Marhaba Salalah!

The country is dry and brown during this time of year, but beginning in May there is a monsoon season that transforms the place into a beautiful haven.

Known as the land of Frankincense, it’s incredible to see how the sap is tapped from the tree in a similar way that rubber is, and is then hardened into crystals which are burned on ornate pottery pieces, or even eaten to aid digestive problems.

We passed a herd of camels on the road, on our way to Mirbat, approximately 75 km from Salalah. We stopped, took pictures and caused a general commotion amongst the desert creatures. At Mirbat, Mariott International will open a 234-room resort in December.

At the Salalah Beach Marriott Resort, guests will enjoy beach and mountain views and a choice of accomodation in the resort’s main building or in surrounding chalets.

Dining and entertainment options will include a casual, all-day restaurant, a seafood outlet and an Arabic café. 
The resort’s welcoming, open-space lobby will offer a piano lounge and a cigar lounge.

Recreational amenities will be highlighted by a Frankincense spa by Chivana and a fitness centre, an outdoor swimming pool with separate adult and kids activities (playground area) and an Extra Divers Centre. Other facilities include 24-hour room service, a business centre and a retail shop. For social events and conferences, the resort will have 6,348 square feet of space including a ballroom, individual meeting rooms and a boardroom.

Back from Mirbat to Salalah, as we travelled to a remote beach further south, the route took us down and back up the so-called furious road, which was an amazing feat of engineering carried out by the British in the 1970s.

The road twisted and turned many times at quite a gradient to the wadi below, and then we had to come back up a similar road on the other side.

In these mountains is the anti-gravity point where the vehicle you are in moves automatically when the engine is switched off. There are more such gravity points along the route.

Salalah is a destination for pilgrims from all over the world as it is home to the tombs of Prophet Ayub (Job), Prophet Saleh and Prophet Imran.

At Prophet Ayub’s tomb, a mosque and mausoleum have been built around the site in recent years. There is also a lovely garden bursting with bougainvillea, hibiscus, lime trees and fig trees.

In Jabal al Qar, the surrounding hillsides are bare and brown in the dry season, so the work on the grounds around the tomb is impressive. On one wall is a diagram of a tree showing the common roots of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity.

There is an archaeological pit in Salalah where stone inscriptions have been discovered showing a written form of the southern Arabic dialect — an oral form of this language is spoken in the ‘hill country’ today, but there is no writing script for it. The site has been linked to the Queen of Sheba in Khwai Rhori, so it promises to portray intriguing evidence of ancient times.

The ruins of Al Baleed — an ancient port — are currently being excavated. The area is breezy, surrounded by tropical plantations of coconut, dates and papaya. The creek running through the site has been cleaned and is beautiful. The 12^th century trading port is recognisable with the aid of signposts as you wander around its pathways. The local museum teaches you all about the ancient boats and the frankincense trade.

Along the way, you can stop to buy fruits and drink some refreshingly cold fresh coconut juice from one of the many stalls.

The aqua sea when the tide is low is at perfect temperature and the waves aren’t too big to scare you off. There are crabs scurrying everywhere too, but as soon as you go near, they all disappear.

It’s hard to bid farewell to Salalah, a place of history and myth. It’s a desert that transforms itself into a windy oasis in summer. It’s a land where the Queen of Sheba may have ruled and where tales from the Arabian Nights can easily 
come alive.

raziqueh@khaleejtimes.com

The writer went on a trip to Oman organised by Dhofar Tourism.