Wednesday, Oct 8th – East of Salalah

We got picked up at the hotel shortly before 9 am by our driver, who had already picked up our friends at another hotel. We drove east of Salalah, sometimes on roads, sometimes off road. We saw a sinkhole created by a meteor many years ago. It was pretty impressive. We saw another falaj, a piece of human engineering which allows the capture and use of the water flowing from the mountain. The water was nice and clear, but not very cold to drink, understandably (it ain't the Rockies!). We went to see a river, which at home would be no big deal, but here, there aren’t too many of those. It is a big deal. People were taking pictures on the dock, taking boat rides and using paddle boats. The river was maybe 30 meters wide. Jacqui and I were thinking that if we stopped our car at every river we see in Canada when travelling, we would never get to destination. But here, it’s different. We saw some Bedouins taking care of a herd of camels and finally ended up on a cliff, by the water. From there, we could see a sea turtle swimming in the water, and a gorgeous beach in front of a town called Taqah. We visited an old Fort in that town, and then drove back to our hotel to enjoy the rest of the afternoon by the pool and the beach. It was a very nice day.

It's green, as we are heading up a mountain

Doesn't look very desertish, does it?

Flowers found in trees up the mountain

A falaj (collecting and directing water to be used for consumption and irrigation)

Having a natural drink!

Road construction - it's universal!!!

The valley, seen from the mountain

A sinkhole, create by a fallen meteor

A natural port, used by Queen Sheba for exporting frankincense and other goods

Herd of camels

The river

The beach, at Taqah

Getting in the old Fort at Tawah

Inside the old Fort

The new Fort

Household items used by the people living in the Fort

Sulaih, our guide

Sunset on the beach by our hotel in Salalah