Jebel Shams plus goodbye Oman

I apologize in advance for the long post. I know its long but I just wanted to sum up the end of my trip to Oman in one more post. I am very glad I made the time to visit.

Nizwa

We start the morning with breakfast then a morning walk around the town of Nizwa. We learn the history of the town and we admire the architecture which is a mix of old abandoned buildings, some made of mud and such, and the nicely restored historic buildings.

We head to the souq and are given a tour of the different parts of the souq. We have free time to shop afterwards. I only buy a couple things but I do taste many different types of dates at the date souq. I eye the tahini making machine and a gentleman working the shop gives me a warm sample of the freshly made tahini. Being so very good I am tempted to buy a jar to take with me but I still have a couple weeks left for my travels so it is not a practical idea. I go into an air conditioned building with the upstairs “antique market”. I am disappointed because there are no antiques here, just junk I can get in the USA or other countries. I do enjoy a pistachio coffee from the shop upstairs though.

I ate camel

We stop at the home of a bee farmer where we are fed a nice home cooked meal. We actually get to try camel today. It is quite good, especially how it is seasoned with a beef like flavor. It’s funny how I will no longer ride animals like camels but I am still eating them. I keep saying one day I will break down and become a vegetarian – but today is not that day. We are also taught how to eat like an Omani – on the floor, with our right hand.

We are then served coffee, thyme tea with honey, more dates and fruit. I am very full after this meal. I try a date covered in tahini and sesame.

We head to town to visit his honey shop but only after having a nice nice nature walk.

Jebel Shams

We make our way to Jebel Shams where we are staying the night. This area is known for its Grand Canyon. Impressive on its own, it isn’t as big as the Grand Canyon in the USA, but still very nice to look at. We head from there to watch the sunset over some mountains. It is noticeably cooler here. In the evening a jacket is needed. I even stole the comforter to use off the other bed in my room to stay warm in the evening.

After dinner most of us call it an early night.

The next morning we meet for a hike along the side of the canyon. We only go a small portion of the 7 km trail but it is nice and we see great views.

We then take a very rocky road down into a valley that tests the limits of our 4×4 automobiles. Amazing views appear around every corner. We eventually get to the bottom and visit another small town. We take a short walk around. This area is called Wadi Bani Awf.

We have bought another picnic lunch and head outside a nearby snake gorge to eat. We have a few minutes to explore the path before we leave. We don’t have too much time so we don’t go very far ahead. I have of course seen things like this before but it doesn’t make these canyons less fascinating to me. I wish we had more time here.

We head back to muscat where many of us say goodbye. Some of us have one last dinner. I make my final goodbyes and go back to prepare for my 2:00 AM pickup for the airport. I am off to another country. My last before returning to the USA soon.

I couldn’t resist a Zatar croissant at the airport

Nizwa, Oman

Today we are stopping along the way but our final destination is Nizwa, the former capital of Oman.

We check out of our desert camp and take a rough ride to visit a bedioun family. I know the rough ride is to make things more exciting but the jeep (no 3) I am riding in today almost gets stuck in the sand at one point. No fear though since our driver is an experienced driver. He backs up and attempts the challenging part with more power & speed and is successful in getting us over the hump.

We stop to visit a Bedouin family and learn about how life is in the desert while enjoying Omani coffee and dates. They live in the desert most of the year and enjoy the life only leaving in the very hot months of the summer to live in the towns. Kids in the desert attend schools at the local town and are driven by a Jeep for a partial day of lessons. It seems like a hard and hot life but I admit being under the thatched covering is much cooler than being exposed outside in the desert sun.

We watch a desert beetle make its tracks in the sand.

We stop to inflate our tires for regular roads again. Shortly after we pick up a picnic lunch at a nearby supermarket to share together in a shaded park. The lunch is all the great things about middle eastern food: hummus, babbaganoush, fresh watermelon, fresh salads, and feta cheese. The picnic saves us the hassle of finding a lunch restaurant along the way and couldn’t have been a better choice. I finally find the cardamom cookies I have been craving since my visit to Jordan. I buy a bunch to share with the group.

I found cardamom cookies and bought them to share

Falaj System

We stop at Birkat Ul Mauz to check out its falaj system (irrigation system) that brings the water from the mountains to the city. We learn how it all works to keep the locals hydrated and crops watered.

We drive by a couple of sand tornados or what we call in the USA dust devil. They randomly appear along side of the highway. I didn’t really get one on film but they are interesting to watch.

Jabrin Castle

We visit Jabrin Castle, the castle built in the 1600’s by Imam Bil-Arab Bin Sultan. An Imam back then is not someone who calls prayers, it is what was the equivalent of the modern day sultan. We have a private tour where we learn how each room is used. We also learn about security tricks like holes where men stay hidden for protection or how hot date syrup came to be because it was first created to pour on invaders through metal grates.

I finished my sightseeing of the castle quickly and decided it is a good time for a bathroom break. As soon as I walk in the bathroom I feel a sharp pain on my left hand. An angry wasp has stung me upon entering the bathroom. My hand stings for a while. I borrow a companions antihistamine cream and hope for it to heal without any more intervention (it takes many days before my hand is back to normal).

Antihistamine cream is newly added to my packing list now

We arrive in the old town of Nizwa and check into a heritage hotel. The town of Nizwa is under transition: many of the old buildings are in bad condition while many are being restored into nice houses and heritage hotels for tourists like the one I am staying at. I skip all the evening activities since I am too tired and we plan to visit the town tomorrow. I enjoy my rooftop dinner at the nearby restaurant and go to bed. There is a nice display of the moon in the distance from the rooftop. We also get a nice view of the town.

Our Dinner is cooked underground

Our second night of Wadi Rum the younger tour also joined us at our campsite (their tour only does one night at Wadi Rum).

That night we were introduced to the traditional Jordanian Bedouin style cooking called Zarb.

The food is cooked under ground, covered by dirt.

Under the mound a metal tin covers the food to protect

The meat isn’t as flavorful as I would like but it is good enough to satisfy and to make me feel a part of the Bedouin life for at least one night.

Traditional Bedouin Jordanian style of cooking video.

Wadi Rum Day 2

Breakfast is at 7:30 AM and we leave at 8:30 AM for our 14km walk.

Hopefully it doesn’t prove to be too warm today. The schedule today is a half day walk with optional afternoon activities.

Most of the walk is not too bad. It is sunny but a nice breeze helps us along while we occasionally hike through the deep red sand. We walk by spectacular rock formations carved by the wind for a long time. Wadi Rum used to be covered by ocean during pangea but now it is all desert.

Our tour guide accompanies us with a Jeep to hold our bags and water which proves to be an excellent idea since it is much better to walk in the desert with a lighter load. The Jeep moves forward 1k or so ahead at a time to give us a chance for a water break if we desire.

We stop and climb rocks a time or two for some great photo opportunities.

Also we stop for tea time, not being a tea drinker I am loving the herbal tea, but also we rest on a mat and the tour guide attempts to teach us a local dance. As I am getting up a tour mate sees a large white spider hanging on my pants behind my knee. I start freaking out and shake my leg. I do not see where it falls so I dont trust It is gone. I go around the corner to lower my pants to make sure no spiders have climbed up. None can be seen so I guess I am in the clear.

The rest of the hike is mostly very nice. We see animal prints and try to guess what made them, find holes in the ground, see white desert flowers, and even a goat leg randomly on rock (don’t want to know how it got there).

Everything is great until we hit the last 1.5km. It gets pretty hot, I am tired and it is uphill in loose red sand that I later rename to devil sand. I stop a few times back to camp but I eventually make it.

It is time for lunch which includes some very tasty meatballs in a curry yougurt sauce. They are amazing over rice.

I try relaxing in my tent but it is too hot. I decide it is a good time to shower and head into the dining area to relax since there is a nice cross breeze.

I read a little and chat with my tour mates. It is a nice and relaxing afternoon.

Wadi Rum

It is a 5 hour drive to wadi rum from Amman. We stop for drinks and food for the journey. I pick up a couple of the cheese and meat breads and some snacks.

As we leave town the landscape turns more dessert like.

First we stop to gain admission to the site, since it is a protected area.

We gather our things and move to jeeps that will take us around in the sand.

First stop is at a natural spring and place to get tea. I skip the climb to the spring due to the heat. The temperatures are not as hot as Egypt but I am still weary of getting overheated. The tea is good, it is a black tea with sage and other spices as well as sugar. The tour guide talks me into getting a scarf which is common in the region. He helps me tie to my head. We see camels and goats.

My guide and I wearing Jordanian scarves

When everyone gets down from the hill we go to our next location. It is a hike up a sandy mountain to a lookout point.

The guide advises us no shoes for part one and shoes on for part two of hike up.

I take off my shoes and have a very calf intensive hike up in deep sand. I cannot say that part is fun but it is a relief when it was time to put shoes on for the rocky part. At that point there is a light climb (but it could have been higher and more challenging if I wanted) to some beautiful views of the region. I took copious photos then started to head down.

When I arrive at the sandy area once more I start to sort of jog down. It is quite fun. I am in the shade and the sand softened each step. I can’t run anymore because of my bad feet but this is the closest I have had to it in a while. Plus it was a heck more fun than going up.

The third stop is a natural bridge. I loved Arches National Park in Utah so I would normally say I am not as impressed but at this arch you are allowed to stand on top. I don’t remember being able to do this in Utah.

We snapped our photos and went on to our camp site.

I paid for the single supplement so I have my own tent.

We throw our stuff in our tents and head off to watch the sunset which is beautiful.

Dinner is lamb, cucumber salad, rice, vegetables. Very good.

After dinner it is time for campfire. Dining area lights are turned off and we lie down and look at the sky. It is amazing. So many stars. I never get to see the sky this way because of all the city lights.

Early to bed for long morning hike tomorrow.

But I hear wild cats off in the distance maybe?

What is that sound?