Goodbye from Dubai

Our last big ocean crossing ended with a spectacular sunrise over Muscat, in Oman.

Thankfully, after a decent sleep, I had fully recovered from my malaise of the night before but S was suffering (and still is) with a full blown cold – the irony in succumbing to that after avoiding all of the more anticipated indispositions was not lost on her.

The view of Oman was breathtaking. Very neat small white buildings nestling under a sapphire sky and the most dramatic backdrop of raw mountains and cliffs behind. This landscape is dominant; the hills, sharp and with no hint of vegetation, climb back from the shore rising into the distance, with a scattering of ancient watchtowers and forts. There was something almost primeval about them, like a set from ‘Lord of the Rings’. The small harbour was also dominated – but by two enormous motor yachts each about half the sizer of our cruise ship. These, it transpired, both belonged to the Sultan!

Assure, the country was totally immaculate – not even a hint of litter or graffiti, with ultra modern roads, new shiny buildings and immaculate lawns and gardens. But it was all low-rise and built as far as possible in the traditional style. Our guide told us that Omanis pay no income tax and that education and healthcare are all free, although small levels of VAT have just been introduced on things like confectionary, soft drinks, tobacco and alcohol. However, VAT on luxury items like big cars is enormous.

Our first stop off was to visit a huge mosque. It was only 20 years old but utterly fantastic, especially in the prayer room. It had the world’s second biggest carpet and second biggest chandelier. Both were the ‘biggest’ until recently when the Iranians decided to do a bit of ‘keeping up with the Jones’s’. No doubt even bigger plans are in the pipeline to restore the situation. Probably quite literally – already taken aback by the general largesse of the state and now the mosque, which was a ‘gift’ from the Sultan, one of our companions asked the guide how much this lot all cost. He gave a broad grin;

“Sir, we are a country of 2 million citizens and God in his wisdom allows us to export 750,000 barrels of oil a day. We do not need to worry about such things…”

But the chap was also keen to point out, lest we get the wrong idea, that the Arab countries are very far from all being the same. Oman is peaceful, fully tolerant of all religions, women have fully equal rights in all matters, welcomes refugees (The number of ex pats of one sort or another is equal to the local population) and generally tries to be discreet and low-profile. Well, apart from the couple of yachts but who cares?? It really was a lovely country and we may well go back one day.

The day ended with a walk around the Souk – which to some amongst us is a sort of shopping heaven. However those same ‘some’ who were desperate to buy a souvenir, weren’t quite so well versed in the art of haggling and I was asked to help!

S – “How much for this shawl“

Shopkeeper – “20 pounds madam, but for you only 15”

S- “Wow, that a real bargain!”

Me – “NO it really isn’t – that’s far too much”

S – “ No, it’s fine”

Me- “Shuttup!”

Shopkeeper – “OK sir, look just as favour, I say 12 pounds”

Me- “I don’t have 12 pounds”

S – “Yes you do, you said you had a £20 pound note”

Me – ‘NO I DONT – they’re on the ship! I only have dollars..”

Shopkeeper – “OK sir, look 12 dollars only”

Me – “10 dollars or we go somewhere else”

S – “NO, I want this one!”

In the end, the shopkeeper either decided that this was a fearsome and unknown new haggling technique that would somehow catch him out, or he just took pity on me. Either way, we ended up with two for 20 dollars and everyone was happy.

That evening, we set sail for the last time. In the twilight, S saw a couple of waterspouts from a passing whale which made her day.

And now, we’re bang up to date and the journey is ending. Last night, we passed through the Straits of Hormuz without incident (no so much a single patrol boat was seen!) although there was a tantalising glimpse of the distant mountains of Iran in the early morning sunlight. It looks a beautiful country – who knows, one day?

This is more than can be said of the view to the other side; the first sight of the emirates is one long bleak coast of oil refineries, oil rigs and many hundreds of associated vessels. Coming up ahead is the skyline of Dubai, which looks like something out of a science fiction movie. I suspect Dubai will be my least favourite part of the trip, and so although we have a final trip ashore this afternoon and one night left on the boat before flying home tomorrow, I will end the story here, not least as there wont be any more time to do so.

We’ve had a fabulous trip and seen some wonderful places and people. We’ve also enjoyed the ‘cruise’ much more than either of us imagined and met some really nice people, although as S sweetly put it:

“We might have met even more if you hadn’t started every conversation by saying that you swore you’d never go on a cruise and that you’re totally antisocial on holiday!”

There is a possibility that I should heed S’s wisdom more often than I do…

Anyway, we’ve thoroughly enjoyed our four weeks away (and being completely detached from everything back home!) and although this blog is a personal record for the two of us, we hope that you’ve found at least some of it mildly interesting.

So, Goodbye form Dubai!