A day in Muscat, Oman - pt 2

This morning we arrived in Muscat, the capital and most populated city in Oman. It is a beautiful city with the current population of 1,650,000. We had an excursion booked so we were cleared to get off the ship and meet our guide just outside the terminal building. All visitors were issued one of these before disembarking. Unlike our country, Oman (and many other countries) keeps close tabs on exactly who is coming into their country and for what reason.

this is a must!

list of "no nos"

Port Sultan Qaboos Terminal

Muscat is run by a Sultan, who comes from the longest running royal family in the Middle East. The Sultan of Oman is considered the monarch and has total power and control over all aspects of the country. The Omani Al Said family ruled Oman from 1794 until 1970. Afterwards, Sultan Qaboos Bin ruled until his death in 2020 when Al Said (his cousin and the current Sultan) took over. A Sultan cannot be voted out and holds all power. Whatever he says “goes.”

The Sultan owns 7 palaces, a private jet and the world's third-largest yacht which is almost as large as the Insignia, the ship we're on. There is also a support boat (also massive) that moves along with it carrying supplies.

 

Sultan's yacht

bus window photo

Muscat - a modern port city

white and modern, whizzing by through bus window

nice highways with very little traffic

view from our balcony

Muscat, a very clean, beautiful city sits on the Gulf of Oman. It is surrounded by mountains and desert and has no pollution. Its official language is Arabic, although there are many other languages spoken here as well. All road signs are in Arabic and English. There is a large expat community in Muscat.

 

mosques everywhere

Old Town Muscat in distance

carefully manicured highway medians

 

Everything we saw (with exception of two 16th-century Portuguese forts) has been built since 1970! Up until 1970 there were no hotels in Oman at all. Today there are hundreds of luxury hotels. It is extremely modern with upscale shopping and high prices. The city, being 95% Muslim, has many mosques and the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque can accommodate 20,000 people. There is one Christian church and one Hindu temple, due to the fact that 50% residents are foreigners. However, they are not allowed to share their faith or give a Bible to Muslims.

 

Bait Adam Museum

 

entrance to house/museum

all doors in Muscat are intricately carved

 

Bougainvillea in front of and alongside Bait Adam Museum

 

our host welcoming us into his home

Our tour today took us to the Bait Adam Museum (means “house of Adam”), a private home owned by an obviously wealthy collector. In excellent English, the homeowner and curator talked about Muscat’s history and culture and explained why and how he started his collection of Omanian artifacts. Afterwards, he invited us to walk around and take as many photos as we liked. His collection of swords, guns, armor, jewelry, coins, medals and artifacts was very impressive. He pointed out one sword that was very old that he bought for $150,000. His collections contained a little bit of everything related to war and history. I photographed a few of his framed prints and historical photos that I will include here.  

 

one of many framed prints and paintings

any and everything war related

dozens of crossed khanjars - national symbol of Oman

 

got this close-up for Ronnie to paint

 

After a walk through his museum, we were invited to sit down for a meal. I couldn’t tell you the names of any of the dishes but there was fish, chicken, a couple of rice dishes, vegetables and some unknown/unrecognizable dishes that I didn’t try. After our meal, we were offered several tasty desserts, some mango juice and their version of coffee. The girl who served it (below) told me it was Arabic coffee - a blend of coffee, rosewater, cardamon and saffron. I think one would have to develop a taste for it (it tastes nothing like the coffee we drink).

 

may be the homeowner's daughter?

Arabic coffee

yummy desserts

After lunch, we were driven to one of the Sultan's 7 palaces. We could only walk up to the gate and take photos. Across the street was Muscat's financial ministry office and other related buildings.

 

crossing khanjars are used on flag and gov't symbols

Alam Royal Palace - one of 7 of the Sultan's palaces

Ministry of Finance building

 

immaculately manicured grounds

palace is actually an entire complex

 one of the Ministry of Finance buildings

main entrance above, but complex spreads out on both sides and across the street

As is usual, there was a pit stop to give tourists a chance to purchase souvenirs. Prices in Muscat are ridiculously high compared to other places we're been. Frankincense and spices are among the most sought after items.

 

nice selection of spices

  

household bling

men's tagiyah caps

Matryoshka dolls (Middle Eastern style)

women's shoe bling

 

local frankincense