Pinch me, I'm dreaming

To begin. I’m still a novice in the culture of blogging. There are so many classic ways to commence... 

All this happened, more or less. (Opening line: Slaughterhouse 5)

Rather, I’ll take after Heller in Catch-22. 

“It was love at first sight.” Actually, it was love from the first google image search. Muscat is a sensation. The country of Oman should be declared one massive international park. From the lush Salalah, to the caves of Al-Hoota, from the desert, to the pristine beaches of Muscat, it is a country of geographical contrasts.

Upon arrival, my hands were instantly clammy. Those in the group wearing glasses, found themselves blinded instantly as their glasses fogged up. Muscat is one of the hottest capital cities in the world- in the summer it gets up to 50 degrees Celsius (122 F). And, as it is on the gulf, Muscat is humid. Fortunately, we were later informed that the night of arrival was significantly more humid than usual, which has proved to be the case as of yet. 

Arabic is everywhere, yet nearly always accompanied by English. There is a large population of expats in Muscat, in particular Southeast Asians. The Sultan is also ubiquitous. While in Cairo, I had seen Mubarak on billboards, walls, etc., however there is one major difference between this display in Muscat- the Omanis love the Sultan. Sultan Qaboos, as far as monarchs go, is the bees’ knees. Since deposing his father forty years ago, he has transformed this country. Supposedly at that time there was a total of 7 km of paved roads in the country. Now, Oman is a bustling nation, and even McDonalds and Baskin Robbins have reached Muscat. Not to mention the sultanate offers universal healthcare, education through the university level, and is responsive to his people. His face is everywhere, not to mention, our Hotel is just off of “18th of November street,” named after his birthday. 

One girl referred to Muscat as the Santa Barbara of the Middle East- it is incredibly clean, affluent, and it is beach central (although burkinis over bikinis are the style here). 

Fortunately, as I deprived myself of nothing but a few hours of sleep between the two eight-hour flights, I was quite sleepy when we arrived in Muscat at 10:30pm local time, and was able to largely avoid jet lag and develop a normal sleep schedule. 

On Friday we had orientation. The first adventure, was a trip to “Lulu’s,” called a “hypermarket” which is a mix of Costco, Walmart, and Albertsons. You can find anything there, including American products- foods (from Ritz to mangos), clothes, traditional Omani and Indian dress, camping supplies, etc. As we went on Friday, (as Friday is the holy day, the weekend here is Thursday and Friday) Lulu’s was a riot. Black Friday status. I got to practice my arabic with a few people, and as an apparent foreigner, we were constantly being stared at. The Omani women cover fully, whereas expatriots or other foreigners often wear their own traditional dress or more Western clothes. Thus with 2 other respectfully dressed Caucasians in tow, we threw off their game. Regardless, even with the weak dollar, everything was incredibly inexpensive, and 4 apples, 6 bananas, 2 mangos, cheerios, milk, bread, crackers, and 2 scarves later, I had spent under 8 Rials, about $21. 

Ladies only line at LuLu's

Friday night, I ventured to the beach with a group of friends, a short walk away, where the water felt like a bathtub (quite a change from the Pacific). I had gills in my past life, and thus merely wading felt like heaven. The trek their however was dangerous. Omanis are known for being atrocious drivers. The traffic is nothing like that of Cairo, but they have no regard for pedestrians. The World Learning Center, where are classes are held, informed us that over the past few years, they haven’t gone a semester without having a student involved in a car accident. Yikes. 

The Grand Mosque 

Saturday, we visited the Grand Mosque (hijab time, full Islamic dress required). Religious devotion is a beautiful thing. There is a complete absence of words. The opulence, grandeur, Allah- it was perfection. 

After that, we had our first day of classes, two sessions of Omani arabic. Omani arabic is fortunately pretty close to Modern Standard, and thus is widely understood and certainly transferrable. In the future, our day will be in three parts- MSA (modern standard), Omani Arabic, and Media Arabic. I’m super stoked for Media Arabic- we’ll be learning to utilize Arabic magazines, newspapers, news shows, television, the works, and learning fun vocab like the ICJ, Super Powers, money laundering, election rigging, bilateral, and guerilla warfare. After class, we have a variety of activities, and today we met with our Peer Facilitators- locals who chat and do fun activities with us three times a week so we can practice our Arabic, learn the local underground scene, and further understand the Omani culture. 

We’ll be taking trips, as a group, to Nizwa, Nakhl, and a Jumbo trip to explore the mountains and camp in the desert. Potentially a trip to Salalah inshallah, not to mention I’m hoping to visit caves and go camping with some friends. Much more to come!

Mas salama! 

P.S.- Just for the record, I am currently listening to the call to prayer from a local mosque, an absolutely mellifluous and lovely sound. (My omani phone also has “Prayer times” under settings, in which you can program the phone to alert you at prayer times depending on your location. Cuhlassic)