In retrospect, we probably overpaid for the cab to the start line. It was three rials but it seemed like at 5:15 AM that it wasn’t worth the hassle of arguing. The Muscat Marathon started and ended at a chic shopping and living enclave at the Al Mouj Resort/Golf Course. It’s the same place we […]
We took a flyer. And by that I mean we asked a hotel cab driver to take us to the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and when he offered to give us a city tour of all the stops we wanted at 10 rials an hour, we agreed. It sounded like a good idea… and it […]
Reda wanted to get something before our tour today and I figured we’d just stop by the cafe in the lobby. Unfortunately they weren’t open so we wound up at the breakfast buffet… way more than I needed and WAY pricier at 10 rials apiece (about US$26 per person!!). Then I realized I messed up […]
The hour flight to Oman is on what I would classify as a redressed American Airlines 737. There’s barely enough time to take off, get to a cruising altitude, and then start a descent. But in that time we did get a snack box and apple juice. An Indian couple next to me were very […]
1/23/17 The gold souk (market) is in Old Dubai, a section of town markedly different from the glistening skyscrapers and opulence of places like Internet City Dubai or Burj Khalifia. The series of open air markets is like New York’s Canal Street but much more blatant in the wares being sold. There’s a ton of […]
It dawns on me that I’ve mentioned quite a bit about the wealth floating around UAE. But I think maybe my implied disconnect between the proverbial 1% and the masses has been insufficient. The working class are definitely working. The people I’ve talked to always seem to be working — it’s an expensive place to […]
As is often the case with group tours, there’s a long time between being picked up and actually starting the tour. Different groups are staying all over town and thus it’s always a bit of a prolonged, “we almost have everybody!” false promises. But eventually we DID have everybody. A couple from Greece, two couples […]
Reda and her friend Ilona had pre-arranged a couple of tours for me and Ilona’s visiting cousins. We started the morning at the Disney-fontified Dubai Miracle Gardens, a flower and garden expo wonderland that is perhaps most impressive for surviving in the desert climes. It’s like a year-round Rose Bowl Parade Float exhibit. Each […]
Haunted. Whether by jet lag, bad waking dreams, or bad memories, I barely slept last night. I drifted off around 9:30 PM only to wake up frantic that I missed my alarm. Dashing about the admittedly small hotel room, I fumbled for my watch only to realize it was 10:15 PM. I was wide awake, […]
The jet lag is killing me. But I grabbed a Careem over to Reda’s work place. She said it was the Gold Tower and she wasn’t kidding — we pulled into the Cluster I section of the Jumeirah Lakes Towers and there was no mistaking which building I needed: Reda would later tell me she […]