Fun In and On the Dunes.

One of things we love about our friends Melissa and John (and, of course, their daughter Izzy) so much is that they are both laid back and happy to take us anywhere outdoors. This time it was the turn of a drive across the country to southern Oman to a beach sitting along a long stretch of white dunes. 

One, undoubtedly, one of things that they love about us is the fact that we are such camping 'wannabes' but with little actual experience in roughing it. Case in point: After packing up everything we needed for several days outdoors - from water coolers to sleeping bags - we embarked on the roughly 5 hour drive to Muscat. Once there, and after getting to see the neighborhood and hand out with everyone, we set up on this camping trip another six hours away. When we got there we were delighted!  Despite the amount of trash that had come to shore if we were to look inward we would see nothing but dunes... and so we settled down to set up our tents. Which is about when we realized that our six person tent, purchased from a friend for exactly this type of outing, was left inside the upper level of a closet on one the bedrooms. Isn't that where it's supposed to be?  :-)

So, our friends were gracious enough (and took things in stride enough) to lend us their second tent which, with the wind picking up and blowing all over the place, we struggled to set up. The rain softly fell as well with gusts making the movement and cooking a more complicated process than it might have otherwise been. We opted to head out after just one night, but not before enjoying a few hours in the dunes!

A few locals came over to look at our dune sledding and we invited them to join us as well!  A couple of them did, until it became clear that they needed to move on (they were dressed rather nicely.. perhaps for prayers?). Is was sooo nice to have that 20 minute interchange with the locals, and several of them spoke good english, but the biggest positive was their laughter and delight in trying (only sometimes successfully) to race down the slopes in Izzy's sled. 

Our return was as beautiful as our departure had been, and we returned home with a few key lessons/reminders. Oman is pretty awesome in every way. Remember to actually take the camping equipment that you have for such occasions. Great friends who know what they're doing are good to have around when out in the middle of nowhere. :-)

On the Water. In Our Element.

 There's something about being on and in water that just fills you with hope and a deep sense of calm. Add some great friends to the mix and you've got yourself a pretty spectacular day!  We left the house right after breakfast and drove the 20 or so minutes to get to the marina where we got onto a boat. It still sat on its trailer but we didn't mind. We were too busy being excited about the day. Soon enough a tracktor pulled up and gave us a lift to the inclined access to the water. Things were undone and the boat soon was floating. Safely away from the shallows we started the engine, turned the boat around and headed out to open water. 

The day was a never-ending tourist brochure of wonderful sights and that feeling of cool air in your hair. We closed our eyes and took in the feeling. We opened our eyes and took in the sights. We jumped in for a swim in a small, isolated inlet and then headed for our final destination where, alone, we set up a seating area, with the requisite shade, and settled down for the day. Wow!  

As beautiful as it was in the pictures above it was just as spectacular under water. By the end of the stay, and with our tummies filled, we were back on the boat for the return. Simply awesome!  And a sighting (outside the water, no less) of a marlin (we think) and a puffer fish were added bonus. Happiness is being in beautiful places with beautiful people. And this was happiness, 100%!

Hiking in Oman.

The Gulf region really is quite perfect this time of year. With the temperatures heading southward of the double digits in the evening (especially in them Omani mountains) and the daytime hanging around the low 20s it's nothing but outdoors for us (when we can anyway)!  This trip to Oman for Christmas brought us back to our friends John, Melissa and Izzy, and it was pretty awesome! 

Apart from hanging out, as friends do, and chatting up a storm about all sorts of this and thats, we also had a couple excursions to see the country. First and foremost it was heading up into the mountains where a beautiful, westward-facing hotel awaited our arrival. The evenings were spend just sitting outside, with our fire, watching the quiet blue-to-yellow-to-orange-to-purple spectacle that is a spectacular sunset over the mountains. 

By day we'd sneak out and about and roam a bit. One such roam took us to the top of a canyon where we parked at a small village at the edge and hiked on in. Daddy could only go so far, deciding that perhaps things were looking a little too steep for his liking. But the rest of the gang kept on marching right into the final little bit, sitting for some lunch looking out over the beautiful cliffs, and then returning to pick up daddy and return to the car. Six hours later we were thoroughly tired but happy as can be. Nature sure does have a way of bringing you together, of touching that inner bit of your being and of making you a better person.