Exploring Oman Continued

From the comments yesterday I gather people are under the expectation that this part of the world is about shopping, bling and beaches. Well it is but if you scratch the surface a bit it is much much more but of course it all depends on what you seek. This week we wanted the raw untouched Arabia and the interior of Oman provides that in bundles.

As you take the road from Al Ain in the Emirates down into Oman the road skirts the Empty Quarter and sand dunes roll up to the road. Only the strangely elegent wirey tress break up the smooth curves. On the other side of the road the spine of Hajar mountains guide you further into this fantasic scenery.








Yesterday I brought you as far a glimpse of the the village above Wadi Bani Habib. On the climb down you heard the drone of bees and the strange contrast of the cherry blossom with the large boulders on the wadi bed. Looking up you see these wonderful slightly crumbling structures. There missing roofs and walls creating beautiful cutouts with the too blue sky. However it was the surprise of the beautifully decorated interiors that take your breath away.

We left the village reluctantly even after the thigh breaking climb back to the car. From there we drove across the plateau tempted by glimpses of villages in the wadi but only turned off the road when we caught a glimpse of this.

Road trips with the Fenwicks entail a great deal of photography - that includes the kids and forces our guests in the same. Here is the artist Paul Wadsworthfilming the gorge with DH in the distance.

Not far from here we stopped for lunch and the Paul ran an inpromtu painting class with the kids over looking this view.

Did I mention the fossil hunting? Well DH is a geologist by degree so he quickly spotted and pointed out the fossil in the roacks we were blithely trecking over. Its hard to look down when you have such stunning scenery but we did and were rewarded with finding sea shell fossils in the rocks below are feet.

Tommorw I will blog about remote village of Ar Rus and its friendly kids and our final day driving over the mountains on perilous switchbacks........

Borin' Explorin' - NOT

We escaped to the Hajar Mountains in Oman and I find it difficult to put into words the raw beauty of the place. So I will use dd's words (her's above - borin' explorin') and my photos to give you a feel.

Here is a sand castle (the ruins of the Al Sulaif Fortress town near Ibri which date back to the 11th century)

We also stopped at a village where we met this colourful fellow.

A brief stop in the the fortress town of Bahla and on through Nizwa to reach our hotel, the Jabal Akhdar Hotel, up some 2000 plus metres on the Sayq Plateau. According to dd it has very comfortable beds!

The following morning saw us heading to the abandoned village of Bani Habib. Nothing quite prepares you for the stunning beauty of it and the wadi it sits above. Cherry blossoms were in the bloom and the wildly noisy murmuring of the bees intruding on the silence. (first 2 photos here are ds1's)

Blogger doesn't want me to post any more photos at the moment so until tomorrow, ciao!