Month: February 2017

Castles, Souks and Forts

/ cathyp

 

Nizwa Fort

This fort is about 175 kilometres from Muscat and is well worth a day trip. Its in the book 1001 Places to see Before you die. I don’t take this book too seriously,

after all it does suggest the Al Bustan Palace Hotel in Muscat  is unmissable. At $366 a night for a double room we didn’t feel the need to see  their two hundred acres of garden.

But sometimes its nice to tick somewhere off a list and they are right about Nizwa.

 

view from Nizwa

 

The view of the Hajar mountains from Nizwa fort is one of the best views in Oman.

Not sure I did it justice.

shackled!
Nizwa
inside Nizwa fort
inside Nizwa
cannon
Nizwa

A great example of old Omani architecture first built in the ninth century but later rebuilt in the seventeenth century no one uninvited was going to get in here!

The walls were built to withstand mortar fire .The fort was protected by 480 gun ports and 24 openings for mortar fire.

The imams who governed Nizwa, once the capital city of Oman were very safe inside.

 If intruders managed to get in they faced a complicated climb up the inside stairs where there were unexpected gaps in the floor or places where

boiling oil or hot date syrup could be poured on them.

a pitfall
a pitfall

The original meaning of a pitfall. Ouch!

The Souk

This souk seems much more authentic than Muscat’s  Mouttrah souk.

The local men were genuinely shopping at the food market although it was fairly quiet.

.

fruit at Nizwa souk
fish at Nizwa souk
bananas at Nizwa souk

selling fruit

And on to Jabreen

Jabree was built in 1670 as a palace for the Imam.

It has  many study rooms and a place where the Imam could be protected by soldiers hiding under the floor.

If he was unsure of the motives of his visitors they would be ready to protect him.

It was left abandoned for many years it has now  been beautifully restored by the ministry of tourism.

 

view from Jabreen
inside Jabreen
Jabreen
inside Jabreen

 

An interesting day out.

A Day Exploring Muscat

/ cathyp

A Visit to the Mosque

dressed for the mosque

dressed for the mosque

 

The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is the only mosque in Oman open to non  Muslims.

Its very impressive, immaculate and huge – it can cater for 20,000 worshippers.

 

Sultan Qaboos Mosque
Sultan Qaboos Mosque
Sultan Qaboos Mosque
Sultan Quaboos Grand Mosque
Sultan Qaboos Mosque

 

 

Inside houses the second largest carpet in the world. It took four hundred weavers four years to make.

There is an enormous  fourteen metre high swarovski crystal chandelier.

inside the mosque
inside the mosque

 

 

The Al Alam Palace is the most important of the six residences of Sultan Qaboos. You can’t go in but its a nice area to walk around for a few minutes.

Al Alam Palace
Al Alam Palace

Our tour also included a visit to a private museum. Everything was beautifully presented.

There were ancient weapons, clothes and household items but for me the most interesting thing was outside.

In the garden there is a model village which shows the Omani aflaj irrigation system which dates from before 500 AD.

These ancient water channels irrigated the land when summer temperatures reach over  40°C enabling date palms and citrus trees to grow.

Omani model village
Omani model village
Omani model village
Bait al Zubair boat
Bait al Zubair garden

The Souk

Later we went to the Muttrah Souk  on the Corniche . It felt very safe and tourist friendly.

There are many household items and shoes for sale but if you go in further there are small shops selling silver and embroidery and the mysterious foreign things that you can’t work out.

The smell of frankincense is everywhere. Its very busy and sometimes the shopkeepers are quite insistent but that’s like a souk anywhere.

 

Muttrah souk
Muttrah souk
Muttrah souk
Muttrah souk
Muttrah souk
Muttrah souk

Outside the souk there is also  lots going on.

outside the souk
outside the souk

This area is good for an early evening walk and there is free wi-fi at the front of the souk. Very useful as cruise prices are outrageous.

A Day in Khasab, Oman

/ cathyp

Khasab Town

Khasab is a port on Oman’s Musandam penisular.

This remote place on the Strait of Hormuz is only about 29 nautical miles from Iran and until recently was a centre for smuggling between the two countries.

The town is not very tourist orientated but its worth a walk around to see real life somewhere so different from home.

Khasab town
bicycles in Khasab
Khasab mosque

 

The Fort

 

Khasab fort
view from Khasab fort
inside Khasab fort
inside Khasab fort
traditional boat

 

The fort, also called Khasab castle,  was built by the Portuguese in the 17th century. It is  small and perfectly formed, a perfect tourist experience.

For 5 AED you can see the skills used by people living in this inhospitable area.

In the courtyard there are traditional boats made of planks sewn together with coconut thread.

There is a reconstruction house of the lock. Built of thick stone and partly underground its designed to keep things safe while the occupants are away.

Cleverly the storage containers are put in place before the walls are finished and they are too big to fit through the doorway so they cannot be removed.

house of the lock
house of the lock

A Dhow Cruise

The only other tourist attraction here is a dhow cruise.

This takes you along this dramatic rocky shore line .

Here the mountain valleys have flooded as the Arabian tectonic plate has pushed under the Eurasian plate. So the peninsular is very slowly sinking.

The boats have shade and fruit and water is provided.

 

Telegraph Island
on the dhow
dhow cruise
dhow cruise
swimming off the coast

 

You get a three hour cruise along the coast passing small villages and getting a close up view of the striking folded cliffs.

The boats stop near playing dolphins, we got a really good view, then you  stop off at  Telegraph Island for swimming.

  The island, Jazirat al Maqlab, is about a mile of the coast. During the expansion of the British Empire in the nineteenth century a telegraph repeater cable was built on the island to boost messages on the London to  Karachi telegraph cable. This was a bad posting for British officers as the heat was unbearable in summer and the locals were very unfriendly. So when they became desperate to leave and go back to home they had to go “round the bend” the bend in the Straits of Hormuz to get back to civilisation.

dramatic coastline

A lovely day.

Coffee Time in Canterbury at the Moat Tearooms

/ cathyp

The Moat Tea rooms are in Burgate.

Moat tea rooms

 

Downstairs there are many different teas available to buy.

There are a few tables but more up the very steep stairs. The floor is so steeply sloped in the front room upstairs that we moved to the back.

This cafe emphasises its traditional feel with cakes in the window and old fashioned tables and china.

There are small round tables with pretty cloths to look like an old fashioned tea room.

upstairs moat tea rooms
upstairs moat tea rooms
scones & cream
scones & cream
scones & cream

Tea Time

 

There are a variety of different teas on the menu. I had my favourite, an Earl Grey, the description on the menu was much better than the actual tea but maybe that is just down to personal taste.

The scones were warm and the cream and jam were both good quality.

 

  • Good location, near the cathedral.
  • The service was welcoming and the waitress was efficient.
  • There are plenty of tables upstairs.
  • We had tea so I can’t comment on the coffee!
  • The food was very nice.
  • the prices are reasonable.
  • The toilets are clean!

Moat tearooms

Verdict

This tea room is mainly  aimed at tourists but we really enjoyed our cream teas. Would be happy to go back.

 

 

Coffee Time in Canterbury at The Eatery

/ cathyp

This large cafe is on the second floor past the bathroom accessories  in Fenwick.

 

 

The Eatery

There is a menu at the door and you need to queue to order. Cakes, sandwiches and lunches are all available.

 This cafe seems to be quite popular even on a weekday.

coffee at the eatery
coffee at the eatery
The Eatery
lunch at the Eatery
lunch at the Eatery

 

  • Excellent location inside Fenwick.
  • The service was a bit slow but pleasant.
  • Lots of space and plenty of seating.
  • The coffee was very nice.
  • The lunch menu was good, the fish and chips were delicious.
  • The prices are reasonable.
  • The toilets are large and clean.

 

 

 

The Eatery

 

Verdict

Very pleasant cafe with a good menu. Worth another visit.

 

Coffee Time in Canterbury at Brownlee & Ivy

/ cathyp

Inside Waterstone’s book shop this cafe is surprisingly large.

 

Brownlee & Ivy

 

 

Up the stairs this book themed area is an attractive place for coffee.

It was quite busy but there was still room to move around easily and the queue wasn’t too long.

The wi-fi was fast and we didn’t have to wait long for our food

 

 

frittata
tuna & mayonnaise

 

  • Inside Waterstones is a good location in the middle of town.
  • The service was a bit offhand and the staff seemed very stressed. The card machine didn’t work but no one felt the need to apologise for the inconvenience.
  • Comfortable seating and a flower on the table was a nice touch.
  • Coffee was quite nice.
  • The food was very nice, the frittata wasn’t perfectly cooked but tasted good. Lots of choice on the menu.
  • The prices were reasonable but I think if you are spending over ten pounds anywhere you should expect to be able to use a bank card.
  • The toilets were a strange red/pink colour but clean!

 

 

 

coffee and lunch

Verdict

This is a nice place and we may give it another try.

We enjoyed the coffee and hope the staff were just having a bad day.

 

Update!

Waterstones has moved and the store has been taken over by Closs & Hamblin or C&H as we used to call it.

The cafe has been decorated and re branded as The Haberdasher’s Kitchen.  Apart from the decor changing, the toilets are now a more normal colour, nothing much has changed. The staff and menu are exactly the same. Still OK but not great, we probably wont go again.