked outside the door...

Detail of a lovely old wooden door in the fort.

Oman Part 4: The Jumping Photos

I know these pics are what you have all been waiting for, so I thought I would put you out of your misery...

Oman Part 3: The Scenery

A combination of generally clear skies and no vegetation means that all the rocks jump straight out of the scenery at you. Villages cling to the sides of the (generally dry) river beds, mainly where there is a water source and houses can be built safely out of the way of floods.

Here's a general view of the Saih Hatat basin; part of my field area

The houses in Oman all used to be built like this in the olden days (only 30 years ago). They are built from mud, wood and palm fronds. nowadays houses are made out of concrete and painted white.


This is a view of Muttrah, the port of the capital city, Muscat. I think the dhow is the one that belongs to the Sultan but I am not sure.

Here's another example of a village nestled into the side of a wadi in my field area.

A fishing boat in Bandar Khayran bay.

One of my many tens of photos of the Grand Mosque. Built at a cost of many millions, it is the most perfect piece of architecture that I have ever seen. Every little tiny detail has been thought about and is made using the best materials and best craftsmanship. Unfortunately the pigeons keep pooping all over the shiny marble floors.. somewhat spoiling the effect.

Shock horror: it rained while were there! And not only did it rain but it drizzled. All day. The top of White Mountain was totally obscured. Most unusual.

Oman Part 2: The locals

It's often quite difficult to get pictures of the Omanis, apart from children who generally rush to have their photo taken. Here are some pics of people and places around Muscat.

These are some guys wearing the traditional Omani dishdasha enjoying a stroll on the beach at Qurm.

Here's the inside of the market (or souq) just after lunch when it is all closed up. I whipped my camera out just too late to get the woman in the light..

We tried to teach some of the kids in Yenkit about jumping photos.... Not all that successful but this is the best pic of the lot!


Andy chatting to some kids in Nizwa fort about football.

An elderly gent carrying stuff the traditional way, leaving Nizwa souq.

This (I think) is an old goat-herder's shelter. There were 3 or 4 of these shelters nestled into a hollow at the side of a wadi about 5km from what we would now call a village. I doubt people lived in them permantly although you never know. We also found some old flip flops made of car tyres.

Oman part 1: The camping life

I'm busy sorting through my photos from my Omani adventure and there are just so many great pics and adventures to choose from! So I thought I would start off today a few showing the camping life and then over the next couple of days I will add more photos of other aspects of life such as jumping photos, geology, scenery etc.

So this first one is a southerly view of the camping beach at As Sifah. The main eclogite beach is behind me but this is the bit we camp on (just on the beach tucked in at the right above the high tide line). Beautiful! But this view might not last - there are plans to build 3 large hotels and a golf course just off-sight towards the bottom left side of the photo. Argh!!

No campsite in Oman is any good without the obligatory sundowner...! But lime is much better than lemon and for some reason we failed to buy any limes the first time round.

The obligatory 7am sunrise shot over the Arabian sea...

The downside to camping on the beach. The rubbish is pretty grim, and you will find stuff strewn absolutely everwhere. Here they seem to have missed the bin.


Here's our other campsite, at the southern end of Wadi Hulw. A bit dustier than the beach but certainly quieter without the noise of the crashing waves!



In the morning we were woken up by goats nibbling the tent pegs, and then a bit later on the donkeys came to say hello as well.


Once back in town, a mixed fruit juice coctail certainly helped to wash all the dust out of my throat! All this for about £1.30!! Yummy.