Well, Wadi ya know - Lausanne to Muscat 2018 Day 4 (Muttra Souk)

BONZO · 18 Feb 18, 07:12 PM

Friday 19th January

Cast:
Me: Shaun
Alison (who edits and adds comments to these reports before I post them!)

Link to Index is here: - Trip Report index

After a usual couple of wakeful patches we finally got out of bed by about 8 o’clock, got ourselves ready and went to the lounge for breakfast. We had a nice relaxing breakfast of coffee and pastries outside on the patio area and looked out over the mountains– wonderful.

Today was mainly going to be a relaxing one, so after going back to the room and collecting our bits and pieces it was down to the pool.

No European style bun fight for loungers here, probably as it was out of season. It was a bit of a cloudy start but the clouds soon burnt off and we stretched out for some well-deserved down time.

Time passed and after a couple of dips in the pool and hot tub

We left the loungers after a morning of doing not much and went back up to the lounge for some non-alcoholic drinks and snacks on patio. I think this was fanta….

before returning to then out to the area we called the grassy knoll.

This was a patch of hedged off grass area with loungers between the main hotel and the beach and only available to hotel residents. A really nice spot being nestled between the beach and the sea so that you have the best of both worlds.

It was especially nice as we lay in the sun as we got a text from oldest DD at home saying it was 2 degrees and she just had to scrape the ice off her car! We wandered onto the beach and had a swim in the warm sea which was lovely!

The slightly disconcerting thing was the armed security staff and airport style metal detector to get back into the hotel grounds. All would be revealed later although it wasn’t obvious at the time.

We went back to our room to get changed and this time I remembered to get changed into long trousers for the evening. As we arrived at the lounge I noticed a chap wearing shorts and sure enough he was politely turned back to go and get changed into something more suitable after taking the walk of shame.

After a very nice selection of food and drink

We stopped by the concierge desk to enquire on the going rate for a taxi to Muttra Souk, the reply was about 6 riyals or £12 in UK money. Armed with this knowledge we stepped outside and flagged down a taxi and Alison skilfully negotiated the price down to the going rate.

The driver was paid and made our way to the Souk, all brightly lit up and again exceptionally clean with mainly locals wandering around.

We took care not to wander into the historic Shiite district of Al Lawataya by mistake, as the settlement is walled to protect the privacy of the residents here. There is a clear sign under the archway that politely requests visitors to keep out.

Compared to the souk in Marrakesh, this one is totally different in look and feel in a number of ways. Brightly lit and very clean and very little bother from the storekeepers unless you decide to stop and look at their wares.

It’s an absorbing labyrinth of narrow, perfume-laden alleyways packed with colourful little shops stacked high with tubs of frankincense and bukhoor, old silver khanjars, Bedu jewellery and other exotic paraphernalia – one of the few markets in the world where it’s possible to buy gold, frankincense and myrrh all under a single roof!

I did take a fancy to the local headgear, I tried one on but decided that I couldn’t really style it out so left it behind.

We did buy a couple of small bit and bobs including the obligatory fridge magnet for home and some harem pants for the girls.

It’d be interesting to see what the place was like during the day although we’ve been told that it can get very busy when the cruise ships dock and their passengers disembark.

It was getting a bit late by now so we picked up a taxi outside on the street and negotiated a taxi fare back again to the hotel where we headed back up to the lounge for coffee and pastries. I did think that I would be still in time for a quick night cap but I had missed the boat on that one.

We took a short stroll down the beach before bed but started to flag badly so we turned back and went to room and called it a night.

Glee Fan · 7 Jun 18, 04:28 PM

Love your new head wear! The pool area looks lovely. Shame you missed your night cap.

18 Feb 18, 07:12 PM	#1
	18 Feb 18, 07:12 PM BONZO Imagineer
BONZO Imagineer Join Date: Mar 02	Well, Wadi ya know - Lausanne to Muscat 2018 Day 4 (Muttra Souk) Friday 19th January Cast: Me: Shaun Alison (who edits and adds comments to these reports before I post them!) Link to Index is here: - Trip Report index After a usual couple of wakeful patches we finally got out of bed by about 8 o’clock, got ourselves ready and went to the lounge for breakfast. We had a nice relaxing breakfast of coffee and pastries outside on the patio area and looked out over the mountains– wonderful. Today was mainly going to be a relaxing one, so after going back to the room and collecting our bits and pieces it was down to the pool. No European style bun fight for loungers here, probably as it was out of season. It was a bit of a cloudy start but the clouds soon burnt off and we stretched out for some well-deserved down time. Time passed and after a couple of dips in the pool and hot tub We left the loungers after a morning of doing not much and went back up to the lounge for some non-alcoholic drinks and snacks on patio. I think this was fanta…. before returning to then out to the area we called the grassy knoll. This was a patch of hedged off grass area with loungers between the main hotel and the beach and only available to hotel residents. A really nice spot being nestled between the beach and the sea so that you have the best of both worlds. It was especially nice as we lay in the sun as we got a text from oldest DD at home saying it was 2 degrees and she just had to scrape the ice off her car! We wandered onto the beach and had a swim in the warm sea which was lovely! The slightly disconcerting thing was the armed security staff and airport style metal detector to get back into the hotel grounds. All would be revealed later although it wasn’t obvious at the time. We went back to our room to get changed and this time I remembered to get changed into long trousers for the evening. As we arrived at the lounge I noticed a chap wearing shorts and sure enough he was politely turned back to go and get changed into something more suitable after taking the walk of shame. After a very nice selection of food and drink We stopped by the concierge desk to enquire on the going rate for a taxi to Muttra Souk, the reply was about 6 riyals or £12 in UK money. Armed with this knowledge we stepped outside and flagged down a taxi and Alison skilfully negotiated the price down to the going rate. The driver was paid and made our way to the Souk, all brightly lit up and again exceptionally clean with mainly locals wandering around. We took care not to wander into the historic Shiite district of Al Lawataya by mistake, as the settlement is walled to protect the privacy of the residents here. There is a clear sign under the archway that politely requests visitors to keep out. Compared to the souk in Marrakesh, this one is totally different in look and feel in a number of ways. Brightly lit and very clean and very little bother from the storekeepers unless you decide to stop and look at their wares. It’s an absorbing labyrinth of narrow, perfume-laden alleyways packed with colourful little shops stacked high with tubs of frankincense and bukhoor, old silver khanjars, Bedu jewellery and other exotic paraphernalia – one of the few markets in the world where it’s possible to buy gold, frankincense and myrrh all under a single roof! I did take a fancy to the local headgear, I tried one on but decided that I couldn’t really style it out so left it behind. We did buy a couple of small bit and bobs including the obligatory fridge magnet for home and some harem pants for the girls. It’d be interesting to see what the place was like during the day although we’ve been told that it can get very busy when the cruise ships dock and their passengers disembark. It was getting a bit late by now so we picked up a taxi outside on the street and negotiated a taxi fare back again to the hotel where we headed back up to the lounge for coffee and pastries. I did think that I would be still in time for a quick night cap but I had missed the boat on that one. We took a short stroll down the beach before bed but started to flag badly so we turned back and went to room and called it a night. __________________ http://www.thedibb.co.uk/forums/sign...igpic534_1.gif 1988 ~ Contemporary ~ Honeymoon 1989 ~ Off site 1994 ~ EuroDisney ~ Santa Fe 1999 ~ Off site 2001 ~ CBR (Aruba) ~ Poly (Tahiti) 2003 ~ WL & HRH 2004 ~ Pop Century, RPH, CSR, PBH, Contemporary 2006 ~ DLP ~ Newport Bay 2007 ~ POR ~ HRH ~ GF 2008 ~ All star sports, BCV, RPH, Vero Beach, VWL 2010 ~ OKW ~ BCV ~ HRH ~POP Century ~ Vero Beach ~ VWL 2013 ~ AKL ~ HRH ~ BCV ~ Vero Beach ~ VWL Edited at 09:22 PM.