Oman travel: Floating retreat

T-Mag Wednesday 18/July/2018 14:43 PM
By: Times News Service
Oman travel: Floating retreat

Floating chalet, along the picturesque coastal villages of Sur and overlooking the Khor Jerama, is an ideal place for city dwellers to break away from the hustle and bustle.

“How’s the experience of staying in a houseboat?”

If you hail from Kerala, the southern state of India, you are bound to be asked this pertinent question each time you tell someone about your roots. It was no different this time. As we were all set for a unique experience that shared many similarities with the houseboats of Kerala, the thoughts of the houseboats from back home tiptoed in my thoughts.
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About two and half hours from Muscat, past the hustle and bustle of the city and the winding death road of Amerat, past the board that mysteriously reads “Ancient City of Qalhat” and the weird tiger rock, past the dhow factory, the famous Khor Al Batah bridge, and Ras Al Hadd, you will find yourself in the coastal villages of Sur and, finally, a vast, outstretched fisherman beach.

In the middle of nowhere, where there were more fish than people, we found my ideal escape from everything worldly. We were on a beach that had one signboard which said, “Avoid entering this site due to the instability of the soil.” The problem was we were able to see the signboard only after we entered the site. There, we saw a lot of dead fish neatly stacked on the shore by fishermen, a few huts, and a chalet.

After deciding to intrude and examine the spacious, wooden chalet, we decided to call Nasser Al Amri, the man who invited us to experience his one-of-a-kind venture in Oman.

The floating chalet is a two-floor wooden house with a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, and a balcony on both floors overlooking the Khor Jerama. We were first taken to the majlis chalet on a speedboat where we were able to rest for some time before heading to our home for the rest of the day. This is one of the five chalets that Nasser offers to those looking for a different weekend experience that they can share with a big group of their family and friends.

After taking a short nap on the terrace of the chalet where it was hot but very breezy, we were woken up by a few visitors who came with a lot of food, including biryani, bread, and some interesting curries. They made sure we were comfortable and that we didn’t need anything else before heading to our chalet.
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The main chalet where we ended up spending the rest of the day, as well as that night and the next morning, was a genuine treat. Our big bedroom right in the middle of the chalet had 2 bunk beds, which reminded us of college hostel dorms. The kitchen had the basic necessities such as a gas stove, essential spices with which to cook the fish that we could catch using the fishing wires provided on the chalet, a barbecue grill, and cutleries. As we walked upstairs to explore the chalet further, we couldn’t contain our excitement upon seeing the pool chairs, comfortable double beds, chairs, and cushion seats, and of course, the swing hanging right on the edge, which gave us chills and thrills while we enjoyed the sea breeze hitting our faces.

After going around the whole chalet and appreciating the little details, like the tiny white garden table and chair with the flower vase on it, the loud speakers that actually worked, and the green carpet laid outside the room along the circumference of the boat — especially on the balcony of the lower floor to give the area a lawn-like feeling — we decided it was time to jump into the water. Thanks to the life jackets and floats on the chalet, people who don’t know how to swim can also jump into the water and join millions of tiny fish and enjoy the cool waters in the summer heat.

After swimming — or in my case, floating against the tide and losing all the energy that the heavy lunch had given me — we went back into the chalet and decided it was time for tea. We moved upstairs, feeling the breeze getting cooler and watching the sun set slowly at first and then rapidly after 6.30pm.

The feeling was inexplicable, and it almost felt like meditation. We enjoyed the few hours of the golden hour with no one talking, just soaking in the beauty of the mountains, the sun, and the vast blue ocean. As night came, our day turned from serene and blissful to chilly and adventurous. Although there were lights on the chalet, we didn’t realise that we were quite far from civilisation and closer to nature than we’d ever been.
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Spending a night in the middle of the ocean meant we were spending the night with the fish, different species of which we could see scurrying around our floating home. We looked to the mountains and saw only their outline. We could hear the loud noises of the chilly wind, which kept knocking things over. We couldn’t believe that it was still July in the Middle East. Sharing horror stories at this point to distract yourself from the noises might not be a great idea — take the pro tip.

Instead you could play games, use the old speakers, and have your own mini party, and once you are tired and hungry, just give Nasser a call. He will arrive out of nowhere to deliver the most mouthwatering fresh seafood dinner.

At about 9.30pm, our speedboat arrived with a seafood platter containing crab, fried fish, and prawns, along with bread, hummus, and some rice. After the meal and such an eventful day and a semi-scary but mostly-exciting night, retiring isn’t a bad idea as the staycaytion won’t be over until the next morning.

We were woken by soft, pleasant noises coming from birds. Meanwhile, the sun, which was just about to rise, served as a protective blanket of warmth, providing a contrast to what the previous night had to offer.

As our eyes opened to the sight of the clear blue sky, two white birds flying into the distance, and the soft dawn light bouncing off the mountains, we just sat, soaking up the tranquillity and waiting for the sun to rise. In a few minutes the sun had risen and the colours of nature started turning a different shade.

The silence was broken when a speedboat with two Omani fishermen came to take us back to shore, where we had parked our cars. But before being transported back to reality, we were taken on a little morning boat ride to absorb, acknowledge, and appreciate the beauty of Oman’s coastal offerings one last time. —[email protected]