I had gone into a slumber where I could not afford to think of anything else but my work. Finally, it was a relief to see the finishing line and what I needed was a much-deserved break from everything. The idea for this vacation stemmed from that need and in my partner’s head. He told me we should go to Oman. And to be honest that was the last place I could have thought of as a holiday destination. But he convinced me that I was going to love it.
Then, I also thought about what visiting Oman could personally mean to me. The Malayalam translation of Arabian Nights was my first fantasy book portraying a whole new world. I read it for the first time when I was ten years old. Reading it was just like (for the lack of a better simile) the lyrics of the song ‘A whole new world …’ from Aladdin. It did take me on a magic carpet ride and whisked me away to a fantastic realm full of djinns, bedouins, deserts, souqs, sultans with harems, fancy palaces, and whatnot. I was filled with such wonder. The thought of me reading Arabian Nights for the first time was reason enough to kindle my excitement and off we went to the Gulf (as Malayalees would say).
Our plane descended to a majestic view of Al-Hajar mountains and the Gulf of Oman. From the airport, we hired a car and headed straight to the Wahiba sands. Oman has some of the best roads and it is an absolute delight to glide through them where the speed limit is often 120 kmph. The route we took had roads flanked on either side by mighty hills and some of them looked like crouching tigers and lions frozen in time.
One thing about Oman that struck me (which I have also heard from others regarding the Gulf countries) is that you never feel away from home- home being Kerala. Echoes of Malayalam wells up from every nook and corner. Another thing that I loved was that you can always get a cup of chai unlike in the West. Omani kadak tea itself is an adaptation of the Indian chai. Being a self-confessed tea-addict, tea is something I always pack for my trips. I cannot live without my morning and evening tea, and for me, coffee can only be an emergency substitute. I never had to open my tea stash in Oman.
Night had already fallen and there was a nip in the air when we reached Al-Reem desert camp where we had planned our glamping. Not just our bedouin tent but the whole camp was so beautiful.
We woke up to a gorgeous sunrise. As the sun rose, the dunes took their turns to blush gold. After breakfast, we drove from the camp to Wadi-Bani-Khalid. The plan was to go to the wadi and return in the evening in time for our scheduled desert bashing.
On the way to the wadi, we began to see yet another facet of Oman. Orchards of lush green date palms where Indian rollers and green bee-eaters fluttered started emerging on both sides of the road. The wadi itself was so cool and green and the lapping waters lured both locals and tourists alike. We spent a couple of hours in the wadi and then drove back to the camp. We were just in time for our desert bashing adventure.
Our delightful chauffeur was an Omani named Ahmad. It was an amazing coincidence that the one who took us to the bedouin sands shared the name of the Djinni from one of my most favourite books, The Golem and the Djinni. Dune bashing was a real adrenaline rusher. The thrill and excitement you feel when you race across a desert mountain is unforgettable.
We came to a halt on a sea of amber and gold all set for the sun to set on the horizon. The dusty sand rose up to the whooshing wind like little snakes dancing. The whole sight was so eerily beautiful and felt like some invisible djinn was conjuring up sand spirits with his raspy spells and chants. We watched the sun set, and quietly took in the slowly enveloping dark and chill, huddled across a campfire while the chauffeurs went to perform their maghrib. We returned to the camp in time for dinner.
The next morning we drove through Sur making several pit stops to enjoy the views of the seaside city. While the drive through the coastal road was as good as it got, the fact that Sur is allegedly the home of Sindbad, the sailor, was cherry on top. We reached Muscat in the evening.
In Muscat, we got to explore the fish souq near the harbour and some really good food joints. But Old Turkish just topped my list with their shawarma and delicious mint tea. We also went to the Muttrah souq but I did not find it to be any different from the shopping streets in India. In other words, I did not get the souq-like experience from the stories I had read. To get over my disappointment, we went to Nizwa the next day. Nizwa souq welcomed us with the fragrant aromas of spices mixed with incense which permeated everywhere. The Omani shopkeepers offered us Omani tea, coffee, and slices of Omani halwa. It was a menagerie of various trinkets, incense holders, ornamental chests and carpets (to name only a few). There were different souqs for vegetables and fish as well, which we did not really explore. We left the souq following the call for the evening prayer and Oman at night. It was indeed a thrilling chase and a wondrous space for both of us.
