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Sydney, NSW, Australia
Photographer. Writer. 45yo Indo-Fijian Australian. Glam Feminist. Coconuts.

Sunday, April 14, 2013

Side Trip of a Lifetime. UNDERstatement.

One month ago I had just landed in the Sultanate of Oman.  The first thing that attacked my excess baggage of preconception was the smell.  No.  The aroma.  Oman smells beautiful.

About my preconceptions?  Not so much preconception as lack of expectation.  Oh wow did that get shattered in a big way...
About excess baggage?  well... yeah, I'm not a light packer.  I am talking about luggage now.  This isn't a metaphor.

Here we are, upon arrival.  WE are from left to right; Meagan Patroni (former PR for Tourism Oman), me, Brooke, Amy, Daisy and Ben.
That's my luggage in front of Meagan and that's Brooke's bag in front of her. Uh-huh. Brooke took a 7kg bag. For 9 days.  I took 27kg with me in The Pink Beast, my suitcase that has made taxi drivers quake the world over.  Which one of us is the good packer depends on your point of view... I like to be prepared for every eventuality.

© The Dusk Zone 2013 | All Rights Reserved

"WE" are Social Media Ambassadors, bloggers chosen by Tourism Oman for our reach on social media, skills, abilities and travel experience.  Brooke, Amy, Daisy and Ben are seasoned travel bloggers.  This was my first 'famil' but not my last.  Hopefully!

Tourism Oman very generously sent us to the Sultanate of Oman mid-March to experience Oman firsthand and share our experiences with our audience via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our blogs.  I can safely say I speak for all when I say Oman had a lasting effect on all of us.

Oman is not really considered a destination, it is a "side trip of a lifetime", a stop over on ones way to or fro Europe.  WRONG.  Oman IS a destination and yeah, you know I'm going to say it... it's a journey.

It's taken me a while to decide HOW I want to write about Oman.  Do I pick a day, topic or an experience and write at random?  Do I condense my 9 days of bliss in 3 big posts? How does one do that??
I decided to start at the beginning, to share with you what I experienced, how I experienced it. In my voice.  Day by day.  This means there will be a lot of posts.  A lot of looong posts.

I felt a profound connection to Oman.  The tendrils of Oman's beautiful aroma curled around my senses and bound me to this country...

Stay in the zone... this day hasn't ended... we checked in to our 'homebase' the Shangri-La's Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa (Al Husn Hotel) around 2am after a 19 hour flight (including a 5 hour stopover in Thailand) and I did not sleep.  This is why... I knew it was worth staying up...





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2 comments:

citizen rosebud said...

I savor your posts- and now expect you to open my eyes, ears and nostrils to this beautiful country.

Elle said...

Dusk! I haven't been here in quite a while. You look gorgeous as always, and your trip sounds amazing! Hope all else is well with you.