A Different World View

Tunnel out of Oman
Oman was one of the most laid back and relaxing countries that we have visited, with very few people and cars on the streets, with beautiful nature and rich culture. On our last day we had a delicious meal and walked around the harbor and made our way to the Sultan’s Palace, which was probably the most unique palaces that we have seen around the world (scroll over to the next picture and let us know what you think). Although you are not allowed to visit the palace, the guards are used to curious passersby stopping at the gate for pictures.
@ Al Alam Palace

Night at the opera
Well actually a day at the opera. Unfortunately there was nothing playing the day that we were in Muscat but we still had a chance to tour the opera house and admire the beautiful architecture. Since there were rehearsals happening during the time of our visit, we were only permitted to tour the corridors and halls of the building. However a nice guide got our attention and whispered that he could get us in 🙈, so we got in and watched part of the Mughal-E-Azam rehearsal.
@ Royal Opera House Muscat

Little oasis
Our favorite wadi was Wadi Shab. The visit to this wadi included a short boat ride, an easy hike to the water, swimming, which included wading over some uncomfortable rocks (or foot reflexology) and finally swimming through the narrowest passage to discover a beautiful little cave (check out the next post for the video). The weather was perfect for swimming in March, we only wish we wore some water shoes as walking on rocks barefoot for 30 minutes or so really tested our pain tolerance.

Next stop ✈️ Oman!
We were sad to leave Maldives so soon but quickly realized how beautiful and peaceful our next destination, Oman, was. Once we got to the capital city of Muscat, we rented a car and started driving to the beautiful wadis of Oman. Our first pit stop was Bimmah Sinkhole. Although the legend has it that the sinkhole was the product of a meteorite, it was actually formed by collapse of the surface layer due to deterioration of underlying limestone. Unfortunately, we got to the the sinkhole a little later in the day and didn’t get to swim, however we saw few tourists and locals leaving the area, looking very relaxed after a day of swimming and sunning.
@ Bimmah Sinkhole, Oman

Photobomb
This was our final shot in Maldives, as we were getting ready to board the plane back to civilization. Our pilots spontaneously decided to pose behind us as soon as they noticed us trying to take a picture. The 3 days In Maldives flew by but it was a great escape after 4 months of traveling and close to a month of traveling across India. We spent a lot of time just relaxing on the beach but made sure to fully enjoy the island with lots of snorkeling by the coral reef, a boat trip to the middle of nowhere to snorkel with giant sting rays and a sunset boat cruise to watch the dolphins.

Maldives we’ll miss you
On the way back to the island from our sunset dolphin cruise we captured this sunset that we think really epitomizes Maldives, calm tranquility in a beautiful setting. Looking back at this picture of the sun setting over the water, we forget the little things that bothered us about the trip and just remember the great times that we had at a unique destination unlike anywhere else in the world.

Walking “home” at night
Our last shot of the overwater bungalows we promise, we just wanted to make sure we captured them in all their glory. Our walk home the first night was magical with the boardwalk all lit up and lights shinning into the water so that we could see some of the beautiful fish swimming by every so often. Our first day was pretty packed, so when we got back we slept well that night and unfortunately missed the sunrise the next morning but we made up for it by enjoying every single sunset while on the island.

Sunset in paradise
The overwater bungalows were just so cool we wanted to capture them from every angle and in every light. This was just a bit after sunset but we loved the glow coming from behind the bungalows, with the beautiful calm ocean in front. The trip to Maldives is not easy and quite expensive but if you can afford it and especially if you are already in the area or plan it as part of a larger trip, we highly recommend to experience it at least once.

Well hello there!
Despite so much dying coral, in the water and all around the resort, we spent a lot of time snorkeling and enjoying the marine life around us. There were so many colorful fish, a few small sharks, stingrays, dolphins and our favorite the beautiful turtles. We got to swim with this guy for a few minutes right off our overwater bungalow and were able to capture a few great shots with our before he decided to drive back down into the ocean, leaving us behind.

Our overwater home
The first day we arrived we were so excited to finally be in the Maldives. The anticipation, after check-in as we walked across the island and down the boardwalk to our overwater bungalow, was immense. We had heard so much from friends that had been there and seen so many pictures that we could not wait till we finally got there to see for ourselves.

Welcome to our paradise
This was the view as we approached our island home for the next 3 days. Clear blue waters, white sand beaches and lots and lots of sunshine. One of us was a little scared to fly on a sea plane, or any small plane for that matter, but those fears quickly faded as we sailed above one beautiful island paradise after another, on our way to .