Camel races!

Like a kid on the way to Disneyland, I was soooooo excited as we drove 30 minutes north to attend a real, live camel race!  This was the ultimate cultural event.  It began with music and singing (lipsync) by traditionally-dressed Oman women.  The scent (and smoke) of frankincense wafted up through the stands from huge incense burners. Between the races, there were parades of men and women riding on camels, as well as traditional Omani music, dancing, and drumming shows.  Omanis are known for their friendliness and hospitality-- there was no admission charge to attend the races, and all spectators were offered bottled water, snacks, and traditional Omani halwa for free.   

 Preparing for the opening singing/lipsync show

Camels racing with owners/trainers driving alongside in SUVs

 

Camel jockeys (young and lightweight Oman boys) have recently been replaced by robots.

 

VIP seating

 

Our friends sat in the two rows in front of us (thanks S & S for letting me borrow some of your pics for this post!).  Notice the freshly-painted stands... we came home with blue paint all over our shoes and pants.

 

Notice the fancy outfits the ladies next to us were wearing.  It turns out they were dressed for one of the many between-race shows:

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David and Ethan scooping up some Omani halwa, a traditional Oman sweet made with starch, eggs, sugar, water, ghee, saffron, cardamom, nuts and rose water.   

Trivia!

Did you know... 

* David's favorite animal is the camel? 

* David was bitten by a camel while serving his mission in Virginia, and can proudly show you the scar? 

* David wrote a paper titled, "Camels, Ships of the Desert" while studying the middle east at BYU? 

* I gave David a stuffed camel ("Camilla") for his birthday shortly after we were married?

* David's favorite movie is Lawrence of Arabia?

Physiotherapy and Flesh-eating fish

Here are some fun/random moments from February and March:

1.  Physical Therapy.  

My ankle started hurting in January.  When there was no improvement 4 weeks later, I went to a local clinic and paid about $10 for a visit with an Indian orthopedic surgeon.  When weeks of taking it easy and "contrast therapy" did not work, I was referred for "physiotherapy."  Basically, I came in for five 15-minute sessions of "shortwave diathermy" (no one could really explain to me what this was about, but I took a picture of the machine and Googled it when I got home).  Eventually I was referred to a specialist at another hospital, and diagnosed with tendinosis.  It's supposed to heal in another month or so. 

 

2.  Party at the Embassy

As a Fulbrighter, David was invited to a U.S. National Day Celebration at the U.S. embassy.  I guess they celebrate Independence Day early, since many expats are vacationing in cooler parts of the world during the 4th of July!  We didn't think our camera would make it past security so we only took a pic at home, but it was a fun event.  Picture important-looking people in fancy clothes, hanging out on the Embassy lawn at night, drinking cocktails while a jazz band plays.  I felt like I was in a spy movie-- there was even an exotic-looking girl in a red dress who was floating between groups of men like something from a James Bond film.  Now that you have this image in your head, imagine that American fast-food vendors are surrounding the party, supplying all the free hamburgers, onion rings, pizza, soda and Dunkin' Donuts you can eat.  Hilarious!

3.  Tour of Oman. 
A 6-day international bike race that was a sort of pre-Tour de France was held in Oman.  They rode right in front of our house!  It reminded us of watching the Olympic torch pass by our Provo apartment 4 years ago before the winter games in SLC.

 


4.  Japanese Doll Festival.
This event was organized by an expat women's group, and was held in the Japanese Ambassador's home in Muscat.  We learned about Japanese dolls, ate super-yummy Japanese finger foods, and watched as the Ambassador's wife demonstrated the traditional process of preparing and serving tea.  This was a really neat event, and renewed my interest in learning more about my Japanese family history (my mom is 1/2 Japanese). 

5.  Date night / Flesh-eating fish.
After eating at Automatic, our favorite Lebanese restaurant, David and I wandered around a trendy mall and came across this spa.  For about $15 per 1/2 hour, you can soak your legs in a tank and have small, Turkish fish nibble the dead skin off your feet!  We didn't actually stay for a session, but they let us dip our hands in just to see what it's like.  This is not an activity for the ticklish!  WAY too funny!  I could not stop laughing.

"It's sucking my will to live!"-Garth

    "It's automatic, y'all" -Weaver D

Grand Mosque

When I visited Jerusalem's Dome of the Rock in 1998, I thought it was the most beautiful building I had ever seen, both inside and out.  While the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque in Muscat can't compete in terms of historical and spiritual significance, it is a remarkably beautiful place.

 

Women have to cover their hair and bodies down to the ankle to enter the mosque courtyards.  It was a quiet, beautiful morning and reminded us of walking around Temple Square in SLC.  

 

 

Each corridor displayed niches of a different style.  

Below:  Hijaz, Ottoman, Arabian, Mamluk, Indian, Mesopotamian

 

Ablution fountains (above and below) for ritual washing before prayer

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Near the entrance of the main prayer room.  

Every direction we looked we were surrounded by beauty.  

 

Main prayer room.  The enormous chandelier was shaped like a collection of minarets (towers that broadcast the call to prayer)

Left:  Library of Korans inside the women's prayer hall 

Right:  David's female students are constantly adjusting their headscarves, so he knew exactly how to arrange mine for me.  

 

Jabrin Fort

Built by Imam Sultan bin Saif Al Ya'arubi in 1670 as a strong hold and residence.  This is probably the most beautiful of the forts we have visited in Oman, with it's elaborate carvings and decorations.  Plus, it's the first and only place we've visited where we managed to get a decent family picture!  (keep scrolling) 

 

David met some Omani and Irani men up here, and of course they wanted pictures of Claire.

 

Left - Living Room (Majlis)                              Right - Jail

 

Ethan doesn't know what guns are, but he's seen a couple dozen cannons in his life!

 

Mosque

  

 Library

 

 Bath

   

Couldn't resist some bathroom humor

 

I'd love one of these at the foot of my bed!

 

Left- Date storage room                                   Right- Goat skin container

 

  Look!  Three out of four people smiling at the camera!  It doesn't get much better than that.  Thank you, German tourists.