Sultanate of Oman - Day 2 - National Museum of Oman, Souq, Muscat Flower Festival

Joining Tom for his "signs" meme.

National Museum of Oman.

Saturday 4th January - After breakfast, we took a taxi to the Old Muscat area where the Sultan's ceremonial palace - Qasr al-Alam Palace - stands opposite the National Museum. 

The palace was commissioned by Sultan Qaboos bin Said, who died in January 2020, was erected between the two 16th century Portuguese forts of Al Mirani and Al Jalali and completed in 1972. It has a unique facade of blue and gold columns and even though the grounds are off-limits, the public can take photos near the gates. The surrounding gardens are beautifully manicured and the palace is in a beautiful setting between the mountains and the sea.

One of the forts above the Sultan's palace

Karina and Jose in front of the ornate blue and gold gate

Across the extensive roundabout is the National Museum of Oman. The very modern museum was established in 2013, and showcases the nation's heritage from the earliest human settlement in the Oman Peninsula about 2 million years ago to the present day. 

National Museum of Oman

We loved our visit, the museum had a lot of interesting exhibits, it was a great cultural experience.

                                         

Wooden carved doors

An illuminated maquette of the area where the Palace and Museum are located

                     

Maquettes a few of forts around Oman

In 1998 a shipwreck was discovered off the coast of Oman, which is believed to be the "Esmeralda", a ship from Vasco da Gama's second voyage to India (year 1502/3).

The excavation of the shipwreck took place between 2013 and 2015 and over 2800 artifacts were found at the wreck site included coins, navigational instruments, etc, which helped determine the nationality and date of the wreckage.

Cruzados (gold coins) issued by King Dom Manuel I, minted in Lisbon c.900-907

and a bronze Sodré Astrolabe, c.1496/1500 the oldest known astrolabe in the world. It measures 17,5cm in diameter and features the Portuguese royal coat of arms (armillary sphere), a personal emblem of the King of Portugal. Astrolabes were used to measure the altitude of the sun and stars in order to determine geographical latitude.

Cruzados (coins), bronze bell and astrolabe

Model of a Portuguese Caravel (1,1mt) made by Carlos Montalvao - a replica of the "Berrio" from Vasco da Gama's first fleet to India, which sailed from Lisbon on the 8th July 1497 and returned on 10th July 1499 with the news of the discovery of the India Route. This caravele was among the first European ships encountered by Omani merchants in East Africa.

A bronze Falconet cannon from Macau (1052/3), made by Manuel Tavares Bocarro, richly decorated with acanthus leaves on the muzzle and barrel and handles designed to resemble Chinese style lions. The words "Viva el rei dom Joao 4" (Long live King John IV) are inscribed on the breech of the cannon.

Antique gold ornaments and 2 old Bibles

                  

The frankincense tree (Boswellia sacra) is a tree native to the Arabian Peninsula (Oman, Yemen) and Somalia in Africa. It produces a resinous dried sap, that when harvested can be used for incense, essential oils and perfume - quite popular in Oman. 

After our visit we decided to enjoy a slow walk along the corniche, until we reached the Souq (market) about 4km away.

But first we stopped at a small eatery - Karak Baba Jan - where we sat outside. The owner/cook wasn't too well versed in English, but we managed to order a few snacks. We had ordered a salad too and we saw him run across the road to the mini-market to buy lettuce. Later someone from the supermarket left a frozen chicken on the verandah (probably ordered before).

When it came to pay, he only accepted cash, but Karina only had big notes and he had no change, so off he goes again across the road to get change...

Another Western couple only had a card to pay with, and they eventually offered to pay in American dollars which the proprietor accepted.

Anyway we had a few giggles there.

               

The small restaurant where we stopped for lunch

Home-made chicken nuggets, chicken wraps, mint and lime juice

From the restaurant: view of Al-Mirani fort rebuilt by the Portuguese in 1587

We carried our walk in the corniche to the Muttrah area, past the Muscat Gate. There is a small free Museum located here on the fortress walls on Al Saidiya street, which we didn't visit. (with exhibits about Muscat's ancient wells, souqs, mosques, harbours and forts).

A nice mosque near the old gate

Along the corniche appeared a strange structure - Riyam Censer - built on top of Riyam Park hill, this gigantic incense burner was built to celebrate Oman's 20th National day in 1990.

Along the way we also found lots of marble statues with sea animals

The sun was setting and we were nearing the heart of the Muttrah (sea port and commercial centre of Muscat).

A huge yacht - Al Said - in the Sultan Qaboos Port was indicated to us as belonging to the Sultan of Oman. In 2008 when it was finished it was the second largest in the world!

Sultan's yacht

The Muttrah Fort came into view. An historic fort on the hills overlooking the harbour. We visited it another day.

Muttrah fort

Muttrah Souq

We entered the souq (market) just for a quick look around and to buy some fridge magnets. Just like in Qatar, it was clean and we didn't get hassled to buy anything. 

Muttrah's souq is the oldest marketplace in Oman.

After our visit we caught a taxi to the hotel, so we could put on warmer clothes to go out again, this time to visit the Muscat Flower Festival.

A funny sign in a shop outside the souq : Take the shop (rent me)

Muscat Flower Festival

I had read somewhere about the Muscat Flower Festival, at Qurum Natural Park, and I'm glad we visited this exhibition as it was beautiful, with flowers, food, entertainment and drone shows. It runs for a month from about the end of December to the end of January. The taxi driver dropped us by the main gate and we joined the short queue to buy the entry tickets.

A huge variety of stunning flower displays...

Th flag of Oman in flowers

                                     

In between the flower exhibitions, we stopped for dinner.

Shot sign, food area, our fresh juices

While we sat enjoying our dinner, the fabulous drone show started just above us.

More entertainment with dancers from other countries.

I love Oman sign

And it was time to go back to the hotel via another entrance and more flowers...

                                 

Exiting the park

What an amazing exhibition!

FOR day 1 - check this link: 

https://sami-colourfulworld.blogspot.com/2025/04/sultanate-of-oman-day-1.html

Sultanate of Oman - Day 1 - Muscat

Joining Tom's "signs" meme.

Friday 3rd January -  Karina had suggested we could visit of the neighbouring countries if we wished, as we were only returning home on the 10th of January.    We decided to fly to Muscat in the Sultanate of Oman,  just 1 hour flight from Doha. 

Having learned about the Portuguese occupation of Oman in the 16th and 17th century, I was keen to visit the country.

(From Wikipedia: The Portuguese arrived in Oman and occupied Muscat for a 143-year period, from 1507 to 1650. In need of an outpost to protect their sea lanes, the Portuguese built up and fortified the city. Remnants of Portuguese architectural style still exist. Later, several more Omani cities were colonized in the early 16th century by the Portuguese, to control the entrances of the Persian Gulf and trade in the region as part of a web of fortresses in the region, from Basra to Hormuz Island)

DOHA TO MUSCAT

After a quick self check-in on the machines, at Hamad International Airport, Karina, Jose and I proceeded to the luggage and passport control for our 11am departure. 

On the way down the escalators to the airport's main foyer I spotted the famous "Lamp Bear" by Swiss artist Urs Fischer. 

The 20 tonne bronze bear is 7 mt (23ft) tall and sits under a lamp. Apparently it was bought at a New York auction in 2011 for $6.8 million (QR 25 million), the price having set a new world record for the artist's sculptures.

    

                             

I always tend to request a window seat as I love taking photos at take-off and landing. This time when we flew over Pearl Island I took a photo of the Isola Dana area, which comprises of 9 private independent islands, accessible through a private causeway, with each island boasting a private beach and yacht harbour.

The pearl island

 And just before landing some photos of the city of Muscat.

At the Muscat airport (MCT is the airport code)

Ladies toilet (pretty but could look better with eyes)

We caught a taxi to our Hotel and were surprised at the modern multiple lane highway into the city.

Our 3*** hotel - Muscat Plaza Hotel - was just on the outskirts of the city, just 15 minutes from the airport.

Although some reviews had described the rooms as luxurious, they were actually old-fashioned, but everything was clean. The hotel offered a buffet breakfast for 3 Omani rial (12 Aud) which was reasonable.

Street view from the front of the hotel

The main entrance to the hotel

Both our rooms faced the back of the building with the windows facing a wall of another building

After settling in, we took a ride-share to the central beach area to have lunch at Nana's Restaurant, in front of Shati Al Qurum beach. We sat in the covered outdoor area and had a wonderful lunch and great service. The waiter asked what language we were speaking and when we said "Portuguese" he quickly replied "Cristiano Ronaldo". Of course the famous Portuguese footballer who now plays for Saudi Arabia is well known in the Gulf countries too. 

We went back twice to the same restaurant and the same waiter always welcome us with "Welcome Cristiano" 😃.

Nana's Restaurant across from the grassed area and beach

We ordered "Qoozi" - slow cooked lamb, and rice with roasted nuts and raisins, and chicken shawarma (without the wrap) with fries and salad. Fresh juices were always great.    I drank lemon-mint juice, which was quite refreshing.

After lunch we walked along the beach promenade.

A butterfly selfie mural - Karina and I

This guy was doing some sort of live podcast at the back of his Polaris, but Jose didn't notice and stopped to chat to him about the car. He was kind enough to answer a few questions and then just continued speaking to his camera.

The sun was setting and we continued walking... and night had already fallen when  we reached the Crowne Plaza Hotel, where we stopped for a drink. (Just like in Qatar, alcohol can only be served in hotels or hotel restaurants).

Crowne Plaza (white building)

In the hotel hall they had Christmas decorations. obviously in honour of their foreign guests.

Crowne Plaza bar

We sat outside on the hotel patio overlooking the pools and tennis court, with a view to the city across the bay. 

We didn't stay long, the weather had cooled quite a bit and we didn't have warm clothes with us. Karina called a ride-share car (Otaxi), and we were surprised when  a fancy Mercedes showed up. We realized on another occasion that only premium cars can pick up guests at top hotels. They cost 4 times the normal price though...

Uber does not operate in Oman, they just have Otaxi's and Marhaba taxis. We used Otaxi and they were quite cheap and only operated by Omani's (foreigners cannot drive taxis in Oman, unlike in Qatar where Ubers are probably 100% driven by foreign workers).  

We found the Omanis to be very gentle, friendly and welcoming people, eager to learn, curious about other cultures... Most of the ones we had contact with spoke reasonable English. The ones that didn't would do google translate on their phones.

The only gripe with the taxi drivers is that they were always on their phones - talking, texting, some would even show us their family photos (yes, that happened too). Luckily speed wasn't a problem, but hardly makes for a safe ride!

FOR DAY 2 READ HERE: https://sami-colourfulworld.blogspot.com/2025/04/sultanate-of-oman-day-2.html