If you are going for DSF Dubai Shopping Festival & wish to visit Second largest country in Arabia, rich in culture, architectural heritage then come to Sultanate of Oman
Its a neighbour country of UAE (5 hrs drive from Dubai), rich culture, glorious past of 12000 BC & See historical forts & Cities, Beaches, Shopping malls, Rural Bedouin Arab culture.
Indians get a Visa on arrivalat Seeb Int Airport if you buy a flight ticket of Oman Air.
Rial Omani is eq to IRs 117, US$ 2.58 Oman time is GMT+4 hrs & IST -1½ hrs. Weather is pleasant from Nov to Feb.
Strategically located on the crossroads of several trade routes that linked ancient world, it became a centre of power in 17th century ruled extending from Zanzibar (EastAfrica) to Persia & Pakistan.
Now for almost 34 years, Oman's oil has enabled our ruler, HM Sultan Qabus bin Said, 58, to develop, educate the country, provide its people with an average per capita income of around $9,000 a year. Omani Women work in many fields & in council.
Population approx 2.5 million includes about 750,000 expat workers.
Oman's Oil prod'n is approx 963800 bbl per day & Natural gas prod'n is 13.77 billion cu m.
Oman has a boasting 2092 km of coastline, many star hotels are situated on beaches. Indian tourist may skip visiting beaches. Seawater is free from contamination, very clear unlike Mumbai.
Enjoy Scuba Diving, Photography, Filming, Rock-Climbing, Camping, Camel Race, Bull Fights, Sightseeing.
Visit Archaeological sites & Forts Oman has more than 500 forts, castles n towers Permit from Dept of Castles & Forts at Ministry of National Heritage & Culture is Must!Visit to Museum at Qurm & Natural History Museum in Al Khuwair is invaluable to gain an insight into Oman's history.
Oman is endowed with a rich variety of flora n fauna abound, together with panoramic beauty witnessed in its mountain ranges, deserts n sand dunes. Some towns r:
Salalah: Largest city in South, picturesque, green, Arabs tours in Khareef, White sand beaches, coconut grove, banana farms, At beaches of Ras al Hadd- Green sea turtles come ashore after dark, dig deep holes in sand n lay their eggs in certain time of year (similar to Orissa)
Nizwa: Oasis city, historical bldgs, large 17th century fort, immense palm oasis stretches 8kms, bustling souq, exquisite copper/ silver jewellery n craft items, Jabal Akhdar is hill station for locals
Sohar: Coastal city, Imp Islamic port, Large fort, famous Sindabad once stayed here
Sur: Seafaring fishing village, trading port
Khasab: Peaceful estuaries, palm trees, small 16th century Portuguese fort
Buraimi: Oasis town, border with UAE, old fort
Muscat city: Once thriving, strategically located port of ancient Arabian peninsula Capital of modern Oman, medieval appearance with 2 old Portuguese forts- Jelali & Merani, Flanking rocky cover around the city, exotic place, picturesque old buildings co-exist with modern bldgs, Gujrathi business families r staying since past century. In Ruwi there r Hindu temples co exists with Churches! For shopping u must visit City Centre Carrefour-Huge shopping complex, 5 kms from airport, everything is available under one roof. I had never seen a mall like this in Mumbai. Other shopping centres r Al Harthy, Sultan & Lulu Centre etc more Hypermarkets r coming up
Shopping:
Advice: Abstain yourself from unnecessary shopping, avoid impulse buys. If u r from Mumbai, you won?t not find anything new in 1to3 Rial Shops flooded with Chinese items which r freely available in Crawford Market or VT pavement n is cheaper in Mumbai. Dry fruits & spices also cheaper near Jama Masjid n Lohar Chawl.
I recommendto buy items like Film rolls, Video Camera, Digital/SLR Cameras, TVs, DVD/ VCD Players, Compu floppies, Blank CDs(buy 100 min) & other electronic items which are cheap here in Muscat than Mumbai. Buy those if you are using your Rs. 25000/- baggage allowance.
Computers with after sales service are Cheaper in India.
Buy Gold: Cheaper in Muscat than India, Purity is guaranteed.
Indian products exempted from excise duty are cheaper in Muscat than India hence buy Raymonds Suiting, Vimal's Sarees, VIP Bags, Titan watches etc.
Onida/ Vdocon TVs are cheaper: 2/3rd of price than India but Indians prefer buying Japan TVs.
What I liked most in Oman is Qarat ul Milh, was spellbound to see this creation of god, amazing, wonderful ?Mountain of Salt? in desert near Qarn Alam. If you enter those caves you will see a marvellous creation of nature very huge Crystals of salt on ceilings in middle of hot desert, they r transparent, shines like a diamond when sunrays fall on it. In olden days Arabs used to take sacks of salt from these caves to use in their cooking. Must see! God is great!!
In Oman you can get very delicious food at reasonable prices.
I personally prefer Pakistani Eateries to have Mughlai Delicacies, Seek Kebabs, Kadhai Mutton gosht served with crispy tandoori rotis.
For Hygienic Tasty Veg Thali visit PGhasitaram Halwai/ Kamath's/ P Kanji Exch Gate
Other restaurants serve Lebanese, Bangladeshi, SriLankan, European, Arab food. I also like to eat spicy, hot n tasty SriLankan food. There r many western food joints eg McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut, American Burger etc, but I dont go there (Costly! I cant afford).
There are many five star hotels in Muscat where they have Rocksa-Sharkeeya, Lebanese Belly Dance, Filipino Band, Indian Dance, Mujra Dance. Some charge nominal entry fee 1 rial & some don?t charge anything n serve mainly Beer costing RO 1 each.
It was nice to see Commoners expats workers/ labourers come in these joints often to entertain themselves, to relieve homesickness & escape from fatigue of arduous chores of hard work done in extreme weather conditions. Back home in Mumbai, going to Dance bars is considered a luxury n no any labour class worker will dare to enter those posh hotels n dance bars!! However I often advise them not to make it a habit & urge them not to spend morethan 8% of salary in liquor n dance bars.
For most of the year loose fitting cotton clothes are suited to Oman's climate. To comply with Omani traditions I advise not to wear revealing dresses, short pant, lungis in residential or public areas.
Respect Women, Dont stare at girls, dont tease em.
In Ramazan do not eat, drink or smoke in public, respect local customs.
Do not bring any drugs, sedatives to Oman, 2 bottles of liquor (for Non-Muslims) & a Carton of cigarettes officially allowed.
If you can bring International Driving License its nice or you can get Rent-a-car on hire.
Being spent 13 years in Oman I must say that Omani people are helpful, hospitable, kind in nature comparing to Arabs of other nationalities. I am really lucky that god gave me an opportunity to work for so many years in this peaceful, beautiful country with glorious ancient past n which has diverse landscapes including rugged mountains in north, magnificent tracts of desert & a lush green south.
