Mīnā’ as Sulţān Qābūs

2nd day in Muscat and the lads wanted to have a walk to the famous giant incense burner that you can see on the headland as you sail into Muscat.
It's actually situated in the old Muscat area of the town, in the beautiful Al Riyam Park.
The walk along the Corniche is very pleasant and easy, if a tad long! It took a good 40 minutes to walk to the park, but you do have some lovely views of the harbour, and really spectacular views of the mountains which surround Muscat.
Also on the way you see one or two old forts perched on the mountains, apparently you cannot go inside them, but they make impressive viewing from the corniche.
Anyway at the end of the corniche you come to the very pretty and very green Al Riyam Park at the end of which set on a big hill is the incense burner. The gates to the path up to it where locked so we couldn't go right to the top, which if I'm honest I was secretly glad about, as the climb to the top looked quite long, as the path wound itself around the steep hill.
It was worth the walk out to it though, as the corniche is beautiful and as I said the views are spectacular.
On the way back we had a walk through Mutrah Souq which is an experience in itself. The place is over 200 years old and huge with so many paths and alleyways it is quite easy to get lost.
That is unless you are Andy who had an uncanny sense of direction and found the way out very easily.
After the souq it was straight back to the ship for a bite to eat and a well earned rest.Read more