Brilliance of the Seas - Oman City and Mosque Tour (Dec 2011)

On the second day of our Oman stay (we had an overnight on the Brilliance), we used the same comany (Mark Tours) on a City and Mosque tour.

We had to be conservatively dressed to enter the mosque.  That included headscarves for ladies.  This was taken outside the mosque.

This was the doorway into the mosque.

This gives you an idea of the acceptable attire.

Some visitors were just chilling out with a drink at the cafe.

I found the small fountain pretty.

This is inside the mosque grounds.  A beautiful and tranquil place.

A bright and sunny day.

Another angle.

Bright and sunny.

Loved the fountains.

Ladies in their headscarves.  Long sleeves were also mandatory, as with long pants.

Beautiful exteriors.

Almost like a magical garden.

Following the guide into the prayer hall.

Prayer Hall- For Women

This was the prayer hall for women.  Men and women prayed at different venues.

The blue carpet was specially laid out for tourists to walk on.

Nice ceiling, notice the air-conditioning vents.

Intricate doors.

Now, we head to the main hall of the mosque, where only the men can pray.

Very intricate stuff.

A peaceful place.

Quiet day.

Beautiful archway.

Once inside, you see this huge chandelier.

And many smaller ones.

Again, the blue carpet was laid out.

 Intricate artwork.

This gives you a sense of how big the hall is.

 The hallway.

Back outside.

Very pretty in the radiant sunshine.

 Notice the double archways.

 The gardens, as we head back to our ride.

The mosque was very tranquil and beautiful. Definitely worth a visit, if you are in Muscat, Oman.  Only in the Middle East, would you see such beautiful mosques.

Safe Travels!

More reviews:
1) Check out the Big Yella Fella at FlyScoot (Sydney to Singapore)

2) Care for the Austrian Arrow? (Helsinki to Vienna)

3) Evergreen Shanghai to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific.

4) Awesome Air Asia (Singapore to Bangkok).

5) Swiss Flight Links

a) Singapore to Rome (via Zurich) Economy Class, Nov 2013

b) Rome to Singapore (via Zurich) Economy Class, Dec 2013

6) Singapore Airlines SQ 322 Singapore to London (Business Class).

7) Celebrity Silhouette Mediterranean & Adriatic Seas Cruise in Nov 2013

Brilliance of the Seas Dubai Cruise - Oman Interior Tour (Dec 2011)

Muscat, Oman.  The Brilliance of the Seas cruise had an overnight port call here.  I never imagined that we would visit Oman, but we did!

Tourist passes, given to us when we left the port.  We did not need to bring our passports with us.  The tourist visa charges were placed on the sea pass account.

The Oman port.  It was a container port.

And we were docked right next to a container ship.  The crew had a good view of the Brilliance.

We had arranged for a private tour.  However, the tour vehicle was not allowed to come into port.  Therefore, we had to hop on a complimentary shuttle to the port gates.  Walking from the ship to the gates was not allowed.

We used Mark Tours - a recommendation from the Cruise Critic forum.  They were reliable.  There were eight in our party and we got a very comfortable bus, which came with a driver and a female tour guide.

Driving through the city. Everything looked very clean and orderly.

The vehicle the tour company assigned to us could seat 12.  There were only 8 in our party.  It was a very comfortable and spacious ride.

Driving along.  The roads were well constructed.

The scenery was very interesting.

Most cars were Japanese brands.

Looks like sand dunes.

It was to be a long journey.  It would take more than 1.5 hours to get to our destination.

That's the name of the Tour Company.

What a view!  It was very bright and sunny outside.

Nizwa Souq - After a 1.5 hour ride (the chap was going quite fast too), we finally reached the interior city of Nizwa.

From Wiki
Nizwa (Arabic: نزوى‎) is the largest city in the Ad Dakhiliyah Region in Oman and was the capital of Oman proper. Nizwa is about 140 km (1.5 hours) from Muscat. The population is estimated at around 70,000 people including the two areas of Burkat Al Mooz and Al Jabel Al Akhdar.

A bright and sunny day.  Time to stretch our legs.

Meat Souq.

Inside the Souq.  It was air-conditioned!

After the Souq, we walked past some shops on the way to Nizwa Fort.

Like a scene from a movie.

Arabian Daggers.

They look very ceremonial.

Wonder what these are for.

After walking past the shops, we reached the Nizwa Fort.

From Wiki:
The Nizwa Fort is a massive castle in Nizwa, Oman. It was built in the 1650s by the second Ya’rubi Imam; Imam Sultan Bin Saif Al Ya'rubi,^[1] although its underlying structure goes back to the 12th Century.^[2] It is Oman's most visited national monument. 

Cannon.

The Ministry of Tourism welcomes you.

Fort Plan.

Inside the fort.

Display on how they stored supplies.  After all, as a Fort, they expected to be seiged.

Another model of the fort.

Some descriptions.

That's a crazy guy trying to imagine he was superman.

View of the surroundings from the Fort.  A commanding view.

Let's blast those enemies with our cannons.  Fire!

Whose turn to do guard duty?

Pretty much an oasis out there!

Safe travels!

More reviews:
1) Check out the Big Yella Fella at FlyScoot (Sydney to Singapore)

2) Care for the Austrian Arrow? (Helsinki to Vienna)

3) Evergreen Shanghai to Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific.

4) Awesome Air Asia (Singapore to Bangkok).

5) Swiss Flight Links

a) Singapore to Rome (via Zurich) Economy Class, Nov 2013

b) Rome to Singapore (via Zurich) Economy Class, Dec 2013

6) Singapore Airlines SQ 322 Singapore to London (Business Class).

7) Celebrity Silhouette Mediterranean & Adriatic Seas Cruise in Nov 2013