Monday Night

Greetings from rainy wet muddy delightfully cheerful Salalah. 

First of all, thank you for those of you who commented on my previous post and for the many readers who emailed me privately to express their support/their own beliefs. It means the world to me.

Now, for news updates from our end of the country:

1) Salalah is officially invaded. Review my post from 2012. Nothing has changed. I avoid leaving the house at all times. Last weekend I went grocery shopping at 8:30  a.m to avoid the tourists, and the supermarket was still packed. Oh well.

(road from Ittin to mountains - avoid at all costs)

2) Very sad news today about the bodies of two missing young men from the UAE who drowned in Mirbat after attempting to swim in the ocean. Despite the signs up everyone saying "DON'T SWIM FROM MAY TO OCTOBER", people continue to risk their lives every year. Then every year we hear sad news about tourists who drown. 

3) I was VERY pleased to hear that Big Bus Tours is running tours in Salalah this khareef. It's 7 rials per person for 24 hours. The tour is 1 1/2 hours long and takes off from Salalah Gardens Mall main parking lot. You can get brochures with the route at the tourist kiosk in the mall near Carrefour (opposite Red Tag). 

4) Rumor has it that a mother-daughter duo (from Italy!) have opened up an authentic lasagna restaurant (take-out) in Salalah. It's on airport road (near Dhofar Hotel). The food is incredibly good. I'm heading there ASAP. 

5) The Festival: started officially on July 23rd but some of the exhibitions and attractions aren't open yet, so I'm waiting a few more days before I go to visit. For more details on the festival and news in Salalah, listen to Oman English FM (90.4) from 7-8 pm every evening. Informative program with interesting interviews. They have a new correspondent (Hani Al Baraka). He and Talal are doing Salalah proud. 

6) Dahariz Beach: has gone through a complete makeover. There is a lovely new walkway, barbecue areas, little gazebo thingies, and lots of seating area for about a kilometer. They're also about to open up a huge Al Makan Cafe (popular in Muscat). I've been walking there. It's a great place to be outdoors while avoiding the crowds. Tourists tend to head more towards the mountains during the monsoon with very few people congregating on beaches (the waves are rough because of the monsoon)

7) Oman lover and author Maria Dekeersmaeker has published yet another book on Oman. The new book is called Whispers of Oman and it is essentially stories about women. I can't wait to get my hands on it. Her book "The DNA of Dhofar" is also in my possession. Despite its unique structure, it's very informative. If you see any hard copies of the new book let me know.

8) RAFO roundabout is NO MORE. Salalah's infamous fountain roundabout that changes colors is gone. There is a story about that roundabout. Apparently back when it was first build, people had never seen color-changing fountains before. An old woman thought His Majesty had built a juice fountain to quench the thirst of all Dhofaris.  Well, it's gone now. In its place is an efficient set of traffic lights that have made our lives much much easier this week. They were inaugurated on Saturday. 

9) Most importantly, Lulu is selling caffeine-free coke. You have no idea what this means to me. Occasionally (like once every week or two weeks) I crave a coke. Problem is, I'm becoming increasingly caffeine intolerant. I have my coffee at 7 am. Anything after about 11 a.m will have me doing an Irish jig at midnight.

That's all for now folks. Back to snorting at Tom Hanks in Carly Rae Jepsen's video "I really like you". I finally got around to watching it.

Nadia 

PS (will the new Mall of Oman have Ikea? That's all that matters to me)

More Photos: Festival of the Negroes

Thank you Mahfaif, over at Tahyati Blog for these photos. And our dear friend The Dragon is back with a post on detained blogger Muawiyah Al Rawahi. Check it out here. (PS - I'm mourning Whitney)

PHOTOS: Festival of the Negroes

Thanks to a reader (who wishes to remain anonymous), here are some photos from the festival yesterday. I received mixed reviews from my readers (read the comments on the previous post). I still find the whole festival bizarre.

Monsoon Post

I thought I'd be full of ideas and things to write about during the monsoon, but no such luck. I've been feeling quite blank lately (and busy), and figure I shouldn't waste my time on the computer. Salalah is as it always is during monsoon season; crowded, muddy, and in party-mode. Picnics and camping trips are in, everyone's out at their tents (see post below) during the afternoons and evenings, no one is in the mood for working or studying; but sadly we all have to make a living. It had stopped raining for three days, and I was beginning to get worried, but thank goodness this morning sure enough there was rain and I could use my windshield wipers again!

I visited the Salalah Festival last week and was quite impressed. It's definitely better (if only a little bit) than last year. I'm not a festival person and don't like crowded places, so it's a wonder I even went! I watched traditional dancing in the old village, drank fresh pomegranate juice in a traditional Omani style tent-turned-restaurant, visited friends working at the different booths and stalls, and last but not least I visited the photography exhibition! Finally something decent! 15 very talented Dhofari photographers (sadly all male) with 4-6 photographs each. I guess I was blown away by the photographs of faces. Some guys captured wrinkles and eyes so well. In the past, photography exhibitions usually were about scenery, scenery, and more landscapes, but this year I've noticed unique photography styles and subjects. I was intrigued by a photograph of a spider, and a lotus, and the doors were amazing too. Lots of wonderful black and white shots. I recognized several names of local photographers and am really proud of our talent here in Dhofar. I wish more women would participate.

I heard rumors that there were 35 weddings in Salalah on Thursday. No kidding. Didn't I tell you it was wedding season?

We have an odd tradition in Salalah of weddings payments. When a young man gets married, he pays for his house, the dowry, the cows, the wedding, etc, etc. It can sometimes be very very costly. However, we have a great social system where all the men who go to weddings will put a certain amount in a box at the wedding to support the groom. Usually it's 20 Rials for distant relatives and more if you're close to the guy. It all works out very well in the end. If a guy spends 20,000 OMR on his wedding, he may very well receive 14,000 OMR back on the wedding day just from tribal donations.

HOWEVER, what happens if a man has to attend five or six weddings every week during the monsoon? He's paying 100-200 Rials a week on weddings? A man has to pay because people are expected to pay if his sons get married. So, usually, monsoon is crisis time because of all the weddings. This doesn't even include paying for his wive(s) and daughters to get dressed/dolled up for the wedding (dress, gold, henna, makeup, hair, etc, etc - see post below 'Father of the Tail and Dish Detergent').

You see, life can be a blessing and a crisis. Why do all people decide to get married during the same two months?

Welcome to Salalah.

PS (This photo was taken near Zaik, in the mountains)