Surprise of my life - Oman is AMAZING!!! Who knew?
Jordan, Katherine, Alice and I celebrated Prophet Mohammed's birfday in Muscat, Oman, aka heaven on earth. It was such a nice little get away from the hustle and bustle of Dubai.
Katherine's a slave driver and made us get up at the butt crack of dawn to start our 5.5 hour drive. The fog hung low as the sun rose over the desert, and it was b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l, so beautiful we stopped for a picture. :)
Jordan, Katherine and little bitty Alice.
Doesn't it look like two pictures in one?
Omani mountains, the next best thing to the Rocky Mountains.
The Yaris, our pimp ride.
Group photo! You can see a little slice of me in the mirror :)
The view from our hotel room.
I don't know why exactly, but our hotel made me feel like I was in Dirty Dancing. I could totally be Baby's BFF.
I don't know why exactly, but our hotel made me feel like I was in Dirty Dancing. I could totally be Baby's BFF.
The view to the left side.
Jordan making a daring leap.
We spent the whole first day laying out and exploring the awesome fjords. It was the perfect introduction to Muscat.
If I lived here, I might never want to move back to Colorado.
Katherine :)
Alice :)
Sadly this is the last picture I have of her. She went shopping the second day when we all went to the beach, so this is it for her. She is one of the most fun, laid back people I've ever met.
Do you want to move to Oman yet???
After the sun went down, we drove out to the souks. I loooooved these souks. They seemed more authentic than the souks in Dubai and were filled with all sorts of interesting things and pretty colors.
I only bought one thing - one of these awesome hats. I love the Gulf culture and the different outfits they wear. The men in Dubai wear a white or red and white scarf on their heads. The men in Oman (and I) wear these awesome hats. Aren't these boys so cute?! The Omani people are SO nice and friendly.
And that pretty much sums up our first day. We went to dinner with Fabian, a friend from Dubai that recently moved to Muscat, and that's about it.
And that pretty much sums up our first day. We went to dinner with Fabian, a friend from Dubai that recently moved to Muscat, and that's about it.
We spent the second day at The Dive Company. It's a beautiful little cove with blue skies, fjords galore and all sorts of things to explore. This was by far my favorite place in Oman.
The tide was extra low but it was still beautiful.
Jordan and I kayaked past those rocks and out into the ocean. We found a cute little cave about 20 minutes of rowing away (I have no idea how far that is), so we paddled towards it. We were already pretty tired by the time we decided to go for it, but the lure of paddling in a cave kept us going. Finally, with achy arms and crampy hands, we reached the "cave," which turned out to be an optical illusion. It was one giant fjord with two smaller fjords in front creating a cave-like shadow. Disappointment of the day. We had to just laugh it off and turn back towards the shore because that's pretty much all we could do. At least we got a good upper body workout in, right?
How cute are these? Cutest little hotel rooms ever. I'd stay there in a heartbeat.
Oh, hey Katherine.
This is about the time our beer starting kicking in. I'm not a big fan of beer, but Sol on the beach is pretty tasty.
Photo shoot on the rocks...
Can you tell which one of us was a cheerleader?
Jordan could be a professional jumper, and her high kicks are very high, almost too high.
Jordan could be a professional jumper, and her high kicks are very high, almost too high.
Katherine, Jordan, me :)
Aaaaaaaaaand that's about it. We had dinner at the hotel and went to bed early - a perfect ending to a perfect weekend.
I can't say enough nice things about Muscat. It's the cutest little town on the water, a perfect mix of culture, mountains and beachiness with adorable restaurants and shops scattered all around. The people are incredibly friendly and the whole vibe is very laid back. It was the perfect, perfect get away, and I can't wait to go back with Casey.
I can't say enough nice things about Muscat. It's the cutest little town on the water, a perfect mix of culture, mountains and beachiness with adorable restaurants and shops scattered all around. The people are incredibly friendly and the whole vibe is very laid back. It was the perfect, perfect get away, and I can't wait to go back with Casey.
A couple months ago I made a promise to myself to stop sulking about missing Colorado (although I slip up every now and then) and do something fun. I think this is the main reason I don't hate Dubai anymore. This weekend in Muscat was so fun and something I never would have experienced had we not moved to Dubai. And actually, I almost backed out at the last minute because I had too much homework and wanted to hang out with Casey, but a gentle nudge from Casey and a "YOLO" text from Katherine pulled me back in. I am realizing how very lucky are to be able to live here, experience different cultures and travel so cheaply. I think as long as I focus on these things, Dubai can be something better than a big noisy sandpit. It might even turn into a happy place :)
