Tuesday, September 13, 2011

History of Mirbat

I was pleasantly surprised to see an article this morning in Muscat Daily on a forum that will be held on September 26th and 27th in Dhofar titled "Mirbat Throughout History". According to the article (which included several spelling mistakes....)"the programme compliments the national project to identify Omani cities and wilayats and explore their history and their scientific, intellectual and civilisational achievements. During the seminar, working papers on intellectual and scientific life, historic statues, geography, archeological landmarks, heritage and renaissance era will be presented".
Some of the speakers include Dr Abdullah bin Ali al Amri, Dr Ahmed bin Abdulrahman Balkhier, Dr Mohammed bin Said Draiby al Amri, Omar bin Abdullah Mahroos al Saiari and researchers Mohammed bin Mustahail al Shahri and Said bin Khalid al Amri.

Back in the days, Mirbat was commercial marina, and quite famous for Arabian horses. If you drive into Mirbat (an hour's drive east of Salalah), you'll notice two statues of Arabian horses by the side of the road. On the way to Mirbat, just before Mamoura Roundabout (the huge one with fountains and plastic animals), you'll notice the Royal Cavalry to your right. Usually there are about 20-30 beautiful Arabian horses chilling in the sun.

Anyway, Mirbat is a magical place, rich with culture, camping spots, beautiful beaches, white sand dunes, witches, hyenas, music, Jinn, abandoned old houses, and all that good stuff.

4 comments:

  1. I've always had a soft spot for Mirbat. Possibly my favourite town in the whole country.

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  2. I visited Mirbat about seven or eight years ago and found it very special. I hear there's been a lot of development now, but having a simple lunch by the old port, and wandering around the fascinating ancient cemetery on the outskirts too, left me with a beautiful feeling of timeless romance. Magical indeed...

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  3. Sounds like this is a place I need to see. I wish I had more time to get down to Salalah:(

    Anything with crumbling old buildings, lots of local stories, and beautiful Omani culture [horses don't hurt ever] is home to me.

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  4. Sounds like an interesting forum, though I'd also like to see a forum on Mirbat's future! It seems a navy dock is planned (see my latest blog post)

    Do you know where and at what time the forum will take place?!

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