Du-bye

Something is different as I write today. It’s not weather or the mood but it’s the backdrop, towering mountains have replaced the skyscrapers.

Change as they say is inevitable, and so it was time for us to move from Dubai to Muscat. We are all set for new challenges, goals, happiness, frustrations and learning’s here in Muscat.

Dubai has been really kind to us. We continue to be great fans of Dubai, of course every place has its own challenges but the city with each passing day tends to grow on you.  For many it might be the city with biggest and tallest, for me it has been the city of firsts!

It was almost 7 years ago I got married and came to Dubai join my hubby. To be honest, at first I didn’t like place very much but in a matter of few months I started calling it home. We set our first house together, done it up to call it our home, bought our first car, and mastered the art of DIY thanks to frequent trips to IKEA among many other things.  But nothing beats the pleasure of being first-time parents.

Little Smera was born here in Dubai and she filled our lives with immense joy. Staying away from family, it was difficult to raise an infant all by ourselves with no prior experience, but it got us closer to each other as partners.

We have been extremely fortunate on our career front and especially my husband who has been part of an outstanding company for the last 10 years. RSA has been extremely generous and supportive of him and his ambitions. In fact Smera is truly a RSA baby with pink and purple being favourite colours, true to the brand colours of the company.

Taking a sabbatical from work to enjoy motherhood, it was here I first tried my hands at blogging and I must admit I am addicted to it (thanks you for supporting my addiction !).

 There are numerous memories tied with this city and I am really going to miss it. The friends we made, our house (no, home), our favourite food joints and so many other things. However I am sure we are going to make many more new memories and I would love to share it with you all too here on Sangrywords!

To Muscat it is, here we come, with a little prayer in our heart, smile on our faces and hope in our minds to start a new chapter!

Eid holidays with Green Turtles

We are back home from our little Eid holidays trip and all settled back into our routine. It was a refreshing little break to my bro-in-laws place in Muscat.  The best part was the little family reunion - Smera with catching up her cousins sisters and brothers and the night long gossip sessions with the sister-in-law.  However the highlight of the trip was our visit to Ras-al-Hadd, very famous for its green turtle nesting conservatory. 

After couple of hours drive from the Muscat and overtaking countless rocky mountains on either side, we pulled up to this place on a secluded beach. The beach house belonged to one of our family friends and was all ours for the duration of our stay. We settled in at once after a bit of cleaning up. It was around 8 at night when we tucked in the noodles and chicken and waited eagerly for the turtle trail.

It was a moonlit night and there is nothing like walking on the beach with cool breeze hitting your face and sand in your shoes. We were a gang of 11, silently waiting to see the Green Turtles to come towards the land to lay eggs. In the mean time, we made sure we kept the kids occupied by making sand castles and interconnecting network of underground tunnels – it was so much fun that even the adults enjoyed it.

From a distance we could see a few of the turtles slowly walking towards the land, the waves helping them come ashore. The slowly walk towards the land and find a good spot lay eggs. It takes them about 10-15 minutes to dig a safe for them to lay eggs and once done they would cover it up, for them hatch. 

The entire experience was breathtaking, every element of the nature helps nest here. The moon gives them enough light, the waves help the come on to the shore, take them back once they are ready to go back and lastly the sand provides a safe nest for eggs to hatch safely. Once the eggs hatch the tiny new-baby turtle would quickly rush off to the sea. It’s magical to see them swiftly walking towards the waves, the noise from the waves guides them home.

However there is a catch to it, you cannot make noise, use big torch and click picture as it would disturb and the local guide makes all this rule perfectly clear before the start of the tour. They would end tour right then if we break even once single rule.

Oman takes pride in the fact that the Green turtles have chosen their land to nest. With great care they make sure no harm is done to them. During the conversation, the guide mentioned that some the tagged turtles have been tracked as far as Africa. If you are anytime around visiting Oman then I would highly recommend you to visit this incredible place, almost close to heaven on Earth. To add cherry on the top the drive from Muscat to Ras al Hadd is picturesque, definitely one not to be missed. 

The morning after the viewing the turtles, catching the glimpse of the Sun rising!! 

Heading to the waves 

Lost the path a bit but the sunshine helped him get back!

Breakfast time

Looking out for some more

Sunshine and morning walk is good everybody's health, including this one's 

Watching Dolphins Bathe!

It’s been one of my childhood dreams to go dolphin watching. Here in Dubai I live very close to a Dolphin park at the Atlantis hotel. For a princely sum, you could watch them up-close, swim with them and even get them to kiss you for a photo opportunity! Notwithstanding my inability to swim and unwillingness to pay, I somehow find the whole thing artificial. At least that was the excuse I gave myself for not venturing out to fulfill my childhood dream, all these years.

So I was overjoyed when we decided to go dolphin watching during our recent trip to Muscat. I would rather let you enjoy this 30 sec video than bore you with the details. Shot from the deck of the boat with a camera with no zoom – yeah it was that close, truly out of this world!

Oh before I forget, more than seeing the dolphins, Smera was fascinated at the white foam that formed around the boat as the powerful Honda engine ripped through the calm ocean. She kept leaping forward to touch the whitewater shouting ‘Mamma – Shampoo!’ Yeah it’s the dolphins bathing – said Mamma.

Video by Smera’s daddy and pictures by his brother. 

Matter of tooth

I have a confession to make. I have two false teeth. They have been so meticulously crafted, that you need X-ray eyes to spot them. I’ve been ‘wearing’ them for about 4 years and the fact that I have not received a single comment on it is a testament to the dental craftsmanship.

I am not surprised at this result though, as they were fixed by one of the best dentists around. Her name is Sheby Annie Paulose. She works at Al Wassan Specialty Dental Clinic in Muscat. Okay, it will now be a good time to provide full disclosure – she also happens to be my sister-in-law.

Let me tell you another story. Plot is almost the same – another dentist but a case of root canal surgery. Oh, and in the lead role is my brother-in-law who is also a dentist. He once did a root canal. A few months later, the patient had to go to another dentist for an emergency procedure on another tooth. This time he ended up going to one of the most experienced dentists in Oman.

Reviewing the X-ray, the new dentist popped a question “Who did your root-canal surgery?” Unsure about what to make of the question, the patient replied “Dr. Siju George, of the Al Wassan Dental Clinic in Al Khuwair, Muscat; Why?” The doctor retorted with a lump in his throat “I have been practising dentistry for over 40 years and this is the best root canal procedure I have ever seen” Not only that, the doctor send a handwritten note congratulating my brother-in-law on such a good work.

This is what happens when people do what they are really passionate about.

The reason why I mentioned this story is because we were in Muscat over the weekend. We were taking part at the soft-launch of my b-i-l & s-i-l’s new clinic. With 6 state-of-the-art treatment rooms, 3D imaging, a brushing station and kids play area – it is definitely the best dental clinic that I have been to.

Now, you may think I am writing this to get myself in their good books and another free ceramic crown should an opportunity arise, God forbid.

Don’t take my word for it; do drop-in and check it out for yourself if you live in Muscat, Oman. 


For appointments contact- http://wassandental.com - 24489469 or 24475008


Image courtesy: Corbis.com