Oman

Muscat, Oman,Thursday, 24th of May, 2007 (days 1,2 & 3 – all together make one long day)

3:36 your time plus 8 hours makes it almost midnight for us. I’m still up, mind going, going with the flow as it is our first day here in the Gulf region. It’s all new but just like I pictured it. I haven’t experienced such heat with humidity (youmidity, like Ronnie would say), but I had visions of what a world of sand, ocean, and Middle Eastern architecture would look like. However, it is more awesome than I’d imagined. The strength and presence of each building is a statement that all things made here must be substantial. No cutting corners, only quality and beauty. Okay, so this is just my first impression after getting the car tour of Muscat - the outside of the Sultan’s palace, mosques and homes. Some of the homes I might take for a mosque or the Sultan’s palace. I would have mentioned “malls” as being part of that car tour but I wouldn’t want to put it in the same sentence as “mosque.” To me it seems disrespectful. That’s my own opinion as I am not a passionate shopper. However, I have been told that shopping is the national past time here and even more so in the Emirates and Saudi Arabia. And, yes, there are malls. They aren’t sprawling like in the States.

I must admit, that is what we did today – shop. So, besides the tour by our friend Ken, we shopped. I needed hair clips and barrettes and something more casual than the clothes I packed. Gus and I also needed a cell phone to be able to keep contact with schools that will give us interviews for work next year. Well, I found what I needed and more. Ken led me right to the Indian clothing in the Lulu’s department store. When I saw all the beautiful cloth and embroidery I said, “some other time Ken . . . it will take me too long to select something,” to which he said, “oh, we’ll give you time. You stay here and look it over, try a few things on and we’ll be back in 20 minutes.” In 10 minutes I selected 3 beautiful outfits to try on. Each outfit was on sale for $15 and included a tunic, loose pants and a scarf. So, I went gaga! They’re beautiful! I’m in heaven. If we move here I don’t know how I will keep from having a collection of 50 of these gorgeous pieces of art! I selected 2 out of the three pieces and went on to find a hair clip to go with the dressier of the two. (Did I hear myself say “sweat shop labor?”).

We went to the souk on our tour where there is store after store of Indian clothing, scarves, trinkets and cheap things made in China. We went off hours and found 2 or 3 stores open. Ken bought a mosque clock that calls you to prayer. I imagine it goes off 5 times a day. One can turn it down. I have heard the real call to prayer both in Abu Dhabi (A.D.) and here and find it hauntingly beautiful. Our friend in A.D. says it depends on the voice that is singing the call. She says there is one voice that is irritating and sounds angry.

Today is the first day of the weekend here – a Thursday. Ken refers to it as Saturday. Friday, of course, is Sunday. Understandable when you are used to one’s first day off as Saturday and the second day off as Sunday. We have tomorrow to recuperate more before we get out into the world of Muscat to interview for teaching jobs. This is good as our bodies are not in this time zone yet. We feel a bit floaty during the day here. The heat doesn’t help but I’m sure we’ll get used to it. To make matters a little more confusing, Dubai and Abu Dhabi take their weekend on Friday and Saturday.

Tonight we had a wonderful dinner of fresh fish, purslane salad, rice and a sautéed carrot and green bean dish. I made the salad and the carrots & green beans. We had an honored guest here tonight - a Brit who has lived and taught in countries throughout the Middle East. He is also a writer and has just published a book on Tagine and Masala recipes. I was truly honored that he had seconds of my salad – my first experience with purslane.

I am chomping at the bit to be able to communicate with family and friends back home but dear Ken is not wired for internet. We will have to go to Starbucks down the road and pay for connection, or go sneak into a hotel that has wireless. I am writing this babble off line for now and will send it when we can take the time to connect to the www.

Tomorrow (25th of May) our dear friend Angela, who teaches in Dubai, will join up with us for brunch. We haven’t seen her in 2 or 3 years. She is here with a Japanese friend who needs to get a visa renewed for her stay in Dubai. I presume she had to leave the Emirate in order to renew.

So, we’ve been in Muscat for 24 hours and in the region for 42 hours. The first 12 hours were spent in Abu Dhabi where we visited friends Jo and Bill. Angela, Jo and Bill are friends from the School for Int’l. Training where I did my Masters. They too did their Masters in Teaching second languages, specializing in English. All three are phenomenal teachers.

It is becoming more and more apparent to me that we are meant to be here. With 4 close friends in the region and quick connections with their friends and colleagues we will find the right program to work with and feel right at home. My dream is to be able to connect with our students and their families and to be able to relate to them on a real and whole level. There are major cultural differences and I want to feel what it’s like to see the world as they do.

Muscat, Oman, Friday, 25 May, 2007 – 9:43
Starbucks

Okay, so I’m a tourist going after that perfect cup of coffee. One can always count on Starbucks. Ah! but they don’t have half & half. I am amazed I can even get a huge cup of Colombian here. The native drink of java is cardamom with a bit of coffee. I have yet to try it here. Gus and I make it this way at home but our recipe is coffee with a bit of cardamom.

What really makes me a tourist is that I want that big starbucks coffee mug that has “Muscat, Oman” and a picture of an incense burner on it. In Philly and Doylestown I scoff at the starbucks mugs with “Doylestown” or “Philadelphia” on them. I wish I’d brought a couple to give as gifts. There are some Omani men sitting in the center of the cafe. One has an espresso cup and another has the giant mug. I wonder if there was Colombian in the large mug and if he enjoyed it.

I am still typing this message to you on a word document because I haven’t been able to connect to the internet. I’m disappointed it isn’t as easy as “1-2-3” or just “1 (one)”! In the Ashland, OR airport one just gets online as if she were in her own home with wireless. The whole city of Ashland has wireless for universal access. I guess that’s the way the citizens like to spend their taxes. Here there is enough money to provide access for all BUT there may be some issues of censorship or control. Not sure. To get on I must register and pay. I don’t think it’s expensive but to register we need a phone number. We are purchasing a cell phone here and prepaying our minutes. This takes time. We are still getting used to business hours here.

Ah, alas, whatever happened to traveling in distant lands with no way of communication except for snail mail. Those days took much more conscientious planning, yet one didn’t think twice about it. It was just the way it was. One didn’t moan and groan about the slowness of it. Now I get a little anxious when I can’t rush a message off to my mother or bosom buddy just to say, “We’ve arrived! More later.” I am always saying “if our internet access slows down like the days when we had to dial up, I’ll quit using it.” Could I quit? I am addicted to speedy communication and finding answers to questions.
Just a moment ago I thought of a word I wanted to look up. At home I’d google it. By the time I get on the internet here I will not remember what the word was. The “need” for information is lost in a second and I am just as well off as I was before I had the thought.

As I mentioned last night today is Oman’s “Sunday.” Ken took us on a tour of the embassies – Palestine, Pakistan, Iran, Qatar, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Emirates, France, Spain, England, US and more. The ugliest was, by far, the French Embassy and Egypt’s was run down. The US & Great Britain’s were off on their own with police on patrol and barriers to entering. They also had signs that said “No photographing.” Shameful empires. If you have to live in fear then you know you are doing something wrong, no?

Here at the Starbucks I am hearing many of my favorite singer songwriters – Amy Mann, Feist, Rufus Wainwright. Wild, huh?. In this city it is not easy to feel Omani life. Unless we begin to learn their language it will be difficult to see what Omani life is like. (Will we find a place where we can hear traditional music?) Mike (the man we had dinner with last night) knows Arabic from living in Tunisia at the age of 21. He knows enough Omani Arabic to make connections with locals. I’ve seen and met more Indians than I have Omanis. If we get jobs and live here for a year or two we will surely connect. Let’s see what this month’s stay brings us for any kind of understanding of the way things are done.

I just finished a book by Tahir Shah, “The Caliph’s House,” about his first year in Casablanca where he purchased and renovated an old home. It had belonged to the Caliph of that area generations before. Tahir had grown up and lived in London prior to moving his family (wife and two young children) to Casablanca. Their first year in Casablanca was a huge struggle. I don’t think I could have stuck it out with all the obstacles they had to having a peaceful life there. It took a year to begin to learn the ropes and understand how things got done in Morocco. They had to put up with the Jinns (Ginis) or people’s belief in the Jinns. In the end it seems Tahir was a believer himself.

They say there are Jinns here in Oman. I will have to find some writings on life in Oman – whether the writer is Indian, American or French, or, better yet, Omani. I believe Omani life is very private and the foreigner is not invited into their realm.

Saturday, 26 May 2007

Our weekend is over and now Gus and I can step into action. We are off to rent a car and continue our search for internet access so we can let our children, my mother and brothers know we are safe and thriving here in Muscat. One needs a car to get around Muscat and all of Oman. There is virtually no public transportation. There are taxis but, unfortunately, they are very expensive – or at least cost inhibitive. Great for an emergency but not for everyday. We will need to get around for interviews and the daily errands of life.