Yesterday was Beth's birthday. We celebrated by checking off another country. This time it was Oman which is a relatively small country located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf. Our destination was the town of Dibba which was a little over two hours by bus from Dubai. We actually didn't touch the ground in Oman for more than 200 yards total. After the border crossing we hopped off the bus and walked a short distance to our awaiting boat. When we returned later in the day we walked the short distance back to the bus and headed back to Dubai. It wasn't too much "land time" but we did cross the border and set foot in the country.
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Dibba_(Musandam_Peninsula)
Although we didn't enjoy much by land we did enjoy time in the Oman coastal waters in the Gulf of Oman. Our Dhow (Arabian Boat) with about 30-40 passengers from all over the world sailed along the coast's pristine waters with treeless mountains serving as a backdrop. On two separate occasions the boat anchored for about an hour each time to allow us to swim. The water was nice and warm as well as crystal clear. Although it wasn't as salty as the Dead Sea the salt content in the water must have been pretty high. I could easily do something that I usually can't do, even in salt water, and that's float.
In addition to the sightseeing and swimming we had lunch on the boat. The meal included beef curry, chicken, fish, rice, vegetables and fruit. We also got to try fishing by hand line for a bit although the fish weren't biting too good. In the time we fished there were only two small fish and one decent sized barracuda (around two feet) caught.
It was kind of strange knowing that from where we were swimming that Iran was less than 60 miles across the way. Not wanting to be the "Ugly American" I didn't make any obscene gestures their way................................. although it was tempting.
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| Cruising the Oman coast |
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| Limestone Cave |
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| What a Dhow looks like |
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| Two hand lines and still no action |
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| An old person diving off the boat |
