Salalah, Oman

This morning we sailed into Salalah, a town of 260,000 people in the country of Oman. Oman has 2.5 million people but we didn't see many of them.
The land looked much like you might think- many shades of brown, dusty palm trees everywhere and camels wandering all around. Salalah is famous for its Frankincense trees. We actally only saw one- conveniently placed near the side of the road. Frankincense is used to make incense and also the kohl dark lining that Egyptian women use around their eyes. Frankincense comes in yellow, green and white.

We made a stop at the Old Souk and the Incense Souk- another name for bazaars- and saw lots of women selling Frankincense. The women were dressed in long dresses but their were various face covering- some totally covered, some with tiny eye slits, and some just their hair covered. We were asked to not take pictures of the women and so we didn't. Jim did buy a hat- the only one he could find. Bargained down to $2.00 for it but we know he will need something for his head in Egypt.

The other place of "fame" was the tomb of Job...complete with a concrete footprint. The tomb was long- about 10 feet- and covered with beautful cloths. Had no idea Job was so tall..ha..ha!!! Was terribly touristy. The tomb was surrounded by beautiful hybiscus and bourgenvellia. Naturally we had to take off our shoes and the women had to cover their heads to visit this place.

In 1970 this country was not advanced at all. There were no school and only 10 kilometers of paved roads. A new Shah came into power and decided to change life for all people. Schools were built and training for jobs began. Seems now to be very well established. School is free and mandatory until 18. Housing looks good. People were in the house following lunch napping. The place gets busy after dark.

The stark contrast to India with it crowded conditions, colorful clothing, dirty streets, slum-like housing was immediately felt by both of us as we saw Oman's open spaces with few people in sight and with everything so very clean. The desert-color created a calm atmosphere. Been an interesting port for us.