Special Visit

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness"

- Mark Twain (stolen from Sayaka's blog) - http://www.travbuddy.com/travel-blogs/69478/Old-Muscat-4


Over the course of the past few years Joel's brother Chris has tried to schedule a time to visit but to no avail. We were always hopeful that this would happen but realized the difficulty in getting away from work and family. But when Joel's nephews put on the charm and convinced their Grandparents to watch them for a week both Chris and Sayaka could make the trip over. We couldn't have been happier to have them both with us.

Their visit was short and their energy was high, so we did our best to cram in as much as possible. After a 3am arrival they whisked themselves around Muscat dodging the erratic drivers and taking in the sights of our city. I believe they spent the first 45 minutes whizzing around the same roundabout Homer Simpson style. Off to a good start. We concluded the night at the market and enjoying an Arabian dinner under the stars.

The next day we took a day trip out to the forts and souks of the interior. Driving through mud bricked oasis towns while weaving through herds of goats we quickly caught up on lost time . We should have had these two folks with us here long ago as we saw camels in the most obscure locations. We climbed up and over the mountains and drove home via the beautiful Wadi Bani Awf.




When Chris and Sayaka first mentioned that they were coming we asked what they'd like to do. Sayaka answered, "turtles, all I want to see are turtles." Alright then, turtles it is. Down we went to Ras al Jinz on a search for nesting turtles. In an effort to protect the turtles the government has done a much stricter job of closing the beaches off. This is the slowest time of the year so we were hopeful that some Turtles could be found. If not, tina was prepared to throw on a fake shell and flap around in the sand while a yelled, "Look at the turtle" as I bumped over the flashlights. Anything for our guests. Lucky us there were turtles up on the beach and we even got to see the eggs being laid. Very cool.




Waiting till sunrise as the turtles went back into the ocean we strolled along the beach. The cliffs in this area are stunning and being the Eastern point of Arabia the sunrise is brilliant.

From the waters of the Indian Ocean we drive into the interior and hit the Wahiba Sands. This rolling orange-sand desert was filled with fun for us. Chris got to play older brother again and throw Joel down the dune while we all took turns in flying photos. A relaxing evening spent on the dunes was followed by a morning camel caravan. I think Chris' camel was a little jealous of the camel carrying Sayaka. Just kidding.

It was so great to have both Sayaka and Chris with us. They were always game for the next adventure and seemed to really enjoy themselves. We were so lucky to be able to share part of our final few months here with them both.

Muscat Moments

"Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. "

- Siddhartha Gautama

Four days after Tina and I got married in the cool winter air of Vancouver we headed back to life in Arabia. Having this time with our friends and family in Canada was a special time for both of us. But it was time to head back to the land of frankinsence, camels and khanjars for our final few months here.

As we returned to Oman we were treated to a reception thrown by our friends here in Muscat. Catching up with friends, getting roasted in a toast and sharing a very creative cake (Joel's likeness is uncanny!) made it feel like we got married a second time. But with a much better price tag!










In the weeks after our reception Tina and I acted like responsible adults and allowed work to get the better of us. Very disapointing. We spent countless hours planning a program that sent all of the kids camping for a 'Discover Oman' week to destinations all over the country. Just our luck - it poured. Winds, rain and floods helped make this week one to remember. Not our finest time. Finding ourselves looking to the future we started to take the time to enjoy our daily lives again.

Soon after we got back into exploring the area and took a few days around the capital. We took a hike from the Sultans palace to Sidab, a small fishing inlet . With a quick climb over a wall we were on a path leading from watchtower to watchtower along the jagged hills seperating the crystal clear ocean waters from the traditional buildings of Old Muscat.

Having explored this area by foot we decided to take our kayaks out on the water again. We launched from Muttrah and paddled in the morning sun along the coast until we pulled in next to the Palace. A quick visit from a police boat quickly reminded us that being here can be a "big problem" and we should leave. Its an awkward paddle struggling your way through head winds as a police boat motors right next to you the whole way. In classic Omani style the police chatted with us about where we are from and welcomed us to Oman at the same time as kicking us out of the water. I love this place.

As our time winds down here Tina and I are trying to get to some favourite spots before the weather gets too hot for camping. One of these spots is Bar Al Hickman. The drive is half the fun as you leave the tarmac and drive along little sand dunes, salt flats and into deeper coastal sand for an hour before pulling up a spot at any piece of the beach you fancy. Our friend Pat joined us on this trip and we enjoyed showing her this place. Along the beach Pat found a whale bone and off we went to check it out. It was huge. Of course, this needed to accompany us back on the 5 hour journey to Muscat. We folded the back seat down and the bone reached from back window all the way to the front windshield. The smell was only a slight factor on the drive.

We arrived back in Muscat excited because Joel's brother Chris and our sister-in law Sayaka were due to arrive in Muscat in a week. It will be great having them with us here.

Winter wedding

"The real act of marriage takes place in the heart - not in a ballroom, or church, or synagouge. It's the choice you make - not just on your wedding day, but over and over again - and that choice is reflected in the way you treat your husband or wife."

- Barbara De Angelis

This past winter Tina and I returned to Canada to get married. We were extremely moved to be able to share this event with so many of those that are close to us. Our writing cannot do justice to how wonderful it was to have these people with us.

Instead, we will post a few pictures of a day that was very special to both of us. As well, we have included a few pictures that we took ourselves in the desert here in Oman.

Thanks to all of those that attended and to those who's pictures we have stolen for this blog.

Many apologies for being so late getting this post up.

Calm Oman, Crazy Dubai

"The whole object of travel is not to set foot on foreign land; it is to at last set foot on one's own country as a foriegn land."
-G.K Chesterton (May 29th, 1874 - June 14, 1936)

A few weeks ago the Muslim world celebrated the Eid Al Ahda holiday. The Eid celebration marks the annual Haj pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. This journey is one of the 5 pillars of Islam and a lifetime goal for many Muslims around the globe. Rather handy for us, it also creates a week long holiday to go exploring. As you may know, in a few weeks Tina and I are getting married so we made the money-smart descision to spend this holiday around Oman.

For a month or so, we had heard rumours that there was a track would allow us to cross the Wahiba Desert from north to south along the coastline. Apparantly, this track leads through the sand dunes but adjescent to the brilliant coastline of the Arabian Ocean. We decided to head out on a 5 day camping trip to find this track and meet up with friends farther south.

Sure enough we found this track and it lead to a stunning drive. The giant powder white sand dunes soared to our right as the evening sun lit the shimmering ocean to our left. Along the jouney we passed through tiny, desolate bedoiun fishing villages that combined the hardiness of both desert living and living off the sea. It was an absorbing mix of cultures. As the sun fell on our first night we turned to the sea and set up camp along a hardened sandstone area that dropped into the ocean.

As the morning light spread it's colours over the ocean waters we were treated to a giant whale trolling for fish along the beach (less than 70 meters out). There is something serene about these massive creatures as they plod through otherwise calm water. It all happened too quickly to reach for the camera.


The desert sun warmed us as we continued travelling through the dunes the next day. On this day we saw a tow truck that had literally been swallowed by the sands. We had been warned about this as several drivers had smashed the tow of the truck as the rest has been consumed by the desert. Of course, the day had its moments of digging and being pulled out of sand but it really was a great new area for us to explore. After we got back to a paved road we were treated to the local haggling practices. As we drove along a one lane road a Bedu pickup truck screamed up beside us. Fearing for this trucks safety (and ours) we were shocked as he rolled down his window to try to buy the kayak off of our roof or as our neighbour suggested 'perhaps it was for Tina?'. All while travelling at speeds upwards all 120km/hr in the wrong lane. I love this place.

That night we met up with some friends in a beautiful area named Khaluf. This location has a calm bay that backs into rolling sand dunes as far as you can see. We've seen flamingos, dolphins and sharks at this location in previous visits but not this one. We took the kayak out a few times and enjoyed the relaxing nature on the area. We finished up our camping adventure by meeting a few other friends farther south on the white sandy beaches of Ras Madrakah. A few more tough days of turquoise water and soft sands and we were headed back to Muscat.

After we had cleaned up in Muscat we headed out for the second part of our holiday - the Rugby Sevens in Dubai. As stated in previous posts I am no fan of Dubai, or the consumerism it promotes, but the chance to see this wild event before we move from here was too much (also it was my birthday gift from Tina).


This is the 40th year of the event held 30 km outside of Dubai in the desert. Amongst a desolate landscape they have created this rugby oasis complete with a 50,000 seat stadium and 5 other pitches surrounding it. I wonder why they're going broke eh? The 16 best Sevens nations are invited annually. Additionally, this is the expat thing to do in the region and thousands of Brits, Aussies, Kiwis, South Africans,Scotts, etc descend on this place full of beer and national pride. It's sold out every year - 100,000 over two days. Crazy.

As Tina said the players are as big as doorways and unbelievably fit. The games are short, the action fast and the crowd in full roar for two straight days. An absolutely great time.

This blog got out a month or so later than planned so we have actually already arrived home from the winter vacation. In a few weeks we will update our blog with stories and pictures from our wedding.

All the best and belated happy holidays.

Breaking news...

"Them's the breaks"

- Chuck Nelson (said several times to his boys between the years of 1986 - 1994)

The quote above was often used by my father to explain the "breaks of life". The context of the message clearly indicated that although this is the way it is at that current time pull your socks up and get going. So we did.

A few weeks ago I was playing a manly game of ultimate frisbee and I dove for a disc. Not only did I come nowhere near the disc, but I also broke my hand in the process. Worse yet, it was the bone in my hand that connects to my pinky finger. Them's the breaks. Some men have battle scars, others tattoos and still others brandings. I have a broken pinky finger. Tina was proud.

Surgery in a developing nation is always exciting and I had an Omani doctor with a scottish accent prep me for surgery while still wearing the traditionaly disdasha (long white gown) and kuma (embroidered hat). Good show I must admit. I woke up hours later with my arm tied above my head to an IV cart. They put a plate and three screws into my hand and sent me on my way. Certainly not the Monday evening I was hoping for.

Given the healing time of the surgery we have been forced to do some different things with our time. We took an excellent day trip through two coastal wadis that we had not explored yet. We linked two wadis - Souway and Dayqah through an off road route and were shocked at how wet these wadis were. These valuable water sources were guarded by several impressive ancient watchtowers. The wadi edges rose dramatically on either side of us and changed from reds, to oranges and shades of brown. As we drove on through dry patches we would soon reach another deep green oasis. As long as we've been in this country it still is amazing to see people reaching into the depths of the earth to harness the water needed to exist.

Additionally being our last year in Oman we are taking in events that we otherwise have not attended. One of which is our school's formal Ball. It's an event attended by local bigwigs, embassadors and important people like us. We put on our best digs headed to the swanky hotel and had a good time.

Last year you might recall that Oman rocked to the beat of the Arabian Gulf Cup. The Omani soccer team won the event and the country went nuts. This year the national team had the opportunity to host two major international matches in the same week - the first against Australia and the second against Brazil. It was a great week to be a soccer fan here. The Bazilians played all of their stars except the guys that play in Brazil. Kaka played as did all the first team players available. Oman didn't fair as well this year going down 2-1 to the Socceroos and 2-0 to the Samba Boys.

In a little over a month Tina and I will be celebrating our marital bliss. With that in mind our colleagues here have gone out of their way to help us celebrate with them in Muscat. There was a wedding shower held in Tina's honour. About 40 ladies attended dressed all in white for an evening of cocktails and appetizers. Quite classy I must say. Not to be outdone, some fellas got together and we threw around a football, drank a few beers and headed to a low-brow local establishment. Not nearly as classy as the ladies. Next weekend we will get our final send off event as the families throw us a "this is your "future" life party". Their kids will be encouraged to run amok, they'll all look exhausted the whole evening and constantly tell us what a great decision we are making. Should be fun.

This coming week is our Eid holiday. We are looking forward to a 5 day camping trip going through the Wahiba Sands and ending up in two of our favourite coastal camp sites. The second part of our holiday will be spent in Dubai at the world famous Dubai Rugby sevens championships.

The Magic of Oman

"The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hands of man".

- Author unknown

Having lived in this country for the past two years we occasionally find ouselves driving by sights, people and events that previously seemed so exotic to us. We have officially confirmed with our school that this year will be our last and we are determined to take none of this time for granted. Although the title of this blog is inspired by our most recent camping experience we have always felt this way about our host country. It has been a busy month and this blog attempts to recap it.

Earlier this month Joel finally hiked a trail we had heard of through friends. The hike is called "The Chains" and is named quite literally for the chains found on the hike that are used to climb a small rock face. This worried me as the last chains I used involved locking my bicycle up in the 2nd grade. Waking early in the morning a couple of vehicles set out and reached the starting point a few hours west of Muscat. The walk took us through the base of a Wadi and consisted of short undulating portions followed by sections filled with water. Additionally the nesessary use of the chains added to the uniquenes of the hike. A team of middle aged men struggling over rocks and wobbling up chains surely must have been hilarious to any villager passing by.

Having heard of a beautiful wadi that we were yet to explore deeply we headed out to Wadi Tanuf a few weekends ago. At the mouth of the Wadi sits the ruins of a mud bricked city that was bombed out in the mid 1940's. As it was still roasting hot we decided in our wisdom to hike up the side of the Wadi until we found a cool enough altititude. So we hiked up and in late evening we found a cave that previous shepards had cleared out. Well, this looked perfect. We set up camp and revelled in our stunning view. As the sun fell and the darkness surrounded us so to did the mosquitos. The buzzing swept over us on all sides and we were done for. Swelteringly hot and covered in mosquitos we tried to escape but it was too dark to climb down. So we sat, sweating and itching waiting for our bright idea to end. On a positive note there are a swarm of mosqutos fat and happy on our blood. You're welcome.

This year we decided to spend our Canadian thanksgiving at home and help spread some Canadiana around Mucat. Having attended a thanksgiving dinner on Thursday evening we hosted our own on Friday. Sadly, no Turkey was available so our dinner meat consisted of Rotisserie chicken. I gamely felt that it would be appropriate to slaughter a goat for such an occassion but I was wisely overruled. All the other fixings were present so our patient guests looked past it.

This past weekend we just got back from a fantastic trip down the coast. Our friends Keith and Pat had not seen the nesting Green turtles along the coastline. We were interested in going again and wanted to find a new location we had heard about. As we got to the sparsley populated coast we consulted our directions - follow the faint tracks to the left 12 kms after the turn. Nice. We followed the tracks and they lead up and up and up over the rocks towards the ocean. Sure enough we wound our way to a beautiful lookout point but well above the beaches we had intended to find. Two fishermen were tying their nets nearby so we approached them for directions. In my broken Arabic they understood what we wanted to find and hopped in their truck and lead us to a stunning beach hidden behind the cliffs. At the beach we met a few kids that assured us (again using shamefully poor Arabic) that this was a beach that Turtles frequented.

To say this was a great campsite would be an understatement. The white beach was entirely surrounded by red sandstone cliffs and filled with deep bunkers dug by nesting turtles. At one end sat a sandstone ledge overlooking the sand a mere 2 feet below. We set up on the sandstone and anticipated the evenings activities.

In the early evening we sat at the edge of the shoreline as the waves rushed to our feet. There was no moon, and a blanket of stars covered us. The water was filled with phosphorescence that created a glowing, illuminated body of water that crashed brightly lit, gentle waves towards us. We sat contemplating the beautiful view as giant shadows began to emerge from the water. The 500 pound turtles crawled up at a distance from us and began digging their nests for the night.

* Turtle photo from previous spot

We sat there taking in this strange beach, in this little-known country, watching a flourescent sea crash at our feet, under a stunningly star filled sky surrounded by giant creatures climbing ashore to lay their eggs. We couldn't help but think that this may be the only place in the world where we could have an evening like this all to ourselves. At any rate, we will convince ourselves that it is and attribute it to the Magic of Oman.

We are looking forward to taking in as much as we can in the time we have left in this special place.

Eid Mubarak - Southern Arabia style

"For this cruel land can cast a spell which no temperate clime can match"

- Wilfred Thesiger (first European explorer to cross the Empty Quarter)

Here in the Middle East, and around the Muslim world, the holy month of Ramadan has just concluded. Following this month of fasting during daylight hours and focusing on prayer comes a festive holiday period called Eid Al Fitr. For Omanis it is a time spent with family and for expats like us an opportunity to travel. Coming with a week off of work, this is quickly becoming one of our favourite holidays!

This year we decided to head down south with our friends and neighbours Tom and Julie to the Dhofar region of Oman. As mentioned in previous blogs this area is unique in the country in both its people and its geography. During the summer months (June to mid September) Dhofar is hit with the "Khareef" (winds of plenty)- Indian monsoons bringing high winds and tremendous rainfall. The resulting lush landscape is in complete contrast to the arid conditions stretching from the edges of this area to the shores of Muscat a thousand kilometers to the north. We have travelled to this area many times but have never seen this phenomenon.

As we drove the 10 hour journey through the Hajar mountains in the north, then the sand dunes of the eastern deserts, and finally the gravel plains of the center of the country we openly mocked the pictures we'd seen of the green mountains and flowing wadis of Dhofar. Everytime we'd been to the area it had been brown and dry and we expected possibly a subtle difference at best. But as the road finally dropped from the high plateau towards Salalah we were shocked by the immediate change of our surroundings. It looked more like the lake district in England complete with green rolling hills covered in mist and not the desert landscape of Arabia. There we were taking pictures of grass and rain. How embarrassing.

The first full day was spent in the glorious cool rains at the tail end of the Khareef. Coming from hot days in the mid 40's a cool rinse was welcomed. Thankfully Tina stopped me as I was carrying my towel and bar of soap outside. Classless.

We drove up into the mountains to see the Jebali people and their environment. Walks through lush, water filled wadis filled with fish, cattle and bird-life couldn't have been more different than the Oman we knew. After a short picnic with a few friendly Jebali men we took back to exploring the mountain. The young Jebali fellow had told us of a thousand camels on this hill. We accepted this with the knowing nod you give to a child with a vivid imagination. Again, we were shocked as we rounded the corner and saw more camels in one spot then could be imagined. We sat for several minutes as the camels blocked our path and a friendly jebali gentleman tugged at the Kayak we had tied on our roof while a "less-friendly" herdsmen gathered rocks to heave at our vehicle. We'll consider that a mixed signal maybe. Our vehicle emerged unscathed, and the camels remain lumbering along that mountain in the hundreds.

The road continued along until it reached a sign that read "closed". That obviously only applies to other people as we drove around the sign and continued along the perilous mountain route. The road was a sloggy, muddy wreck from the rains of that day and other idiots driving this path like us. We slogged our way through until we reached a group of men stuck on the hill with no chance of making it either way. As we got out to help one might figure that the worst place to stand is behind the back tire right? In hindsight I would agree but that's exactly where I placed myself for the first push. Covered in wet mud we continued on our way. On the path shortly after we came across the Balbob tree forest that we had been familiar with from Africa. We trekked into the forest and found a tree that was about 10 meters in diameter. Chopped and bundled we were ready for a campfire for the next month. Just kidding.

The next day we took off for an area of the region that had intrigued us all. In the far south east corner of the country was an area none of us had been to and had no dirt track connecting to the northern coast. Off we went and were greated by a 3 hour drive with white sand beaches and tourquise water to our right and sheer rusty cliffs immediately to our left. The drive must rival some the greatest drives in the world. When we reached as far as we could manage we were greeted by a herd of 50 camles and pitched our tents for the night. The area was once prosperous through small ports trading in Myrr and Frankinsence. In more modern times it was prosperous again through the fishing of Abolone. Now that that the stores have dried up it is back to a coastline of sleepy fishing villages and stunning scenary. Much more recently this area has been again the center of attention as a micro-organism believed to be the oldest form of life ever found was discovered in the hills of this coast.

We launched our kayaks shortly after our arrival and a 40 minute paddle around our immediate vicinity resulted in seeing 10 giant turtles coming up for air around us. Turtles in this area include the Green, Leatherback and Loggerheads. Sadly our confidence in our kayaking abilities did not allow us to bring the camera along.

Rising in the eerie fog the next morning we moved back down the coast exploring various small towns that once prospered as ports of varying degrees during the heyday of frankincence trading.

As we headed back north towards Muscat we ventured towards another point of interest on our trip - the lost city of Ubar. Leaving the lush green hills of Dhofar behind we headed into the desert at the Southern tip of the Empty Quarter. It is here that the legendary city of Ubar is thought to have existed. As the story goes Ubar was a very rich settlement on the caravan route of Arabian goods (frankinsence, myrr, gold) to the rest of the world. Life there was lived in excess (think Vegas) and was punished by Allah and vanished into the desert. Reaching its peak in 3000BC, there is evidence of people as late as the 12th century AD and perhaps beyond. Many adventurers have looked for the existence of this place and through satellite imagery it is believed to be at this active dig site. Very cool.

Now that we are back in Muscat we are already looking forward to our next trip in Oman. Even if we don't return to Dhofar again it has left us with many good memories and we will recommend it highly.