As Sifah Beach

The drive to As Sifah beach takes you around 90km south of Muscat past the rugged terrain and small villages that are typical of this part of the world. The first half of our jouney was easy enough, with a decent road system taking us to a place called Yiti. Following Yiti however the roads become less easy to negotiate and a 4x4 is a must - as a relative novice to off-road driving I was slightly nervous at some points! You really feel like you are experiencing the real Oman when you venture out of Muscat and passing through small villages along the way adds to the feeling of authenticity. The villages are as you would imagine: small houses and lots of goats.

A smooth part of road on the way to As Sifah.

Passing through a village. 

The views of the mountains are really spectacular, despite the arid-ness of the surroundings. On arrival at As Sifah beach the soft sands really captured my attention, they are so uninterrupted compared to those within Muscat. Unfortunately some rather selfish people had parked cars in such a way that they blocked off entry to the most expansive stretch of beach, however we still nabbed ourselves a stunning spot and were able to enjoy the setting just as much. 

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Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque

We visited the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque a while ago now but its beauty is still etched in my mind and it is definitely worthy of a post! The Mosque sits beside a main road cutting through Muscat and so cannot be missed. Its car park is huge, providing plenty of parking for the 20,000 worshipers the mosque can accommodate. On entering you are reminded of the conservative dress of the Islamic faith and it is vital that men are covered down the the wrists and ankles and ladies from head to toe. The Mosque really is spectacular. Its marble floors and clean cut lines sparkle in the sun.

The mosque is formed of a main prayer hall, or musalla, a women's musalla and a number of courtyards and passageways. The main musalla can accommodate around 6,500 worshipers and the women's around 750. The rest worship in the surrounding areas. The main musalla is beautiful and houses the worlds second largest hand woven prayer carpet (the largest I believe is in Abu Dhabi). Apparently it weighs 21 tonnes (!) and took around 4 years to make. (Shoes aren't allowed to be worn in the main hall and are left outside in specially designated pigeon holes.)

Additionally the main hall has the most spectacular chandelier, which I think is also up there in terms of largest chandeliers in the world. The carved patterns on the wooden doors and pretty designs on the tiled walls are proof of the level of care and detailing put into the design of the mosque. The women's musalla is less impressive and detailed as the main hall but fits its purpose all the same.

It is worth walking all around the passageways as you come across small study areas, wash areas and pretty garden areas.

 

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