Text: Irina Malkova THE RICH AND PROSPERING CITY OF SALALA IN THE SULTANATE OF OMAN IS KNOWN AS THE PERFUMERY CAPITAL OF THE ARABIAN PENINSULA. HE BECOMES HIS HISTORY, CULTURAL HERITAGE AND THE BEAUTY OF NATURE. HERE ARE BEAUTIFUL BEACHES AND MAGNIFICENT MOUNTAINS, AND ALMANDED TREES GROW ALONG THE RUSELS OF MOUNTAIN RIVERS.
Green edge
The unique climatic conditions make Salalah the pearl of the Arabian Peninsula. You should come here at least for the weather, especially in the rainy season. From mid-June to early October, monsoon clouds bring incessant drizzling rain from India, which is why Salalah, surrounded by mountain range, turns into an emerald fertile oasis (and this is in the middle of the Rub-el-Khali desert!). On the meadows and fields immersed in greenery, the eye rests. Emerald creeping carpets bloom, fragrant and extend in all directions. Salal has a moderate temperature during this period, and this is the perfect time for the annual Harif festival (monsoon harvest).
Salalah is a colorful subtropical city that in many ways resembles the former possessions of Oman in east Africa. If you flew to Salalah from Muscat, especially during the rainy season, it will not be easy for you to believe that the two largest cities in Oman are located on the same continent - the contrast between them is so strong.
If you visit Salalu immediately after the rainy season - say, in October-November - you will meet a riot of vegetation under a crystal clear sky. Greenery is everywhere: mountains covered with forests and rugged valleys may well pass for a typical Scottish or New Zealand landscape, until the silhouettes of camels swaying measuredly sway the illusion.
Traditions and culture of Salalah
Once Salalah was a major trading port, from where incense began its journey to remote corners of the globe. However, even today, a walk through the old markets of Salalah, such as the Haffa Souq, which sell bright fabrics, exotic spices and mysterious incense, will be a real adventure.
If you are looking for a native Arabia - you have come to the address: you will find old boulevards illuminated by black and gold openwork lanterns, low houses in the traditional Islamic style, with elaborate interweaving of bars on the balconies and graceful curved lines of windows.
There are many biblical monuments of antiquity in Salalah, including the ruined palace, which is believed to belong to the legendary Queen of Sheba, as well as the grave of the prophet Job.
And of course, Salalah is famous for its fragrant groves of incense trees, thanks to which the city was called the "perfume capital of Arabia." Salalah's spice markets are filled with numerous products made from these trees. A city where the sweet incense fragrance is still poured in the air is even often called "Arabia Felix" - Happy Arabia.
For thousands of years, locals have incised the wrinkled bark of frankincense, or sacred Boswellia, waiting for the leaked resin to solidify in small pieces, and then collected them and heated on the coals. In the East and in the Mediterranean, not a single religious rite was performed - and in some places is still not performed - without thick, sweet incense smoke raising human prayers to heaven.
SALALA IN FIGURES
Salalah is the capital of Dofar, the largest of the 11 regions of the Sultanate of Oman, covering an area of 100,000 square meters. km Dofar is located in the southern part of Oman, in the west it borders with Yemen.
Dofar is famous for its giant tombs of religious figures. The tomb of Nami Ayyub (the prophet Job) is more than 4 meters in length, and the tomb of Nabi Omran - the grandfather of Jesus - is already 33 meters.
Every year, 350,000 tourists come to Salalu, and most of them come in the summer, during the Kharif rainy season. At this time, the Kharif Festival takes place here, which lasts a whole month and attracts many guests with a variety of exhibitions, shows and entertainment.
During the heyday of the Roman Empire, Dofar (the region of Oman, where Salalah is located) exported a huge amount of incense - the goods on ships went to Yemen and further along the Red Sea, and then camel caravans to Petra and the Mediterranean. It is said that the Roman emperor Nero burned no less than an annual supply of incense at the funeral of his second wife, Poppea, in the year 65 A.D. e.
Omanis themselves take odors seriously. Traditional long-necked shirts - dishdashi - worn by men in most Gulf countries, in Oman have the additional function of a special aromatic accessory: a lace sewn to the collar with a tassel at the end is dipped in incense every day.
At the same time, Omanis rarely use commercial perfumes. Shops and markets are jam-packed with natural products. Small slivers of oud - a resinous tree brought from Cambodia - are sold here as incense sticks for burning, at devilishly high prices. Bahur is also popular - wood chips soaked in essential oils. But nothing beats the thick, complex scent of incense.
You can spend days aimlessly wandering around Salalah, watching the shadows creep along the bleached arches (the name of the city comes from the local word meaning "white"), and sipping sweet water from the newly opened local coconut, which can be bought in roadside shops. You can wander into the Incense Museum and learn a lot of interesting facts about ancient times, or look at a local shop selling incense oil, incense water and even incense soap. “Only a woman can truly appreciate the quality,” the shopkeeper will tell you. Queen of Sheba would agree with her.
Incidentally, incense is also good for digestion. Possessing antiseptic properties, it disinfects not only air, but also the stomach. It tastes, almost like the smell, - rather peculiar. The highest quality incense is obtained in the grove of Wadi Hajar, a secluded valley beyond Sumkhuram; it is greenish and almost glows. Incense of lower quality is obtained in Naji, Shazri and Shaabi - it is darker.
“At first we had incense, then we found oil,” an Omani merchant told us. “The next generation will get rich on solar energy,” he continued, shook his head and smiled. “But we will not stop loving incense.”
Where to stay
With its beautiful views of the Indian Ocean and the excellent beaches of Salalah, Salalah Rotana Resort is a great place to start exploring Arabia and Oman.
The owners of this first five-star resort in Salalah are extremely careful about traditions, so they try to preserve the authentic architecture and harmoniously fit it into the surrounding nature. Carved stone arches and lattice windows are everywhere. The layout of the guest rooms is carefully thought out; ponds, lagoons and man-made canals divide 400 separate living quarters into several perfectly calibrated groups. Vacationers with children will definitely appreciate the size of family rooms with two bedrooms - they will have as much as 140 sq. M. m of free space.
The hotel prides itself on its natural white sand beach, which stretches along the coast for almost 8 kilometers. This is a paradise for scuba divers and bird lovers.
It is also worth a visit to Zen the Spa by Rotana - there are 8 individual rooms, including for couples. You can choose from deep muscle massage, hot stone back massage, Swedish and Thai massages. The SPA center also offers a number of treatment procedures, including aromatherapy and reflexology. There is also a sauna, steam room and a large fitness center.
HOW TO GET THEREDirect flight from Dubai to Salalah is operated twice a day by flydubai.
The flight takes only 1.5 hours. All flydubai airplanes are equipped with business class lounges, which will make the flight even more comfortable.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.flydubai.com or at sales offices in Dubai. One of the main advantages of flydubai is the speed of service and friendly staff, as well as in a completely new fleet of aircraft, consisting of Boeing 737s.
Flydubai departures from Terminal 2 of Dubai Airport.
