Khassab, Oman

Nate's residence visa is still far on the horizon, so we knew as our Christmas break was approaching that we would either have to do another school sponsored visa run (last time it was 7 hours on a packed school bus, with 3 stops for passport stamps and no car seat for Will - or even bus seat, so he was just back and forth between laps the entire time. He actually did awesome, but it was not the most fun way to spend a weekend.) or we could take our own trip out of the country. We aren't ready to start spending money for a big trip yet, so we took a couple of days and ventured to the tip of the peninsula we are living on, which is a little piece of Oman in the middle of the UAE.

We took a day trip on a dhow to see the fjords and do some snorkeling and spent a little time in the town - we walked around a few shops for about 10 minutes - they were all closed because we showed up just as the call to prayer went off, then ate at a restaurant recommended by the hotel. Will is quite popular with all the people here - and the fact that he laughs at everything, and is so friendly doesn't hurt, so he kept everyone entertained while we waited for our food - we all ordered some variety of chicken and it was okay.

One thing that amused us was the wildlife. As we entered Ras al Khamein (sp?), the northernmost Emirate, we started seeing goats just wandering everywhere. Then, large cows, just chilling in parking lots and medians as we passed. Will loved seeing all the goats - he got to practice his "baa"s the whole three days we were there. That is one thing we have found so interesting - one minute you are in this huge metropolis, speeding along a freeway, or on the metro past huge skyscrapers, and a few dozen kilometers later, you feel you've gone back in time - or something, to a place where wild animals roam free.

The fishing villages nestled in the fjords were also interesting - a couple we saw on our dhow trip are only accessible by water, and have about 10 families who have lived there for generations. Their fishing supplies many of the restaurants and grocery stores in Dubai. The road for the last part of the journey hugged the mountains, and was pretty steep - beautiful but also a little nervous at times.

We took turns snorkelling - Nate is braver than I am, he ventured far from the boat, so he didn't get to have his picture taken. Will and I had fun watching the fish - turns out they love bananas, so the guides fed them a lot so we could see lots of fish. Will loved it! We even tried to get him in the water, but that was a no go - I think the other people on the boat thought we were torturing him!

The dolphin family - there were actually four of them this time who swam right by our boat for awhile, playing and jumping in the water.

Another of the dhow boats like we rode - and the spectacular mountain fjords - not like I imagined, but still pretty cool. I will say that after 7 hours, I had had my fill though...

This safety gear lasted all of 7 minutes - it was way too big, and he couldn't really move, and so it was easier for us to keep a solid grip on him without it.

Will made several new friends, but this one was our favorite - and his too. He spent lots of time showing him how he chews, and giggling together, and also the monkey on his pjs, as well as his belly underneath the monkey.

This is the view from our deck at the Golden Tulip - not a bad way to wake up! We ate dinner out at the restaurant one night we were there - a little breezy, and we had to break out our jackets for the first time since we arrived! We also tried the pool, but it was a little chilly and Will was not up for the cold water.

It was a good adventure for our first time really out of the UAE, and after a small passport mixup, we got all the stamps necessary to keep Nate and will legal for another 60 days.