Nizwa, Oman

Nizwa is a town of 700,000 about 140 k from Muscat, in the Hajar mountains. built along two dry riverbeds or wadis.

Water brought from the mountains by historic canals, "falaj" in Arabic, nourish surrounding date plantations.

Nizwa is known for its fort and its souq.

A  little of the old town remains...

but many people prefer to live in palatial homes on the outskirts of town.

School letting out in time for a big lunch at home.

Here are some more pictures of the neighborhood I stayed in, in the oasis-like center of town.

Boys after school.  (Note the irrigation channel.) The white dishdash and embroidered cap are school uniform for boys and typical dress for men.

Girls on the way to school.

Less than an hour's drive from Nizwa are two interesting villages.
One is Al-Hamra, at the foot of the mountains.  A section of this town still has a few remaining old-style multi-story mud brick buildings.

View from the roof.

One family has turned their old home into a "living museum."  They demonstrate weaving, bread baking, incense and perfume preparation, and (shown here) coffee roasting.

Al Hamra traditional interior.

The other village is Misfat al Abreen, above Al Hamra, tucked into the mountains.  Hundreds of years ago the villagers created a system of waterways, gardens, terraces for growing dates, and three- or four-story rock homes.

Women's area.

Two meals, exemplifying some of the complex options for Nizwa:

Fish curry eaten traditional Omani style (with Tanya, my tour guide for the day, an EFL teacher from New Zealand).

A chicken sandwich from Hungry Bunny, a Saudi fast food chain, staffed by Filipinos.

Finally, a few doors.  Who's knocking?  Who's answering?  Who's going through?