Musadam, Oman Trip(1) - Journey to Khasab

Date: 27 Mar 2009

A trip to Khasab, Musadam Penisular Oman
which was organised by the Singapore group in UAE.
There were total of 24 cars going for this trip
(7 from Abu Dhabi & 17 from Dubai)

Musandam, with its spectacular fjords, is the 'Norway' of Arabia

The Musandam Peninsula is the northernmost part of Oman jutting out into the Strait of Hormuz at the entrance to the Persian Gulf. The province, or governorate of Musandam as it is officially known, is separated from the rest of Oman by various of the United Arab Emirates - Ras al Khaimah and Fujairah. Musandam more or less begins where the mountains rise from the plains of Ras al Khaimah.

The mountains have isolated communities for centuries. Coastal villages can be reached only by boat rather than by road. Pockets of flat land support meagre agriculture. Fishing is the principal economic activity supported by employment in government jobs.

Route from Abu Dhabi to Khasab
We met at 4.30am at Adnoc Petrol Station
It was a cold and windy morning
We left in a convoy of 7 cars
I saw sunrise during the journey Reached Ras Al Khaimah, water flooded badly there
UAE was lashed by strong winds
and rains for the past few days
some of the local population at RAK
We reached Al Dhara check point
it took 30min to get our passport stamped
that was fast I told myself
follow by Tibat, Oman Checkpoint
and here it took us 1 1/2 hours to get the visa stamped
I fell asleep in the car while waiting for J at the checkpoint

A dull, drizzly morning at Oman checkpoint
finally we entered Oman after passed 3 checkpoint
we headed for Al Khasab
The whole way up to Khasab was so beautiful
the road running between the sea on the left side
and mountain on the right side

The road winds its way along the ocean and mountains
from the border crossing through
to Khasab on brand new pavement
Every few kilometre we pass along a small village
View of Golden Tulip Khasab Hotel from far
We finally arrived at the Khasab Harbour
We boarded our dhow for the Dolphin Tour
and a light drizzle was falling

Next....the dophin tour

Musadam, Oman Trip

We just came back from Musadam, Oman
will blog about it after I sort out the photo
so stay tune for more photos of Musadam

Dophin photo taken by me during the trip

Nasi Lemak

Meeting Singapore President @ Dubai

Date : 20 Mar 2009

President S R Nathan came to visit the UAE
A reception was organized for him
at Raffles Ballroom, Raffles Dubai
on Friday, 7pm to meet the Singaporean Community.

President S R Nathan

Liwa Trip - Tal Mireb

Date: 13 Mar 2009

We made a trip to Liwa again on Friday and visited the Tal Mireb or Tal Moreeb (The biggest sand dune in the UAE).

The Liwa Oasis is a gateway to the deep sands of the legendary Empty Quarter and is known as the playground for 4x4 dune bashing. Dune bashing is an increasingly popular activity, which involves tourists being driven out into the surrounding desert in a 4X4 and driving up and down the sand dunes.

The Empty Quarter is 1200 km long and 650 km wide, and is among the largest continuous deserts in the world. About 80 percent of this area is in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and covers about a quarter of the Kingdom’s land surface. Its eastern edges extend into the United Arab Emirates, and its southern margin is in the Sultanate of Oman. Parts of its southern and southwestern limits are in the Republic of Yemen.

Moreeb Hill (Al Moreb Hill)is the place for organized drag races. With a reported 50 degree slipface, and a 300m long hill climb, it is a perfect place for sand drags. Moreeb Hill is one of the largest hill climbs in the world. It is also known as Tel Moreeb or "Scary Mountain".

Beautiful dunes



The sand dune hill - Tal Moreeb
with a huge campsite set up for
the Liwa Festival, which will feature
camel races, horse races,
car races, falcon races, etc


Sheep, horse, camels & thier babies

Chicken Biryani Rice

A day out to Dubai

Date: 7 Mar 2009

Al Safa Park, Dubai

Sunset at Sheikh Zayed Road

Liwa Trip - Liwa Hotel, Palace

Date: 6 Mar 2009

Finally we reach Liwa

Liwa Rest House & shops

Liwa Hotel
A four star hotel overlooks the natural fertile oasis
in the Rub Al Khali desert also known as The Empty Quarter,
surrounded by some of the highest dunes in the world.

Sheikh Zayed’s palace
belong to the belated former President of the UAE,
Sheikh Zayed, who died in 2004

Lots of greenery

We took a different route back to Abu Dhabi
the Madinat Zayed route
a sleepy little town

Liwa Trip - Sand, Date Palms & Camels

Date: 6 Mar 2009

After visiting The Sheikh's Car Museum
we continue our journey to Liwa
and on the way we will also passby small town
call "Hameem"/"Hmeem" and "Mizaira'a"

Road to Liwa
It is very windy and
can see sand flying everywhere

nothing much to see here
sand, date palms & other trees along the road
the only petrol staion at Hameem
we were lucky on that day
we saw a herd of camels
The camels here are almost black and
these specimens looked very, very skinny too.
going to Mizaira'a now

Here you can really see that
we are in an oasis at Mizara'a

Liwa Trip - Car Museum

Date: 6 Mar 2009

Liwa is an oasis area in the Abu Dhabi emirate of the United Arab Emirates. It sits right on the edge of the Rub Al Khali (empty quarter), the largest sand desert in the world (ie. there is more sand in this desert than any other). A number of small towns and villages make up the Liwa area. Farms back right up against towering dunes hundreds of meters high. The sand varies in color from golden to red and changes rapidly during sunrise, sunset, and the specific area. There is a substantial palace in the area and a very nice 4 star hotel, the Liwa Oasis Hotel.

On the way to Liwa, we stopped at the Sheikh Hamad Bin Hamdan Al Nahyan (aka The Rainbow Sheikh)'s car museum. It’s a huge warehouse with the Sheikh’s car collection which contains some 200-odd cars, complete with what is probably the largest truck in the world.

Before we enter the museum, we stop at the camels & bird cages on the right hand side of the entrance. They have the biggest pigeons we have ever seen. They are the size of a chicken!

The car museum is in this pyramid shape building

A huge globe on wheels

A huge, 3 storey high " house on wheels"
This is a 11-bedroom villa!
A rusting white mercedes on 5 foot high wheels
The Sheikh's car collection
from all over the world,
back through time to the Model T











There are 4 bedrooms, a kitchen and
a bathroom inside this monster Dodge!

a giant 2 storey high model of
a Land Rover car on stilts
(which is in fact a restaurant)