Last week I was back in Oman and spent some time in Muscat. Hot and humid at this time of year, packed into space amidst foothills of the surrounding mountains, nevertheless, the city has great charm. Continue reading
Tag Archives: oman
Wordless Wednesday….
Argiope sp. found at Ras Madrakah, Oman.
Monday Window: 19/9/16
A slightly “loose” interpretation of window this week, but I’m sure you will agree it was too good to miss.
The only access to Masirah Island, Oman is via ferry and nowadays there is a government service and small local ferries. Continue reading
Weekly Photo Challenge: Edge….
Monday Window: 29/8/16
Weekly Photo Challenge: Frame#1
Thursday Doors: 25/8/16
Come and walk with me around Mirbat, a fishing town on the South Oman, around 70km from Salalah . Last week we entered the old town, this week join me as we head on around the corner.
There are many old towns in Oman but in this one, I felt I was recording for posterity. Towns are abandoned and slowly fall to the ground, the history is gone. Continue reading
Monday Window: 22/8/16
Windows in Mirbat, Southern Oman.
These windows in the walls of the house are unique, so many tales to tell, but we will never know… Continue reading
Weekly Photo Challenge: Rare #2
A white carpet anemone (Stichodactyla sp.), a rare find in the inter-tidal zone at an extremely low tide on a lonely beach near Shannah, Oman. An Indo-Pacific occupant, living on reefs or on the sandy bottom, these anemones can attain a size of two and a half feet in diameter. Potentially harmful to humans ( a potent sting) they act as a host for many types of clownfish.
Thursday Doors: 18/8/16
It’s Thursday again..where did the week go? The” full of good intention” head plan for this week’s doors post ran out of time.
So here’s a little taster and next week I’ll take you around an eclectic collection of Arabian doors and windows from this old city. Continue reading
Thursday Doors: 11/8/16
The ancient settlement of Khor Rori in the Dhofar region of Southern Oman stands above a natural harbour on this wild and dangerous coast. The town in the settlement is known as Sumhuram. This small town was founded as an outpost for the kingdom of Hadramawt around the first century CE. The Dhofar region was the main exporter of Frankincense in ancient times and maritime contacts were discovered during the excavations in the 1900’s to both India and the Mediterranean. Continue reading
Weekly Photo Challenge: Morning #3
Sunrise at sabkha plains in Oman…the morning mist makes for an eerie atmosphere in the half light…..
Weekly Photo Challenge: Morning
Weekly Photo Challenge: Narrow
A narrow alley in Muscat’s Muttrah souk area.
Narrow windows and a narrow balcony with a tantalising glimpse of the end through the narrow arch…
Monday Window: 1/8/16
From the city of Salalah in Southern Oman to the Yemen border, the road twists and turns through a series of hairpin bends, eventually climbing to the top of the escarpment, with towering cliffs plummeting down to the Indian ocean.
During monsoon a pervading mist hangs over the escarpment but every so often, when the road gets to about 1000 metres high, you pop out of the mist into bright, brilliant sunshine with incredible views and on this particular release into sunlight, even a small pink shelter perched on top of the mountain, with rather striking brickwork for the windows.
Such buildings and design are typical in Oman, used as shelters from the sun (sometimes rain, as this area receives a fair amount) with the air bricks allowing for cool air in the heat of the day, although it’s the first pink one I’ve ever seen….
Heading up through the mist….
To find brilliant sunshine above the clouds and a small pink house….
The pink house providing a nice window shot….
Sideways on, air brick windows, all different….
Stunning view through the bricks….
The ubiquitous stunted trees,so typical of this region, precariously growing out of the mountain-side….
and the very long drop down outside the window…..
The finishing touch provided by some little pink flowers, growing through the rock outside the pink house…..
Taking part in Monday Window, a weekly event, pop over and join in the challenge….
Monday Window Home
Thursday Doors 28/7/16
Over the last couple of weeks, I enjoyed a mammoth 4,500km road trip around Oman. Travelling around this vast country, passing through places that are certainly off the tourist route, it was fascinating to see life in the remoter places. Continue reading
Monday Window: 23/7/16
A mix of windows and national dress this week…..
Omani male dress is referred to as Omani and women’s is called Omaniya. Continue reading
July: The edible garden
Back in the desert, it’s not easy to find a subject for this month’s garden challenge. Heat and sand all around, not many edible gardens to find.
But last week, on a trip up Wadi Tiwi in Oman, I found a wadi full of date palms and farmers and I reckoned this might just fit… Continue reading
Thursday Doors: 21/7/16
On the way to Masirah island, Oman to catch the ferry at Shannah port, invariably you pass through the small town of Mahout. Continue reading
Monday Window: 18/7/16
Adjacent to Muscat harbour, Oman, lies the Muttrah Souk, perhaps one of the oldest marketplaces in the Arab world. Continue reading
Skywatch Friday: 15/7/16
On the coast road to Hasik in South Oman, the Khareef (monsoon) cloud over the escarpment starts to dissipate and blue skies are once more visible….
Linking with Skywatch Friday
Thursday Doors: 14/7/16
Back on Masirah island, Oman for a few days during the summer monsoon season. Re-visiting the usual haunts, time for a trip to the small settlement of Sur Masirah, a magnet for wave junkies. Continue reading
Monday Window: 11/7/16
Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh and Wise Men feature in our earlier bible study memories……. this week I found Frankincense, sadly no Gold or any really Wise Men, but I suspect some Myrrh is around the region. Continue reading
Skywatch Friday: 8/7/16….
The Khareef or Monsoon season in Southern Oman transforms the countryside into a land of mist and rain. The heavy cloud that hangs over the Dhofar escarpment is pervasive and constant for the months of Khareef. As the route from Salalah to the Yemen border reaches 1000 metres, the sun has a chance to break through the cloud.
A setting sun over the mountains of Dhofar….
Linking with Skywatch Friday, pop on over to check out the sky……
Saturday special…. 2/7/16
Driving through the vast wilderness of Oman during the night, capturing an oil or gas well in the distance…a welcome beam of light on the remote gravel plains…
Thursday Doors: 23/6/16
Driving up the coast of Oman from Shannah to Sur in the aftermath of a major storm early May, the small towns along the coastal road are weatherbeaten, fishing towns.
Many hundreds of miles from main centres, (Muscat is an 8-hour drive from here) the pace of life is slow and traditional.
Traditionally doors in Oman are of the metal type, with simple embellishments, check out the heart door, but occasionally you get a bit of variety….
I spend a lot of time being a car photographer on these long journeys, especially in these lands, but occasionally I get spotted!
Plenty of gazebo’s scattered along the coastline, for shade, no doors though!
The weather isn’t kind to wooden doors in this region….
Green shutters to lock up the shop seem to be the standard design….
Typical small town shops in the remoter parts of coastal Oman…suspect there is a door shop close churning out the standard design!
I loved these odd little doors and surround, glad I caught it before the elements do….
Great wooden doors in that archway….
More green doors, the place to hang out… and yes, I was spotted!
A long-abandoned villa, left to the elements, but check out the over-door design…an influence from where? …..
Well, I just loved these ones, talk about wearing your heart on your gate ( door) !!!
Yup, spotted, but they were pretty cheerful over the long lens out of the car window!
Linking with Thursday Doors and the Discover challenge The Story Behind a Door
One Word Photo Challenge: Camel
Trawling through my Reader, I came across One Word Photo Challenge hosted by Jennifer Nichole Wells .
Intrigued I went off to look and well… given my location and the theme for this week being “Camel” and the fact that I take rather a lot of camel photos, I just had to join in….
Chewing the cud down in Dhofar, S.Oman…
Not quite sure what to make of the “man”….
Look at those lashes….
Going for a ride….
In Oman there is alway’s a camel in a truck to be seen…this time Mother & baby….
Preparing the camels for racing at Lisali camel track, Dubai….
At the start line, the race robots strapped on….
and they are off…..
https://jennifernicholewells.com/2016/05/31/one-word-photo-challenge-camel/
Driving from Dubai to Salalah, a very long journey…
I just had to visit Salalah.
Located at the southern end of Oman, I had heard tales of the Khareef season, the rain, greenery, and mists, contrasting with the hot, endless summer in the rest of Arabia. Continue reading
A to Z challenge: W is for Window panes and Watering pots…
It’s ok readers, I haven’t totally lost the plot. The seashore can throw up some unusual treasures and both of these are just those, colloquial names for sea-shells, which are both treasures in their own right. Continue reading
A to Z challenge: V is for Volvarina and Volva…
Volvarina is a genus of small to very small sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs in the family Marginellidae, the margin shells.(Wiki) Continue reading
Travels in the Middle East and beyond 