Seychelles & Muscat

In preparation for our trip we were required to get 2 inoculations. One was for Kenya, which is understandable. I’ll endure the 3 seconds of discomfort for that. But as I sat on that awkward paper-covered table with a yellow fever shot jabbed in my arm, I though to myself… I don’t even know where the Seychelles are but it better be worth this. As we approached the mystery stop, I learned more about it. The Seychelles is an archipelago of islands off the eastern coast of Africa, kind of like the Hawaii of the Indian Ocean. Located only 4 degrees from the equator, it’s quite warm and tropical. Everyone raved about the beautiful beaches so we looked forward to a day of relaxation after our adventures in Africa.

On the 14th, we were welcomed to the island of Mahé by the lovely aroma wafting from the local tuna cannery. We even got the privilege of docking right next to it. The shuttle into town started running at 9am, but of course my parents were raring to go at 8. So we walked about 15 minutes into the town and stopped at a tourist information place where we inquired about the beaches. The woman told us to catch a bus or taxi to Beau Vallon, one of the nicest on the island. “How far is it to walk?” was my dad’s immediate response, a question I’ve come to dread. It was 5K and at the time didn’t seem like such a bad idea so we set off. Naturally, it started getting hotter and the fact that our journey involved scaling a massive mountain (ok, a gradual incline) didn’t help either. We practically walked the entire island. But after about an hour we did eventually make it to our destination, which was indeed very nice. We spent the afternoon in the sun and swimming in the ocean and later my mom and I even convinced my dad to get a cab back to the ship.



From the Seychelles, we spent 3 days at sea and then docked in Muscat, Oman…the Middle East! I certainly never thought I would be in this part of the world. The media doesn’t exactly give it the best image, but I decided to put all that aside. It was actually pouring for the duration of our stay in Muscat, but we ventured out nevertheless and took a taxi all around the city for about 3 hours. I was really surprised by it’s different kind of beauty even in the rain. Our driver first took us to the city’s Grand Mosque. The architecture was amazing but we could only admire from the outside because it’s only open to tourists at a certain time.



After the mosque we drove all around the city and stopped at a natural hot spring, a frankincense market, the sultan’s office, and a beach area. The rain died down a little but the water started coming down from the mountains and the roads flooded. After driving through a foot of water, we decided it was probably a good time to go back to the ship. I was glad we went out because I saw a different side to the Middle East that the news rarely shows and I never expected. Muscat is a thriving city with nice resorts and the Omani government seems quite stable. As tourists, we never felt in any sort of danger and as spoiled Americans we were pleasantly surprised. I can see the tourist commercials already…Oman, make it your next vacation destination.



Uh, wait until the rain stops first…and maybe the war too.