Arrived at Muscat by 8 am. We were up and dressed by then. Took pictures as we docked. Mark checked and the dining room was not open for breakfast today, so we walked up to Deck 14, Lido. Had an omelet and bacon, while Mark had scrambled eggs and bacon. Then we walked around the deck and took some more pictures. It was hot already. I was surprised at the rocky mountains surrounding the city. We met a couple from Alaska who were also sailors. They warned us that we needed to wear long pants and cover up. When they did a cruise here a few years ago, one lady went to town in a sun dress. The locals grabbed her and caned her. We headed back to the cabin and filled a bottle with water and packed a carry bag to take with us. The port area was a short distance from the city of Muscat. It was supposed to be a half hour drive to the market area. We could see two other very large ships that looked like cruise ships. Mark said they were most likely the Sultan's toys. We decided to disembark around 9. We went to the Vista Lounge to pick up a ticket for the shuttle bus. We took a seat, but were told that our bus was available. Lots of passengers decided to stay on board. The crew gave us an immigration card to keep with us until we returned to the ship. No one even asked for them.
The shuttle bus took us to the port entrance where there was a Duty Free shop. We had to get off the bus and go thru immigration. They also scanned all our carry bags as well as ourselves. We got hounded by a couple of taxi drivers wanting us to take a tour with them. We all got on the bus and they drove us to the market area. Not many of the shops were open because of Ramadan. The market was more like stalls than shops. Most of them sold fabric or some type of clothing. I was surprised that few of the shops sold jewelry. We walked thru the market area and worked out way our to the street. Mark worked out a deal with a taxi to take us around the city of Muscat. We enjoyed the many sights. Lots of very old buildings that looked to be well over 1000 years old. The buildings looked to be in great shape shape. Our driver stopped at several places so we could get out and take pictures. I loved the rocky mountains. Was able to touch the rock in one area and did a connection. Very interesting visions. Really enjoyed our tour of Muscat, especially by the Sultan's huge waterfront palace and forts positioned around the area. Our driver ended up taking us back to the gated entrance to our ship. Our cab was air conditioned but we were both sweating. We got out of the car at several spots to take pictures, plus I took pictures out the window too. We still were sweating with the heat of the day. Our timing was great as one of the ship's shuttle buses arrived at the same time, so we got on the bus and returned to our ship. It was just before lunch time, so we headed to our cabin and got out of our wet clothes. Then had a rest. Woke up and headed up to Deck 14, Lido for lunch. Talked to some of the passengers in the dining room. I ate mostly cooked veggies for lunch. It was too hot to spend time outdoors. We headed back to our cabin. Decided to pack up our wet clothes and run a couple loads of laundry. There was only one washer available. Started it up and went back to cabin and watched some tv. Mark ended up getting into his swimsuit and joining our friends at the pool for water volleyball. I finished up the laundry but didn't have enough time to join him. Showered and got dressed for dinner. Our ship departed the dock around 5. We joined our dinner mates and had a lovely dinner together. Mark and I both had some French Onion Soup and Steak dinner. Headed up to Deck 12 for the Movie Under the Stars. Tonight was a movie called Venum. We enjoyed some popcorn as we watched the movie. Then returned to our cabin. We had a message on our phone to make sure we cashed out the casino credit on our ship cards. So, we headed down to the casino. My card would not work in the slot machines. I was told to get another card from the pursers desk, which I did. Mark was using up his credit on one of the machines. My machine gave me a few dollars, which I cashed out. I suggested to Mark that we play some roulette. We each cashed out $30 up. Decided to head to the Vista Lounge as the cruise director and staff were performing in a lip syncing contest. It was entertaining with lots of laughs. Headed back to our cabin. Put together today's blog. Mark will post it shortly. Thanks for the many emails and messages. Our ship is heading to Dubai. We will arrive around noon and stay at their dock overnight. Should be a fun day on shore!