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On To Oman After spending the past week working in (and hiking around) Abu Dhabi, it was time for some fun. I checked out of my hotel on Sunday morning and left for a three day, 1,000-mile road trip through the U.A.E. and across the neighboring country of Oman. To do this, I rented what was quite possibly the smallest car in Abu Dhabi, a three-cylinder Toyota Yaris with a tiny back seat and a super-tiny trunk (or "boot" as they call it in the U.A.E., a British term). But that was fine because it was just for myself and I didn't need much room. Along with the tiny spare tire in the boot, I think it also had a large rubber band to wind up in case the engine ever quit.
In the late morning on my way out of town, I stopped at a Wal-Mart-ish place, a large store called Carrefour, which was located under the Marina Mall. Just like Wal-Mart, Carrefour (a French retail chain, as I learned later) sold just about everything under the sun, including cheap camping gear, which I stocked up on.
I left Abu Dhabi an hour later and drove on an ultra-modern freeway across endless deserts and sand-filled landscapes for several hours east, to the city of Al Ain near Oman, then reached the border late in the day. I figured that the U.A.E./Oman border would be simple, like it is in the U.S. when I go into Canada. But I was wrong because I waited inside the customs building for a half-hour to get something approved – due to the language barrier, I'm not sure what, exactly. There were about 30 other folks in the customs building, almost all male, also waiting to enter Oman, but I was the only Westerner.
Then I waited in another line for a half-hour for something else, and then waited in another line. The customs agents spoke very little English and I spoke even less Arabic, which complicated matters, but apparently they couldn't figure out why a lone American driving a rental car would want to visit Oman. But finally, after an hour and a half, I was waved through.
The sun was starting to set and I had no idea where I was going to spend the night. But after driving for another half-hour I found a dirt road leading off the highway, which I followed for a couple miles until I discovered a flat, dirt area where I could set up my tent. I've camped in the American deserts numerous times and don't think twice about it, so I didn't think twice about camping in the Oman desert either – though maybe in retrospect I should've because, unlike in the U.S. deserts, this probably wasn't public land. A few cars drove by on the dirt road that night, but they didn't stop to check out who I was or why I was camping there. If they had, I'm sure they would've been surprised to discover it was an American. In fact, during the three days I was in Oman, I didn't see one other American.
I had made the mistake of buying a paper-thin sleeping bag at Carrefour in Abu Dhabi and it was fairly chilly that night, so I didn't get much sleep. Sure, it dropped down only to about 50 degrees, but that's still pretty chilly if you don't have anything to cover you except jeans, a t-shirt and a couple layers of a nylon sleeping bag. Instead of buying the $5 sleeping bag at Carrefour like I had, I wished I had sprung for the $10 bag. As the light began to break on the eastern horizon, I got up, had a quick breakfast, then packed and hit the road well before sunrise. Still a bit chilled from my desert camping experience, I vowed to spend the next night in a motel room.
Back on the highway, I drove all day through Oman which, as I discovered, is much more mountainous than the flat and sandy U.A.E. The mountains in Oman are mostly barren but quite lofty, some over 10,000 feet high. I also discovered that the drivers in Oman are borderline crazy and I felt like I was the only person in the entire country driving less than 100 miles per hour, as I tooled along at a paltry 60. I think the drivers must interpret the "100" speed signs here as meaning miles-per-hour instead of kilometer-per-hour.
Around 4 p.m. I drove into the historic coastal city of Sur (population 120,000), where I checked into a modest hotel on the beach. The desk clerk was in a good mood because, as he cheerfully told me after seeing my American passport, "Tomorrow is inauguration day for Obama!" It struck me how much people in the Middle East, and also in Belize, know about America. In fact, many folks in the Middle East (and Australia, and New Zealand) know more about what's happening in America than many Americans do. The election of President Obama was no different and it was celebrated by many of the folks I met in the Middle East, as they hoped for improved relations with the United States instead of eight more years of belligerence. I hoped for that, too.
I found my room, unpacked my stuff, and then explored Sur that evening, walking alone through many back streets of this fascinating coastal town. For hundreds of years, Sur (pronounced "sewer," not "sir") has been a boat-building center of the Middle East. At dusk I hiked up to a magnificent lighthouse that overlooked the harbor, from which I saw some of the dhows (primitive sailing boats) that had been built here and were anchored in the gentle waters of the cove. I ate dinner afterwards at a mostly-empty restaurant and, since everything was in Arabic, I'm still not sure exactly what I ate. But it was fine – more filling than tasty, to be honest, but better than the dinner of chips and sweet salsa that I'd eaten in the desert the night before.
Above left: Passing by sand dunes in the U.A.E. on my way to Al Ain, in the eastern part of the country. Above center: Oman is on the eastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula. It's about the size of Arizona and has a similar climate. Above right: A friendly greeting as I entered Oman. The term "peace be with you" is common in the Middle East and is the greeting that's typically used when you meet someone. In Arabic it's pronounced "a salam aluykum." The world "salem" or "salam" in many languages means "peace," as in Salem, Massachusetts.
Above left: An hour later I pulled off the highway and camped in the desert. That's my $5 sleeping bag, which I bought in Abu Dhabi. It was pretty chilly that night and I wished I'd sprung for the $10 bag. Above right: Early the next morning I was back on the highway heading east. That "120" speed sign, by the way, refers to kilometers per hour, not miles per hour that most Omani drivers must assume.
Above left: Stopping for breakfast. This is a Pepsi, my favorite drink. There is no letter "P" in the Arabic language so this word actually says "Beebsi." Arabic words are read from right-to-left, by the way, and not left-to-right like in the English language. Above center: And here's my favorite food, but shouldn't it be "Doritos"? I mean, who wants just one. Above right: After a delicious breakfast I was back on the road. This is typical scenery in northern Oman. It's a very mountainous country with some peaks topping 10,000' in elevation. But it's very dry, too.
Above left: Late in the afternoon I reached Sur on the northeast coast of Oman. The Omani desk clerk here was excited because President Obama was being inaugurated the next day. Above right: My comfortable hotel room overlooking the Gulf of Oman.
Above left: Heading into downtown Sur late in the day to check it out. Above right: Omanis are crazy about soccer and they'll play it anywhere at any time. That lighthouse and watchtower, by the way, replaced a much older one. Being at the extreme northeastern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, Sur is a historic port and important boat-building center.
Above left: The lighthouse / watchtower is the most iconic building in Sur. Above right: The Old Town part of Sur in the evening.
Above left: A Sur sunset. There's a watchtower on the far hilltop. Ancient watchtowers are common throughout the country of Oman. In fact, when I now think of Oman, I think of watchtowers. Above right: View of the historic section of Sur from the lighthouse.
Above left: This friendly little fellow followed me around town as I shot photos in the evening and wanted his picture taken. After I shot this photo, I showed him the image and he laughed. Above center: All this shooting builds up an appetite. I ate dinner at this place but didn't really know what I was ordering. Above right: And here's dinner. That dish on the far side was chicken, I think, with French fries (huh?) mixed in. Not especially tasty but it was filling – and much better than the Doritos and Pepsi (or "Dorito" and Beepsie) that I had for breakfast.
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