All Quiet in Muscat

Yes, another visa run has us spending the night in Muscat, Oman with the decision made to play tourist and enjoy the sites. It was a bit of a surprise to find after we returned home that this particular weekend was the point in time that the Omani people decided that Tunisia and Egypt were getting too much world press and to start protesting against their own government.

We saw nothing at all the entire two days to suggest that even one local citizen was unhappy as everyone in Muscat was friendly with smiling faces – probably at the prospect of separating us of our money since B had her shopping face on the entire time. Apparently there were anti government protests in some of the rural areas of the country which to me seems somewhat of marketing blunder as there aren’t many people out there in the middle of the desert. If you ask me how to get attention, go to the big city and throw rocks at the Presidential Palace.

Nary a rock thrower in sight at the Sultan's Palace.

Perhaps the Omani citizens are merely shaking their proverbial sticks in the air and scowling in front of the cameras to see what goodies the Sultan will give them, seeing how some great reforms have been granted in some of the other neighboring countries for the same kinds of actions.  Sure enough, The Sultan was spooked enough to announce a few days later that the minimum wage had been doubled, a few of his cousins had been thrown out…uh…replaced in high government positions and a dialogue would be opened up with the people, a popular promise in this part of the world over the past few months.

Fun at the Muscat Festival

We attended the last night of the Muscat Festival, a kind of Fatacil (for my Algarvian friends) and felt very comfortable walking among everyone. We were even interviewed by a local radio station – typical questions. How do you like the festival? Where are you from?  So thank you to the dozens of our American friends who expressed their concern that we might have been beheaded during the weekend but we are fine, rested and ready to explore again during the next visa run, probably to Qatar next.