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.
Sur, a city of about 120,000 people is located around 150km from Muscat, the capital of Sultanate of Oman. Sur is the capital of the Sharqiya region in this Jewel of Arabia.
Sur – Muscat Coastal Highway
The calm blue waters of the Arabian Sea
While Oman is famous for some of the best road trips on the planet, this coastal highway from Sur to Muscat is up there to rival the best.
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.
I recently watched two travel videos of places which are as different as chalk and cheese and poles apart quite literally in terms of distance as well. While one is known as the Jewel of Arabia, the other is renowned as the Land of the Midnight Sun. While one is known for it’s deserts and culture, the other is known for its snow capped mountains and scenic landscapes.
Interestingly, there are some similarities as well in the fact that both are surrounded by water on three sides and are also famous for their fjords.
What struck me about these videos were the overall story, the music and the detailing which had gone behind conceptualising them. While there maybe many other better tourism videos out there, these two stand out for me for their sheet aw
And another year has gone past us. This was the year when I moved back to the Gulf again. I say again since more than half my life has been spent in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. The last 365 days have been quite interesting meeting people from various countries and learning about various cultures.
From a blogging perspective, I continued taking part in various short fiction prompts and challenges like 5 sentence fiction, 100 word fiction, 42 word fiction, 6 word fiction and so on and so forth. These challenges have always been helpful in keeping the creative juices flowing.
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.