The Royal Sultanate of Oman, where we traveled in December, has been voted the world's most improved country in the last 40 years as well as the world's cleanest country, beating out lick-the-asphalt Singapore. This peaceful Gulf country of 3 million people has jumped straight from medieval times into the 21st century. The catalyst, of course, was the discovery of oil in the 1960s and its judicious use ever since the coup that brought the still-ruling benevolent dictator Sultan Qaboos in the 1970s. The capital, Muscat, is white and gleaming, full of attractive modern architecture, with a picturesque corniche that looks out on the modern port filled with giant cruise ships and the Sultan's own two yachts. The roads would be the envy of any American city, the outskirts of town resemble New Jersey strip malls, and the public spaces are laid out with fountains and teeming with flowers.
What interested us the most, however, was the remnants of the old, which are fortunately quite strong in this tiny, proud country. The well-educated, English-speaking men and women of this country dress conservatively and traditionally and favor the former Omani #1 export--dates of many varieties above any Western sweet. Muscat, as well as the rest of the country, is full of old castles (sixteenth- to seventeeth century) that used to be the strongholds of warring Omani tribes. And right in the middle of town is the very colorful old fish market where the locals buy the catch of the day (the rest largely goes to Oman's richer and less traditional cousin, Dubai). These aquatics were so irresistible that we just could not resist snapping away.
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