A tame gazelle & a pussy cat at an Oasis in Oman
In February we made a trip to the Gulf States (just in time) with a group of 10 other peeps and guided by Rich & Kristen of Inside Expeditions. My travel partner Andrew and I managed a quick pre-trip to Qatar mainly to see the MIA (Museum of Islamic Art) and the Louvre (which we missed as it was closed on Monday.)
Next we flew to Abu Dhabi to see the Grand Mosque and have a go at Falconry.
Then a few hours drive to meet our group in Dubai, home of the world’s tallest building (Birj Kahlifa). The elevator flies you up to the top floors for a pretty spectacular view of Dubai where they serve refreshments and allow you to actually step outside on the walkway surrounding the building. Even more spectacular (in my opinion) was the amazing “shopping center” at the base of the Birj. A very eclectic group of commercial enterprises including See’s Candies and Peet’s Coffee…staples of my preferred diet.
Views of Dubai and meal
From Dubai, we flew to Salalah in Oman and stayed at a pretty impressive resort. From there our group traveled by LandCruisers, 2 peeps to a car…so we had an impressive caravan of 6 cars traveling from the West of Oman to the East and the capital Muscat. To me, the amazing geology of the country was the high point. but here is a MAP of where we traveled.
Breaking into the historical village, which was closed for renovations…the superintendent was persuaded we would do no harm and besides, good for tourism when they complete the renovations.
And here are some of the amazing places and sites we witnessed:
Walking on oceanic crust…evidence of a rare abduction zone
Some characters along the way
The Opera House – a marvel
Now I might add, all this took place prior to the Iran debacle. At the last point on our trip in Muscat, we were lounging on the beach in view of the Strait of Hormuz and some tankers far in the distance. There certainly was talk of the possibility of an upcoming “intervention” and I hoped it would be averted…and hoped we wouldn’t see F15s or whatever flying over our heads. This was on February 22. Less than a week later…well, you know.
Lucky to have seen the Gulf States and, once this debacle is over, I highly recommend seeing this part of the world.
micetrail 
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