Welcome to Musandam, Oman. This is an isloated enclave, disjointed from the rest of the country, and forms the tip of the neighboring United Arab Emirates. As such, unless you fly in from Muscat, the only other way to get to Musandam is through the United Arab Emirates. Another road exists on the Eastern side of Oman, through Dibba in the UAE, but there is a military check point there, special road permits are required, and the road is navigable only by 4x4. From Dubai, you drive along the coast through Sharjah, Ajman, Ras Al Khaimah
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1. Dramatic entry into Musandam Soon after you clear the border formalities between the UAE and Oman,...
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2. Lonely watchtower. Meanwhile, on the other side, you see a lonely watchtower atop the...
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3. Hotel entrance at night. Khasab Hotel is the oldest in that town. Here is the entrance to the hotel by...
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4. Parched, dry mountain outside. The following morning, we see a parched, dry mountain outside the...
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5. The harbour at Khasab No, do not look for huge ocean liners and containers. Khasab is...
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6. A closer view of a speedboat. Here is a closer view of one of the speedboats. Several of them are...
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7. Dhow cruise into the fjords. Although there is a museum in Khasab, and a rough and ready ride by...
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8. Heading into the fjords. Here we are, heading into the fjords. The white thing to the left is...
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9. Dolphin spotted! One of the highlights of the dhow cruise is the prospect of spotting...
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10. Dolphin alongside! Sure enough, a dolphin appears alongside. These immensely playful and highly...
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11. Now two dolphins! A second one appears. My, look at the size of this one! The dolphins played...
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12. Deeper into the fjords. Now that the dolphins have gone away, its time to change course once...
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13. Remote fishing village. We encounter this remote fishing village plop in the middle of the...
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14. Delivery of lunch! This one is really way out! Lunch is delivered to our dhow by...
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15. Telegraph Island. The boat halts for an hour at Telegraph Island, which is this little mound of...
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16. Clear waters at Telegraph Island. A view of the crystal clear waters at Telegraph Island. So clear you...
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17. Barnacles Billions of blistering blue barnacles! (a la Capt. Haddock or Tintin...
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18. Sea Urchins The water is so clear at Telegraph Island that I was able to lie on my...
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19. Sailing right through a fjord. Having enjoyed the underwater view, albeit from the boat, and gotten...
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20. Angelfish We had halted for lunch near another island with clear emerald green water...
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21. Our boatman. Here is our boatman. He was our captain cum guide cum navigator cum...
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22. Another thick spined sea urchin. Yikes! Here is another sea urchin with really thick spines, many of...
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23. More snorkeling. We did not snorkel, and our boat mates were not inclined to either....
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24. Back through the fjords. The day's outing over, its time for the long boat ride back to the...
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25. Speck in the distance. Breathtaking scenery. The other boat was moving much faster than us,...
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