Majestic Muscat

> > by Rhonda Bannister

The sun is just peeking over the horizon as the day’s first call to prayer issues forth from the local mosque, the beautiful notes filling the air with an almost mystical sound that we’ve grown accustomed to over the years spent travelling to Arabian Gulf countries.

As alarms go, this sound beats a crowing rooster or electronic radio buzz hands down and I happily throw off the covers and open the blinds to greet a brand new day.

It’s our first full day in the Sultanate of Oman, having arrived from Abu Dhabi the previous afternoon for a two night stay, so I’m glad we’ve been woken early as we have a tour of the city’s highlights organised first up.

Oman is a relatively new destination for Australians, but its popularity is growing commensurate with its reputation as a safe, hospitable and welcoming holiday spot. It was actually a story about Oman in this magazine last year that piqued our interest so we extended our holiday in Dubai/Abu Dhabi to include a short visit to its capital Muscat, staying at the lovely Chedi hotel.

When a doorman wearing a traditional dishdasha with khanjar daggers tucked into his belt opens your car door you get the feeling you might have arrived somewhere special, and as soon as you step into the huge reception sitting area with its curvy Arabian profile, lavish swathes of fabric draped across the ceiling and plump cushions scattered around the seating areas, all doubt is removed.

This hotel is special - in fact this is real Lawrence of Arabia type romance spelt with a capital R!

On the way to our suite we discover that the hotel is an oasis of calm and a picture of serenity.

A series of sparkling white domed buildings framed by dozens of date palms, connected by hedged walkways and intersected by soothing water gardens, bubbling fountains and small courtyards are scattered around acres of manicured lawns that extend to the turquoise waters of the Gulf of Oman.

In a courtyard restaurant, local Omanis sit smoking sheesha and drinking coffee and by the main swimming pool, sun-starved Brits turn their lounges to follow the winter sun as it travels across the brilliant blue sky, or sip glasses of wine at the poolside cafe. It’s so quiet, but then I realise that’s because there’s only a couple of small children here, and very well behaved children they are!

With two pools, one built right next to the beach and for adults only, a spa with seven treatment rooms, a library where evening drinks and breakfast can be enjoyed by guests staying in a suite and myriad restaurants serving an exotic mix of cuisines, our total relaxation was assured.

But today was for sightseeing so we joined our local guide Mahmoud and headed off to the old town of Muscat and neighbouring Muttrah, the historical and cultural heart centred on the old port area. It was from here, he informed us, that commercial caravans left to take trading goods into the interior and ancient Omani sailors (including Sinbad according to local legend and Mahmoud) ventured out in their dhows to trade in exotic spices, gold, silver and precious metals, making Muscat one of the major trading centres of the ancient world.

Our first call is the fish market and a fascinating albeit smelly look into a tradition that’s been going on for centuries as this is where the local fishermen have always brought the day’s catch to be sold. A five minute walk along the corniche took us to the Muttrah souk (known locally as Al Dhalam souk) which is a popular attraction, especially with visitors arriving on the large cruise ships which are now plying the Gulf waters.

With stalls selling everything from ‘antique’ silver jewellery and khanjar daggers (a lot of which is made in China!) to the ubiquitous ‘genuine’ pashmina shawls, it’s well worth spending an hour or two wandering through the labyrinth of alleyways, trying your hand at the ancient Arabic art of haggling. Again, the souk has been here for hundreds of years and is the locals’ version of a super-mall!

Walking along the waterfront corniche is like walking through an Arabian postcard, so pretty is the view of sparkling white-washed buildings, onion shaped domes and steepled minarets all wrapped in the embrace of the precipitous slopes and soaring peaks of the rugged Al Hajar Mountains which dominate this magical scene.

The Sur Al Lawatiya district surrounding the Al Jaml Mosque and accessed by one of the main gates through the old city wall offers an authentic view of old Oman with its narrow lanes of tightly packed traditional houses, pointed arches and colourful carved lattices.

At the eastern end of the harbour stands the 16th century Muttrah Fort which was built by the Portuguese but looks like it sprouted out of the mountain! Around the bend, His Majesty the Sultan has built his palace which is flanked on both sides by twin forts, Al Mirani and Al Jalali, again built by the Portuguese but this time there’s a romantic story attached to one.

Legend has it that the Portuguese commander of Al Mirani Fort fell in love with a Hindu lass whose father supplied the army with provisions but who didn’t approve of the marriage so while pretending to organise the wedding, he secretly plotted the commander’s downfall by convincing him they needed to completely overhaul the fort’s stocks and throw out the old food and gunpowder. Being so much in love the commander foolishly agreed but before the goods were replaced, the father told the ruling Sultan that the fort was defenceless enabling him to take the fort and oust the Portuguese.

I don’t know if it’s fact or fable, but I read it in the Lonely Planet Guide to Oman and thought I would throw it in as a bit of fanciful intrigue!

Next we visited the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque where I had to cover my head and hair completely with a pashmina I purchased for the occasion and I also had to wear my husband’s socks as my pants only came to my shin and the rule is “a woman must cover herself from head to toe”.

With the heavy black scarf, dark sunglasses and long, thick socks tucked into my sandals with the heel part sitting on the back of my ankles like huge carbunkles I looked and felt ridiculous but no-one was looking at me, they were too interested in the Mosque and especially the prayer room which was pretty awesome with its 14-metre long Swarovski crystal chandelier and 70 x 60-metre Persian carpet, the second largest single-piece carpet in the world.

His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said is the man who commissioned and paid for the building of the Mosque and who, when he came to power in 1970, changed the future of his countrymen. The poor, warring, disadvantaged and illiterate tribes he inherited are now part of a unified, thriving and
educated nation.

In 1970 there was one hospital, three schools and a decrepit road system. Now highways connect the villages and cities of Oman and children receive an education from primary to university if they want to go that far plus there’s a modern health system in place. The city is clean with no squalor, no beggars and very little crime and he accomplished all this in under forty years.

From everything I’ve heard, seen or read about Sultan Qaboos I would say that he is an amazing man, a visionary and a leader who has the love and respect of all his countrymen.

Our visit to Muscat finished where it began, lapping up the luxury at the Chedi with a day by the pool, a couples spa treatment and a romantic dinner at the Beach Restaurant before a late night flight back to Abu Dhabi.

We certainly didn’t have enough time to do Oman justice but as a toes in the water trip it was enough to whet our appetite to go back and explore this fascinating country from top to bottom.

We’re planning to visit places like the Musandam Peninsula, one of Arabia’s least accessible areas where you can cruise through fjord like cliffs that rise over 2,000 metres from the sea; the old capital of Nizwa with its historical buildings and forts and the beautiful beaches and tropical greenery of Salalah ... but then again, a week at the Chedi sounds pretty good too!