Author Archives: admin

Getting Connected

Posted on February 13, 2011 by admin

When I got this flat, I vaguely wondered what kind of arrangements there might be regarding utilities, but never quite got round to asking.   It became an issue when some men came round to install my cooker. “No gas!”, … Continue reading →

Posted in Home | Comments Off on Getting Connected

Looking Up

Posted on February 11, 2011 by admin

One advantage of my balcony area is that I can set up my tripod, point the camera at the stars, and use my computer to find out what the hell I’m looking at.   So far I’ve found: Orion, tilted … Continue reading →

Posted in Nature | Comments Off on Looking Up

The Joy of Arabic Script

Posted on February 10, 2011 by admin

Probably the one thing that everyone knows about Arabic is that it’s fiendishly difficult, due to the grammatical complexity, the bizarre noises that masquerade as phonemes, and the incomprehensible squiggly script.   The last of these is actually not a … Continue reading →

Posted in Arabic | 1 Comment

Man who stares at goats

Posted on February 4, 2011 by admin

The goats I mentioned in an earlier post came by again today, and this time I had my camera ready.  First the flock in the distance: One eary fellow (as you can see, they really are very hairy indeed): And … Continue reading →

Posted in Ibra, Nature | 1 Comment

Tour of Ibra

Posted on February 3, 2011 by admin

First weekend after moving into my flat, and I was finally able to get out and see some of the rest of the town.   Many of the hills around here are topped by towers, so I climbed up to … Continue reading →

Posted in Ibra | 1 Comment

Eating and drinking in Ibra

Posted on February 1, 2011 by admin

Oman is not, it must be said, the best country for a vegetarian.   Although there are wonderful salad-type things around (tabbouleh, fattouch and so on), they’re considered a mere prelude to a big hunk of mutton.   Sitting down … Continue reading →

Posted in Food | 1 Comment

Clothing

Posted on January 31, 2011 by admin

Though not much of a fashionista, I’ve found the clothing here fascinating.   Like most westerners, my impression of Arab dress until now didn’t go far beyond “women are covered up, and men wear flowing white robes”.   More or less true … Continue reading →

Posted in Society | Comments Off on Clothing

Home (sort of)

Posted on January 29, 2011 by admin

Today I finally left the hotel and moved into my own flat.   Minimal in an ‘unfinished’ rather than a ‘John Pawson’ way.   There are two rooms, each with attached bathroom, either side of a living-room/hallway with tiny adjoining … Continue reading →

Posted in Home, Ibra | 3 Comments

Muscat beach

Posted on January 20, 2011 by admin

Thursday, and the beginning of the weekend. It’s a safe bet nothing much will happen workwise over the next couple of days, so I’m free to explore the city. In theory. Unfortunately, Muscat consists essentially of a 50km highway sandwiched … Continue reading →

Posted in Muscat, Nature | 1 Comment

Next!

Posted on January 19, 2011 by admin

After a day of doing bugger-all yesterday, I came back to the hotel and was given a message by the receptionist: “You must be ready at 7.00 tomorrow!  Medical or something!  7.00 exactly!” Even after my very brief acquaintanceship with … Continue reading →

Posted in Bureaucracy, Muscat | Comments Off on Next!