We enjoyed a morning excursion again today.  Joseph drove us into old town Muscat and we wandered around the souk. Trish was checking for any last minute items she needed to purchase for herself or her friends as she leaves for home in two days.  John and I are staying another two weeks.

What Trish would really like is a Persian Lamp for her front entry or her bedroom. But we all agree that the odds of it arriving home in one piece are pretty slim. She did find a couple of amethyst pendants to wear on a silver chain that she really likes.

I , who rarely shop unless for necessities, was the biggest shopper today; if you count four items as big shopping.  I bought two pairs of sandals.  I also bought an Arabian-styled carving of an Elephant – I love elephants – and a notepad with watermark images or symbols on each page. It will be handy for me as well because it opens from left to right and since I am left-handed this works perfectly.  Arabic writing is done from right to left so their books, notebooks and journals open oppposite to ours. We spent a couple of hours wandering the souk and then walked through two small art galleries.  Carrie, being an artist, is always interested in other artists work and ideas that may inspire her own creativity.

Parking in Muscat is always a challenge.  The lots in the malls fill very quickly as do any spots on the streets so drivers make parking spots out of any space they can find.  If they own a four-wheel drive vehicle it is very common to see them drive over curbs and across meridians to park on sidewalks or an open space.  Any empty alleyway becomes a parking lot.

We next drove to the mall near Joseph and Carrie’s house to purchase some dried apricots.  On October 5, a lady in the neighbourhood knocked on the door and gifted Carrie a piece of lamb meat from the animal they had slaughtered for the family’s Eid Al Adha celebration.  This was a very generous and welcoming gift for a Saudi lady to offer to an American.  Carrie put the meat into the freezer and tonight she is cooking it with an apricot sauce for herself and John and Trish.  Joseph and I, who don’t care for lamb will enjoy left over turkey.

There is a Starbuck’s in this mall, so apparently it was time for another coffee.

Trish lay in the sun on the roof for awhile after lunch then went for an eight km run.  Carrie, John, Joseph and I played Firefly, another game we gave to them for Christmas.  We finished – John won – a few minutes before Trish returned.  It was then time to begin the preparations for dinner.  How quickly our busy (not) days are going by.  They are very enjoyable though.