Trip report Dubai & Oman

[amboseli]

Late November until mid December my husband and I spent almost 3 weeks in the Middle East: 3 + 2 days in Dubai, 14 days in Oman. I had been dreaming for a long time (ever since I first saw the desert in Egypt) to spend a night in a desert camp under the stars. So we did, but first things first.

We flew Amsterdam-Dubai on Emirates, in their A380 double-decker. Even their cattle class is good. Comfortable seats, good food with choice of the main course, free wine, an on-demand entertainment system with over 2000 channels, as well as free WiFi for a few hundred MB. A good start!

After an uneventful 6 hour flight we landed in Dubai half past midnight but the city was still very much alive. Throughout the next days we learned that Dubai is alive 24/7. If you want a fine dinner at 2 am … no problem! I’ve never been to Las Vegas, but from what I’ve read about it Dubai is very much the same. Big, bigger, biggest, … tall, taller, tallest, … glitter & glamour all over the place.



Dubai is as artificial as can be. I suppose everyone has heard about their mega-projects like ‘Palm Jumeirah’, a man-made off-shore island designed in the shape of a palm tree and ‘World Islands’ (still unfinished). We didn’t visit The Palm but had a nice view on it from our table during lunch at The Observatory, which is on the 52nd floor. Pretty impressive!



Only a small part of Dubai is still more or less authentic with souks and Asian restaurants. It is here that the workmen live when they are not working. Dubai is a melting pot of nationalities. Emiratis don’t work, at least not in a 'service' position. Hotel and restaurant staff, shop assistants, construction workers … all have a foreign nationality. Lots of Pakistani, Indian, Sri Lankan, …



Of course we had to visit Burj Khalifa, with its 828 metres the tallest building in de world. In exactly one minute the elevator whizzed us to the 124th floor from where we had this magnificent 360° view on the city below us.



Dubai was hectic, especially traffic. And it was still hot late November, around 35°C during the day, a balmy 25° at night, which made for some great evenings in the restaurants offering an outdoor dining terrace “for the cooler winter evenings” on the boardwalk on JBR (Jumeirah Beach Residence).



One can’t see much in only three days so we’ll have to return. We liked the place, the luxury that comes with it, and Dubai is a perfect hub for a long haul trip to southeast Asia or even Australia.

An overview picture:


~ to be continued ~

[amboseli]

From Dubai a taxi drove us through the other Emirates to Khasab, on the peninsula of Musandam which is in the utmost North of Oman. The contrast between Dubai and Khasab couldn’t have been bigger! One hotel at the sea surrounded by high peaks, silence and fresh air.



There isn’t much to do in Khasab other than a dhow cruise in the Omani fjords (spotting dolphins!) and a drive in the mountains. We just took the dhow cruise for a good half day, which was very pleasant and relaxing. We would see a lot of mountains during the next part of our trip ...



Two days later Oman Air flew us from Khasab to Muscat, the capital city of Oman, in a small propeller plane from which I had a great view on the Hajar Mountains below us. Spectacular!



We checked in in the lovely Shangri-La Barr Al Jissah hotel – the best hotel of the whole trip – and spent a day at the pool where we were pampered with a lot of little extra’s: a coolbox with bottles of water, chunks of fresh fruit throughout the day, ... Service with a capital S.



We visited Muttrah (centre) and the souk but here again, we weren’t very impressed with the souk. It doesn’t have the same atmosphere than the souks in Luxor, Aswan or Aqaba, although they say that Muttrah souk is the oldest market in the Arabic world.



One can’t go to Muscat without visiting Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. It was overwhelming! The mosque can hold 27.500 people at the time, it is built with the best materials: marble from Carrara, chandeliers in Swarovski crystal, glass windows in Venetian glass, handwoven carpets from Iran, etc. It is the only mosque that can be visited by non-Islamics.



The next day was the start of our Big Adventure. We picked up our Toyota Land Cruiser and we had booked a guide for our first off-road drive in the mountains. Yaqoob was the perfect guide. He learned us how to drive safely on the very narrow and steep gravel roads, he told us a lot about the history and the culture of his country, about his own life and his family with 10 children. Omani people are open and very, very friendly and helpful.



The drive through Wadi Bani Awf, one of the most beautiful wadis in Oman, was spectacular. The wadi, bordered by palm trees, runs through a deep valley with rocky mountains on all sides. The entire route (40 km) is off road. Sometimes the road was so narrow that our car almost hit the mountainside on one side and hung off the ravine on the other side.



We passed various oases, gardens of date-palms, deserted mountain villages and anywhere we drove there was this magnificent view. We had seen it from the propeller plane, now we saw it from another angle. Idyllic, impressive, frightening!



As of the next day it was our turn to take over the wheel. We did some really great mountain drives, up to Jebel Shams for instance, which is called the Grand Canyon of Oman. When I sat on the edge of the canyon, I could see 1000 metres in the deep. Goose bumps!



And some other beautiful wadis. There are so many of them, most are pretty challenging drives … adrenaline!



In Nizwa, one of the oldest cities of Oman, we visited the weekly Friday animal market which was nice to experience. It’s very traditional and not at all touristy (although there were a few tourists). The market is mainly a male thing and the few women you see here mostly wear the traditional mask (with a kind of beak in the middle).



~ more to come ~

[Deleted]

Totally fascinating, Amboseli. I had to go to Dubai on business just once but it was so long ago that there were maybe two high rise buildings at the time, topping out at perhaps 30 floors. I may find the pictures some day. The most fascinating thing back then was that the USSR had just collapsed (along with the ruble -- just like now!) and the U.A.E. was one of the only places to which Russians could go without a visa and using a one way ticket. So Dubai was full of very poor Russians doing whatever work they could find, and on the port there was the "Russian market" of old grandmothers selling cheap plastic things for a dirham or two. I'm sure they never imagined finishing their lives in such a situation.

Can't wait for more photos of Oman, because it looks a lot more interesting!

[amboseli]

Thank you kerouac.

Last installment!

Oman, of course, is also known for its forts. Impressive structures of the 17th century, to keep the enemy away. Some of them are UNESCO World Heritage.



And then there was the desert, Wahiba Sands. My husband did a great job driving through the loose sand for 30 kms to the camp where we would spend the night in a cabin (king bed, open air bathroom). Camels were waiting for us to go up a high dune to watch the sunset. Magical!



There were a thousand stars but they had to share the firmament with the full moon.



For the next day we had booked a Bedouin guide for a desert crossing. 140 kms across the desert, sometimes on tracks (at 80 km/hr), but often simply through the high dunes, vertically upwards and downwards. Adrenaline moments! It was so beautiful and we were glad we had this guide so we could enjoy the views to the fullest. We could never have done this drive ourselves, anyway.



In the afternoon we said goodbye to our guide and drove along the coastal road to Sur, and later on to Ras Al Jinz. The Ras Al Jinz beach is world renown for the nesting process of the endangered green sea turtle. Although it was out of season, we were lucky to see three big turtles. Two were making their nests, one was laying eggs (between 80 and 100 at the time!). Ras Al Jinz is very remote.



The next day we visited Sur, Wadi Tiwi and Bimah Sinkhole where we spent quite some time ... tired of all the driving.



Back to Muscat for lunch at The Chedi, and for the last leg of our trip in Oman: flight to Salalah in the province of Dhofar in the deep south.
Amazing! It was like being in the Caribbean: waving palm trees, soft white sand, deep blue ocean, … and no oppressive heat … sigh!



We visited the excavations of Khor Rori, where long ago the Queen of Sheba used to have her palace, so they say.



Funny sight in the province of Dhofar. Camels are everywhere, even on the highway. So you better watch out.



After three days of mainly relaxing at the beach and the pool of Crowne Plaza Resort (excellent hotel) we took a flight back to Dubai for an overnighter, then to Amsterdam the next day.

Two weeks in Oman was definitely too short to see and do what we wanted to but we had to stick to our roadbook. We focused on nature, and we loved every trip we made.

Overview picture Oman

[htmb]

Fabulous pictures, Amboseli!
I wonder if many cars collide with camels during the nighttime. What a disaster!

[amboseli]

Thanks htmb.

[mossie]

Very fascinating trip to a very different world, thanks for sharing.

I have to say the Muddle East has changed radically in the 60 years since I left, and I never went down the Gulf, the nearest I got was southern Iraq.

You mention Salalah, it used to be a little staging post round the south of Saudi where we had an airfield which was manned by an officer and about 8 men, just to refuel the odd transport. One of our young pilots had his 2½ year tour extended by 6 months as a punishment for several hilarious misdeeds he had committed during his time with us. This 6 months he had to spend in charge of Salalah living in a tent sharing with the men.

[amboseli]

Yes, it must have been a totally different world in those days.
Salalah is a seaside town with luxury hotels these days, with wide avenues lined with flowers and palm trees. Also lots of tropical fruits plantations. It's really nice and clean.

[onlyMark]

I was looking forward to this and it does seem just the place for me to go to. I can get cheap flights at the moment from Jordan but I think I'll be leaving before I have the chance to take advantage of them.
The desert is just the place for me, with a bit of time at the beach as well. Superb, thanks.

[questa]

Oh...the beautiful deserts and ruins, Thank you so much, amboseli. Many desert photos turn out looking flat and 2 dimensional unless you include a reference point about halfway to the horizon. You pics have a depth to them so they become alive. The old forts are often in demand as movie settings.
The moonlit camel is fantastic and will serve time on my desktop soon.
The bazaars and portraits, the boats and night cityscape all make for a varied report which I will revisit often

[amboseli]

Mark, we will certainly go back to Salalah. It's a perfect winter-sun destination.
From there we would like to see Rub el Kjal, also known as the Empty Quarter, one of the biggest sand deserts in the world.

[bixaorellana]

Killer photos, Amboseli and fascinating information. I'm on vacation & the bad wifi here is keeping me from seeing all the pictures, but I'll definitely get back to this as soon as I'm home. Wonderful thread!

[tod2]

Superb Amboseli! So many South Africans are flying to world destinations via Dubai because of the cheaper flights. Nearly all do the desert drive and Bedouin tent feast, a big of dune buggying and a quick look around those magnificent buildings. Your photos show us there is so much more to the middle east if you linger a while!
Thanks for showing us your trip. I'd like to know if you managed the whole thing or a travel agent?

[amboseli]

We consulted a travel agent, specialized in Oman, with whom we composed a roadbook. I made the draft and he finetuned, especially in terms of distance. On days with a lot of offroad driving we couldn't travel long distances (which we had underestimated).
It was a pretty loaded program and we haven't even been able to see everything that was in our roadbook. If we would do it again, we would give ourselves more days on the road to see the typical villages, to visit more interestings forts, etc.

[tod2]

Thanks for your answer. It is always nice to know how other AnyPorters plan their trips. At least you already have a blue print for the next time!

[questa]

Tod2, whenever I go on a guided tour, I always allow 2-3 days in the starting city and the finishing city so I can just walk around looking at the places not included in the tour. Maybe take a bus or tuk-tuk etc.to out of the city to places I have read about. It also gives me time to learn the money and a few words of the language

[Deleted]

Amboseli, did you eat much Middle Eastern cuisine during your holiday?

[amboseli]

No, not really, kerouac. Most of the little restaurants offer a mixture of Indian/Lebanese/Pakistani/Arabian cuisine.
We usually ate at hotels where we had a wide choice of European / Indian / Chinese ... food.

[Kris]

WOW is an understatement. That was a great travel you had. Looking forward to have mine, one of this days. Speaking of food, (to Kerouac2)I have this favorite Lebanese Resto in Dubai, Zahr El-Laymoun. From dining experience to the food itself are all incredibly amazing. Hope to go back soon

[nycgirl]

Looks like an amazing and adventurous trip. Love the photos, especially the one of the camel on the highway. That gave me a chuckle.

[patricklondon]

Dec 18, 2014 22:46:40 GMT amboseli said:

Yes, it must have been a totally different world in those days.

Indeed, in those days, Salalah was the kind of place where British diplomats could amuse themselves by composing dispatches like this.

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