Every time I come back to the Philippines and people asked me where I went for summer and I tell them that I came from Oman, a majority of the people ask me where it is.
Usually. it's "Is that in Saudi?"
Usually. it's "Is that in Saudi?"
Or "Is that in Dubai?"
So I answer (pun intended) with, "Oh-man is northeast of Yeah-men". I know, that's corny.
Oman is an Arab country bordered by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. It's an absolute monarchy ruled by Sultan Qaboos bin Said. It has oil reserves, ranking 25th in the world and is categorized as a high-income economy.
Oman is an Arab country bordered by the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. It's an absolute monarchy ruled by Sultan Qaboos bin Said. It has oil reserves, ranking 25th in the world and is categorized as a high-income economy.
I'm a daughter of an OFW. My dad has been in the gulf for thirty-six years (ten in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and twenty-six in the Sultanate of Oman). He speaks better Arabic than Filipino.
When I was in my last year in college taking up Hotel and Restaurant Management, we were required to do an internship in a hotel or airline of our choice. I did mine in Oman because it was cheaper for us. Really!
My dad works for the national carrier, so until when we were twenty-one years of age, we got ninety percent discount on airfare. We only spend something like PHP 5,000 for a roundtrip ticket, and since my dad already has a flat there, that saves us from renting an extra apartment. I walked to and from work, ate my meals at the hotel's staff house, and practically didn't need money except for phone cards.
The advantage over here was when I went there last 2008, I remember sending Papa an SMS during my stopover at Dubai telling him to pick me up at the nearest possible point upon arrival in Muscat, which he said yes to. True to his word, I found him waiting for me down the stairs outside the plane.Hahaha!
The advantage over here was when I went there last 2008, I remember sending Papa an SMS during my stopover at Dubai telling him to pick me up at the nearest possible point upon arrival in Muscat, which he said yes to. True to his word, I found him waiting for me down the stairs outside the plane.Hahaha!
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| Papa at the Muscat International Airport with the flagship fleet behind him, Oman Air. |
My sister and I used to spend childhood summers in Oman. We feasted on Galaxy chocolates, Nesquik, roasted chicken and paratha, watching basketball, eating chicken shawarma, having family dinners at Omar Khayyam and feasting on pancit malutong, going to the beach and picking up fresh crabs and digging for clams.
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| Shawarma places like these are everywhere. You can get a large one for around PHP 100, plus they serve free mint tea. But they don't have service water. Istanboly is my favorite shawarma shop. My parents still bring some home every year. |
Unlike how others depict the Middle East with hot scorching sun, "winter" months are actually quite lovely. One night, it was too cold, my breath was foggy, and on some days, I had to wear a jacket and scarf during noon. The sun also sets a little later. Sometimes, at 6PM it would still be bright. We do get rain a lot of rain before and after winter. Sometimes, there's also snow in the mountains and they're accessible, so hurray!
I loved the Sultanate for its clean highways and safe surroundings. The buildings were neutral in color and were low, often up to the 5th floor only. The colors of both buildings and villas are neutral, varying from white, brown, beige and the like. I lived with my dad who rented out extra rooms to other Filipinos. That's kind of a norm. Properties don't have security personnel by the door. Seriously, I never saw a security guard posted by the door of the nearby Oman International Bank that had gold plated doors!
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| Oman International Bank Photo credits to @jaisonguru as posted on http://www.panoramio.com/photo/42568851 |
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| I'm not sure why some people hang out at the roundabouts, but hey! It's clean. |
It's advisable to have a car and it's easy to get one, but getting a license in Oman is like passing a board exam. If you manage to get a license and a car, your life will be easier. There's no heavy traffic. The roads are wide. The speed limit is 120 kph for dual carriageways, and if you exceed your car will make a sound, and if you exceed some more, the radars will detect you, take a picture of your license and bill you handsomely on your next registration. Gasoline, then, was only 120 Bz which converts to around PHP 15. When the traffic light says stop, cars stop even when no other cars are around. Otherwise, there are big and small taxis around. Big taxis are vans, but we don't call them that. Small taxis can be hired (engaged) and can be shared. (1 Omani Rial = 1000 Baizas = current exchange rate 129.80 PHP)
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| Clean streets and clear skies |
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| Flowers of the season for the sidewalks and roundabouts |
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| Beautiful Zawawi Mosque near our home |
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| Taxi in Oman. They're all painted the same way. Often, locals only drive part-time. A taxi friend of mine actually owns a building that he leases out and then another who works for a petroleum company. |
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| O heavy traffic, where forth art thou? Nah! |
The weekends were Thursdays and Fridays. It has been changed to Fridays and Saturdays last 2013. Friday was the usual day-off of the working class, and it's also the day Christians go to church. Other religions are welcome. The biggest Mosque in Oman is called the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque.
Greetings are long. My father and I met my local best friend and colleague outside the hotel one time and they talked for some time. When I asked my father what they spoke about, he said they just greeted each other.
Their conversation was something like this:
Person 1: Assalamalaykkum! (Peace be with you!)
Person 2: Waallaykkum salam! (And unto you peace!)
Person 1: Kaif halek? Zen? (How are you? Are you well?)
Person 2: Alhamdullilah, zen! Inta tammam? (Praise God, I am well.)
Person 1: Aiwa, tammam! Kaif baba? Kaif mama? (Yes, good! How's your father? How's your mother?)
Person 2: Zen! (Good!)
On a good note, isn't that such a beautiful greeting to say "Peace be with you", instead of the usual "Hello"?
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| My Omani best friend, Mohammed. He's camera shy. |
Person 1: Assalamalaykkum! (Peace be with you!)
Person 2: Waallaykkum salam! (And unto you peace!)
Person 1: Kaif halek? Zen? (How are you? Are you well?)
Person 2: Alhamdullilah, zen! Inta tammam? (Praise God, I am well.)
Person 1: Aiwa, tammam! Kaif baba? Kaif mama? (Yes, good! How's your father? How's your mother?)
Person 2: Zen! (Good!)
On a good note, isn't that such a beautiful greeting to say "Peace be with you", instead of the usual "Hello"?
There's an abundance of chicken dishes, and lamb dishes are cheap. Pork is limited, and it's quite expensive. Milk is always fresh, and so are the juices. Even if you don't open the bottle, it will still expire after four days. Eggplants are round. Melons are sweeter than ours, and the herbs are very cheap. One can even buy them by sack. There are real sharks in the fish market, and caviar costs less than five hundred bucks.
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| Bin Ateeq, one of the well-known authentic Omani restaurants. :) DIning areas are typically on the floor. |
There are many mountains and they're made of rocks. The beaches are mostly free. We spent a lot of time walking. Papa and I used to walk along the shore for 10km. You can pick up shellfishes and go fishing and crabbing. We used to go boating, and when I was young, we saw a rock islet with a staff in the middle. Papa said it was Moses' staff. I still don't know if he's joking. I'll post the photo here once I find it in our album.
Every February, Muscat Festival is held in different places in the governorate. In 2009, I attended my first and rode a camel (also for the first time). I had become a regular of the festival for the next three years.
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| View of the mountains outside hotel Muscat Holiday |
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| Mama at Wadi Bani Khalid |
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| Long stretch of beach at Shatti Al Qurm |
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| Digging up for clams! |
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| Spell f-r-e-s-h |
Every February, Muscat Festival is held in different places in the governorate. In 2009, I attended my first and rode a camel (also for the first time). I had become a regular of the festival for the next three years.
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| This was my first camel! |
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| Oman Food Festival happens alongside Muscat Festival |
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| Omani women in their colorful national costume. Yes, it's not the black dress. |
Old Muscat is where the Mutrah Souq, Fish Market, Corniche, one of the Sultan's palaces and a couple of museums are located. The souq is a flea market where you can buy souvenirs. They sell pashminas, perfume oil, frankincense, footwear, shirts, khanjar (traditional dagger), even silver and gold by the weight. At the entrance, usually, sits a local who sells kahwa, a traditional Omani coffee with a hint of cardamom.
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| Entrance to Mutrah Souq |
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| Jasmine's shoes |
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| Souvenirs, anyone? |
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| Seated at Fast Food N Juice Centre outside the souq. Really, shop names are often generic. Image courtesy of Patrick Ong. |
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| Mutrah Corniche |
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| A fort in Old Muscat. Photo credits to Patrick Ong. |
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| My childhood friend and I visited Bait Al Zubair Museum. It's the same museum where my sister had her painting exhibited. |
I've worked for Hotel Muscat Holiday from 2009 to 2012. They absorbed me into the company after the internship. I have worked with and met wonderful people throughout my stay. There were fellow kababayans, Omanis, Egyptians, Indians, Pakistanis, Sri Lankans, Tunisians, Syrians and Moroccans. What I loved about working in Oman was that it was tax-free and we had good health benefits provided by the company. We were also given free accommodation, food (5x a day), and basic utilities (electricty and water). The staff house was just across the street. If you wish to live outside the staff house or if the company doesn't have one, they provide housing and transportation allowance.
What I loved the most were the friends I made. Closest to my heart were the Dutch, German and Turkish friends I met. We still talk, except for the German guest as he had already passed away, but I became friends with his children. He was like a father to me, so I was really brokenhearted when he left.
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| From top L-R: Sir Karl, my father figure and a rather silly one, too; a radio personality in Oman; Japanese cultural performers; Muscat Asian Beach Games 2010 Triathlon participants. There were Filipinos and they performed so well. |
One of my most loved trip in Oman, though, was when I went to the Wahiba Sands. What's a stay in Oman without a trip to the desert, yeah? I was picked up by a 4WD in a small hotel near the place. It was quite a drive into the desert. Then I joined a family for the dune bashing, which was quite exhilarating. It's like riding a rollercoaster. I wish I could have saved the video.
It was chilly in the desert, colder than the city. For OMR 25, I was able to get a hut with en suite toilet and bath and buffet breakfast and dinner. They place a bed outside your hut, too, in case you want to sleep under the stars. :) Tea and coffee were unlimited. They provided traditional entertainment during the night plus sisha. There were also some camels (which I tried again) the next day that you can rent for a 15-30min ride, and local Omani ladies selling handcrafted items and doing henna tattoo. The camp also offered sandboarding for free. I was so bad at it that I didn't bother getting a photo.
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| Hanging out in the desert after dune bashing; having my henna tattoo done; camel ride; shisha; my finished henna; making a desert angel, lol!; and traditional entertainment for the night |
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| My extremely large hut that can probably fit a family of eight; the dining area; the entire camp; and my outdoor bed |
I'm still hoping I could come back here soon with my boys, even for a short vacation. I just would love to show them the country I have grown to love through childhood summers.
Welcome to Oman! I hope you enjoyed the trip with me. :)
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For more information about Oman, you may visit http://www.omantourism.gov.om.
For more information about Oman, you may visit http://www.omantourism.gov.om.
