Salalah, Oman

After about a month of solid work and a stressful travel day I finally had a day off. My Hilton hotel in Salalah is kind of in the middle of nowhere on a beach in Oman. For a country that is mostly coastline, oddly, the hotel beach has a view of an industrial shipping port.

I started my day off with a booked tour of Eastern Salalah with it’s varied landscape, animals, and frankincense. My local guide took me to the Taqah castle and then to a place called Khor Rori which is the remains of an ancient and wealthy fort on a cliff-top facing the sea. Here frankincense, horses, and other commodities were exported four hundred years before the time of Christ.

Frankincense is basically hardened tree sap. When you cut the tree a milky white substance seeps out. If you come back a few weeks later there will be a large hardened and clear chunk of it. You can only do this to a tree about three times a year or you’ll kill it. Back in the day Frankincense was so expensive it was on par with gold! When it burns it has that Catholic Sunday mass smell. I hope I don’t get arrested when I arrive home. I bought a bag to bring back in a local market and it looks like crack. You are supposed to put a piece of frankincense on top of a hot coal and then it will burn, giving off that terrific smell. I got to touch and smell the sap from the tree and it was wonderful. There are different grades of frankincense. I bought some medicinal grade. My guide told me to put it in a bottle of water and then drink it first thing in the morning and it is supposed to cleanse the body of impurities.

At Khor Rori there was some ancient writing carved into one of the rocks and a I ran my finger over it. Somebody chisel those symbols about 2500 years ago and they have not been able to decipher the words.

We also went on a winding drive up through the mountains where I chased goats and a camel with my camera and explored a stream and a cave. We stopped along another stream near a massive Indian date tree where there were some local lads just chilling under the it on a blanket. My guide asked if we could join and they invited us to sit down. They offered me some food that they had cooked. On a large silver platter they passed me some rice mixed with a few vegetables. Somebody opened a can of tuna and put it on top. I was sipping my 7-UP and eating rice only with my hand, I ate a piece of meat that was mixed with the rice. “Is this lamb?” I asked. No, you’re eating camel. Wow! I tasted a lot like lamb and a bit like goat. I was lucky to have this little snack with the local boys who lived up in the mountains. It was a random event and because it was just my guide and I, that is what made it possible.

Back at the hotel I saw the Formula One race live from Singapore and had something to eat. Afterwards I went outside at dusk. I had a view of the Indian Ocean, coconut palm trees, the beach and the moon. I had strawberry flavoured Sheesha, also know as hubbly bubbly or Hookah in other countries (yes I was smoking!) with a glass of Australian red.

Not a bad day off. Not at all.

If I had a bit more rest I’m sure that my sense of humour and my writing would improve!

Random Abu Dhabi

Emirates Palace

Next door to the Hilton Abu Dhabi is the massive Emirates Palace. Inside the gold leaf interior are numerous restaurants, lounges and various art works on display. Outside are Lamborghinis. In the middle of the Palace is a cozy caviar and champagne bar. Iranian Beluga caviar will set you back $1000 for fifty grams. The Russian Sevruga is a steal at $435. You can wash this down with a bottle of Champagne that will cost you about $650. If you have a lot of guests there is a three litre bottle that goes for $3100! And of course, all prices are subject to a ten percent service charge and a six percent tourism fee.

Fujairah to Abu Dhabi

Trader Vic's Abu Dhabi

The Trader Vic's World Tour continues ...

Brauhaus Abi Dhabi

Fun with beer.

Guilty Feet

Guilty Feet

Ramadan is a holy month of fasting and prayer for Muslims and I’m in the thick of it. From sunrise to sunset they fast without food, water, and smoking. Not to mention nookie. Most of the restaurants are closed during this time and the buildings that are serving food are covered to avoid temptation or offense. Even drinking water in public is considered a grave offence and if you were to walk down the street with a chicken shawarma in your hand you could be arrested. You could also be arrested for dancing in public during this time. It reminds me of that awful George Michael song that they kept on playing the muzak version of in my last hotel, “I’m never gonna dance again, guilty feet have got no rhythm”.

Once sunset hits it’s Iftar time. Muslims break their fast with a dinner at sundown so it’s best not to be on the roads as you may be run over by a local with low blood sugar on their race home to eat.

I know this is going to sound rude but every time I see an Arab in their white robe and traditional dress I think that they are wearing a Halloween costume. They all wear sandals. I am in a posh fashion area and they don’t sell designer Italian shoes, rather, designer leather sandals!

It is a very serious offense to be drunk in public at anytime and it is illegal for locals to drink! If you are a local and you want to drink you have to have a valid liquour permit. You cannot even be in possession of alcohol. I wonder what kind of test you have to pass in order to get that license? How do you study for that?

There I go again. I’ve just offended somebody for sure. Plus it’s during Ramadan and before Iftar. Way to go Deano. I might as well smoke a Sheesha on the corner and see what happens.

In this bland sobriety I managed to find myself a proper pint last night. Upon a recommendation I located the clandestine entrance of a pub in a hotel’s alleyway . Upon entrance I was transported to the UK. Foreigners were drinking and smoking in relaxed hedonistic abandon. I felt like I had slipped through a wormhole. It was my second drink in almost two weeks. Guinness is goodness.

Ramada to Ramadan

One day you're in a broken down Ramada Inn in Texas. The next day you're in a beach resort during Ramadhan in the United Arab Emerites.

The heat here is serious. I change my shirt at least three times a day. It is 36 degrees celcius plus humidity here in Fujairah, UAE. Even at night.

I arrived late in the evening to the Dubai airport a few nights ago. Vinay, the driver from the hotel, and I stopped for a chicken shawarma en route, the first of many. Stops that is. We stopped for spicy tea. We stopped to look at carpets. We even stopped for a donkey. It was strolling along the highway divider, oblivious to the danger.

I went for a swim in the Indian Ocean. It was the warmest water I've swam in. It was like a warm bath, it's possible that the water was warmer than the air.

I've tried arabic coffee, turkish coffee, shisha, and Emereti food that is similar to Lebanese food, that is, like a combination of Greek food but with Indian spices.

Missin' the home Cookin'

Free sodas all night

Free sodas all night

Driving through Houston isn’t very relaxing even at the best of times but when I arrived late at night to the hotel I was supposed to photograph the next day I laughed to myself in my white sheet metal box, that is, my Kia rental car.

About four years ago I had photographed this hotel when it was a Ramada. It has recently changed ownership to a Travelodge. When I walked into the lobby I was absolutely certain that I had shot it before. I’ve never photographed the same hotel twice. If there is one thing I have learned about budget hotels in the United States it is this, never pay money to stay in a Ramanda. They are all dumps. The hotel was a dump last time and believe it or not it was even worse now. I was told that the new owner has five million dollars to renovate but he has not done a thing. The least he could do is clean the place. I’m not sure how this place could pass a basic inspection? The hotel hallways were not vacuumed and smelled like a wet dog. The elevator smelled like garam masala and my room smelled like the inside of a musky damp tent that has not been used in several years. It’s a good thing I brought along some incense to make things more bearable. I would have checked out and stayed someplace else but I had taken two flights and a bit of a drive to get here. All I wanted to do was sleep.

The sixth floor was mostly closed and had pieces of the ceiling lieing in the hallways. The pool which is “under renovations” had a toxic green hue about it. I made sure I stayed clear of it while photographing it. It’s not the kind of thing you want to fall into if you have any open sores, not that I have any open sores mind you. At least not any that I’m aware of.

After an honest days work my hotel contact asked me if I would like a soda. Everyday people in America are trying to feed me Coke. I asked if she had any bottle water. She looked at me and said, “That’s why you’re so thin.” That’s a first. I’ve never weighed this much before but in the States I am considered fit. We went up to the third floor to the vending machine and swung open the door of the machine. “Somebody has broken into all of the machines. Free soda’s all night if you like.” She passed me a bottled water and a couple low-calorie sports drinks. Thanks. It’s too bad that all four of the hotel’s ice machines don’t work.

Speaking of free stuff in the land of plenty, I was at a BF Chang’s restaurant yesterday (almost all restaurants in the United States are part of a chain) and I was offered a free beer; An American Bud light. No, but thank-you. I already have a glass of water. I'm gonna stick to my cold and frosty Shiner Bock. Tasty.