The road leading to the Nizwa Fort
The cannons welcome you
Forts are the heart and soul around which a lot of history revolves around in Oman. Nizwa Fort located in the city of Nizwa about 160km from Muscat, Oman’s capital is one of the most visited national monuments in the country.
Nizwa Fort welcomes you
It was built by Imam Sultan Bin Saif Al Ya’rubi sometime around the 1650s. He is known as the one who played a key role in removing the Portugese from Oman.
The entrance
The lamps at the entrance welcome you in
Situated in Nizwa city about 160km from Muscat, the capital of Sultanate of Oman, the Jabrin Fort is one of the numerous forts which dot the Omani landscape.
Women’s prayer area
Royal Opera House Muscat – Doesn’t it look majestic?
Royal Opera House Muscat (ROHM) is Oman’s premier center of music, art, culture and more. It can seat upto 1100 people for a show.
The lovely entrance to ROHM
Since it’s opening in 2011, ROHM has conducted numerous shows featuring artistes from across the planet. The ROHM compound also includes gardens, restaurants, theaters and more.
The Cave welcomes us
The Cave is a group of about 8 restaurants in the heart of Muscat serving cuisines from across the world since 2014.
The eclectic fare on offer from across the world
Situated at the top of a hill, the restaurant offers lovely views of the city and beyond.
Views from outside The Cave
Views of the Arabian Sea from outside The Cave
Somewhere in the interiors of Oman
Oman is up there in the top 10 countries with the best quality roads in the world. And why am I not surprised?
On the way to Muscat from the interiors
Being born and brought up in Oman, I have had the pleasure of being driven on smoothest of highways.
The lovely Baushar – Amerat road constructed by cutting through the hills
Does it remind you of Alladin’s lamp?
In Arabic, Kargeen refers to a quaint wooden cottage. First established in 1997 in the posh locality of Madinat Al Sultan Qaboos, Kargeen Cafe has come a long way with many more outlets having sprung up around Muscat in the years hence.
The sitting area at the reception..
It’s wooden furniture, the ethnic decor and the lovely rugs give it a truly traditional feel.
While I was a resident in Muscat, I wasn’t able to visit the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque as something or the other always came up. But I finally got my chance when I came in as a tourist courtesy Ministry of Tourism, Oman & Indiblogger.
The minaret stands tall – An architectural masterpiece
Stunning art work..
In a continuation to my previous post on Wahiba Sands, I also wanted to mention about one of the mysteries I came across during my stay as well as watching the beautiful sunset and sunrise.
Since we had arrived around late afternoon, we set out to capture the sunset at about 5pm in the evening. With our cameras and smartphones in tow, we set out with Majid (our driver cum guide) in the Land Cruiser Prado to the vantage point which was to provide us the best view of the sunset.
Our Land Cruiser Prado arrives at the vantage point..
The sands stretch as far as the eyes can see..
Wahiba Sands (now known as Sharqiya Sands) is a desert area around 250kms away from Muscat and about 120 kms from the city of Sur in the Sultanate of Oman. It’s size is around 12,500 square kilometers. The vastness of the desert hits you in the face as you enter it.
There are dunes of varying heights in all directions. Some tower well above the others. There is sand visible everywhere as far as the eyes can see.
The coffee shop..
On the way..
Rugged mountains, smooth winding roads, chilly breeze and a Land Cruiser Prado to boot – The ride to Jebel Shams was an adventure in every way. Located about 2-3 hours by road from Muscat – the capital of Sultanate of Oman and an hour away from the town of Nizwa, Jebel Shams (Sun Mountain) is the tallest point in the Hajar Mountains and at a height of more than 3000m, it is regarded as the tallest point in eastern Arabia. The beautiful village of Al Hamra stands at the base of this mountain peak.
The winding roads uphill
Though its said that the journey is more important than the destination, in the case of Jebel Shams, both the journey to the top and the views from the top are nothing short of spectacular. As our driver cum guide Majid drove up the winding roads, we observed that the temperature fell from around 30 degrees to just about 12 degrees.
We move further into mountainous territory
In a matter of about 25 minutes, the heat was replaced by chilly winds hitting all our faces.
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