We are going on a ship tour to see the highlights of this marvellous city and so our first stop is to visit the Grand Mosque, which covers 1 million square feet and holds 20,000 worshippers. The outside of the building is magnificent, and it took 9 years to complete. The inside is renowned for its main hall which holds a Persian carpet that is 230ft by almost 200ft that took 600 women four years to weave. Many chandeliers are in the rooms and one has a drop of 45ft. This is one of the world's largest Mosques and was well worth the photo stop visit we had time to do.

Travelling back to the city environs gave us a look at the city surrounds. There were many new buildings here and it was very noticable that the place was kept very clean and well maintained. The park areas were very green and the stark background of the close desolate mountains were very much a contrast to the city. There seemed to be a lot of car yards with many types of vehicles for sale. Our next visit was to see the Muttrah Souk where there were lots of items for sale and of course many sellers to encourage you to buy. Bronze coffee pots, frankincense, spices and jewellery were all on offer. Bright coloured clothes were everywhere along with accessories like shawls, shoes and the like. The market itself was in alleys and you had to be careful here not to get lost. First we called at the Bait Al Zubair Museum where the growth and culture of Oman was displayed. The early history was demonstrated in pictures and artefacts and everyday items such as clothes and jewellery were on display. Our last visit of the day was to see the Sultan's Palace which was flanked by Jalali and Mirani, the Portuguese Forts. This area was incredible, a wide entrance road leading to the Palace itself and the whole area was amazing in its architecture. The forts up on the hill looked so interesting but we couldn't visit them at this time. P & O Arcadia