#16 weekend in Muscat

Saturday

Here we are in Oman. What a change in climate! It's the same temperature as Iran, but we've gone from zip humidity in the desert, to 90% humidity on the ocean. It's so hot and sticky that when we walk out of a building our glasses fog up and so do our camera lenses.

If ever there was an argument for a benevolent dictatorship, Sultan Qaboos bin Said is a shining example. Oman is just so impressive. He has taken it from a backwater in the 80's with no schools, roads or hospitals, to 21st century modern. I know he's had oil money to do it, but he's done it well. There are of course elements in the society which want democracy and have demonstrated for it, but it seems that most realise he has worked tirelessly for the cause of peace and prosperity and the loss of some personal freedoms is a price they are prepared to pay. The people we have talked to speak of him as a benevolent father. His generosity with his own money is legendary.

I had a proper coffee when we woke very early, out of the machine in our room - what excitement after a couple of weeks without! Such a luxury. Going without makes you so grateful.

The Sultan was looking down at us from his vantage point in the lobby. His photo is everywhere in Muscat, on hoardings, on shops, in shops and hotels. Just as well he's such a very handsome man, isn't he?

Abdullah picked us up at 5.30 for our photographic foray. He started out as a photographer with a national daily newspaper and is now combining his photographic skill with a passion for tour guiding. He knows this country inside out, and has published two books on Oman. On a more practical side, he said that he puts his camera outside half an hour before he wants to use it so that the lens isn't fogging up when he starts photographing.

He took us to a small fishing village nearby for our dawn shoot - that's him on the left. I'm still trying to get my lens defogged.

A few minutes later the sky had coloured very nicely. Fishing boats were zipping up and down the coast and around our little rock. It was fun being out at this time.

So peaceful.

A few minutes later the sun was up. Normally at home once the sun is up, the photo shoot is over because the light is suddenly harsh. The haze in the sky here meant that we could keep shooting.

On our way to the fish market we saw this shop. As someone on Instagram said, we should use the word 'of' more. -:) With all these dishdashas it must be a seriously busy business.

A few kilometres north of our hotel is the Mutrah fish and veggie market which starts early. There were few tourists and the locals were surprisingly agreeable considering they had work to do. But they know Abdullah, which is partly why we like to have a local photographer with us when we visit places like this. The other reason is that local photographers know where to go and where to be, where the best angles are when the light is right. Who doesn't mind photos and who does.

That's Abdullah in the white with the big lens, chatting to the locals. I found him by googling photography tours Oman. What a find.

His mate wants to know what he's going to do with it, how he's going to cook it. Or where he got it. Or what he paid for it. They're wearing the national dress of dishdasha (gown) and kuma (cap) and sandals. A more casual look is the turban or massar. Sultan Qaboos bin Said, their ruler, made this the national dress. They've embraced it totally and look just so elegant in it. And spotless, even at the fish market.

Maybe not so spotless the workers! See how the man in the brown dishdasha is holding the end of this scarf in his mouth? I've noticed that's common when they want to use both hands. In the background, that huge vessel belongs to Sultan Qaboos to supply his yacht which is not much smaller, behind it. Some supply ship huh?

Their boat was out of the water and he was getting fish out of the net. I love it when someone looks straight down the lens and makes a connection - some people just have IT.

Just hanging on the boat ramp.

I was really having fun. We walked up to the fish auction under cover, made sure we didn't get in the way, and started shooting. To ask permission I just pointed at my camera. Most men just nodded happily and got back to work.

I took this photo before I realised that maybe he wasn't as agreeable as everyone else, but when I looked at it later, thought it quite a powerful portrait.

There was a very friendly feeling in that market.

Such a beautiful smile! It was my turn on the big camera this morning (isn't John a darling sharing it?) A couple of these shots are his on a compact camera. Capturing happy people going about their business is what we love doing most. We feed off each other.

It's only a small market and there is not a lot happening - maybe because it's a holiday. They're building a new super duper modern market building in front of this, with a high undulating white roof and lots of white pipework showing.