Tales of the Imamate from the Sultanate

Nizwa, Oman

Oman is a land of forts, perfect sandcastle forts; pale honey-colored and smooth-sided, with round towers, square keeps, machiolated parapets, arrow slits, cannon and massive wooden iron-studded doors, they are a veritable medieval desert fantasy sprung to life. Nizwa’s fort is no exception although Ibn Battuta would not have seen it - the 17th century fort which has the largest circular tower in the country, took 12 years to build. From its corner towers one has a panoramic view over the whole oasis of Nizwa framed and hemmed in by a ridge of ancient, coal-black serrated crags.

The interior of Nizwa fort

Nizwa’s souk has been renovated to resemble an old souk with little shops clustered together in a central square, half the goods stacked outside; typical Omani products are the wooden, studded chests which were used for storage – the more elegant being used to store the most prized possessions such as special occasion clothing and jewelry - pottery frankincense burners, ewers and water holders, and woven palm and leather baskets. The walled and gated souk lies at the foot of the castle and with impeccable timing I arrived at lunchtime when everything was closed and everyone had gone home…. nonetheless all the merchandise which was outside had been left there unattended. I can’t imagine many places in other parts of the world where there would be anything left. Oman’s 2.5 million denizens are apparently a very law-abiding people – Omanis routinely park their cars, leave the engine running and go into a shop. It never occurs to them that their vehicle will not be there when they come out.

Typical Omani chests in Nizwa souk

Turtle Beach & The Road to Nizwa

Sur to Nizwa, Oman

Before leaving the region of Sur, I paid a visit to Ras al-Jinz, a tiny beach which belies its immense importance to several endangered turtle species; loggerhead, green, Olive Ridley and Hawksbill. On a small stretch of sand under honey-colored cliffs, female turtles come up on to the beach at night to lay upwards of 100 eggs deep in the sand.

The beach at Ras al-Jinz

After about 50 days the eggs hatch all at once, and guided instinctively by the moonlight the tiny black creatures, about two inches long, set off determinedly for the sea. Only a few meters separate their birthplace from the ocean but they are treacherous – birds, crabs and foxes catch them on the sand, and if they reach the ocean alive, fish and sea birds await them. For this reason they swim far out to sea for hours after hitting the water. It is not surprising that only about 1 of every 50 survives.

The government of Oman is arguably the most proactive in the Arab world with regard to conservation in general, and the turtles are no exception. Many have had little satellites attached to their shells so their movements can be tracked to enable us to learn more about them. The day of my visit a dead turtle lay on the beach – a female who for whatever reason had not made it back to sea, (males do not leave the sea). It seemed symbolic both of the struggle the little hatchlings face at the very start of their lives, to the ongoing pressures turtles face as adults sharing their habitat with increasing human encroachment and the attendant detritus that 21st century man in the form of 6 billion people brings to the earth.