Category Archives: Fun Things To Do

Daiso Japan, Muscat Grand Mall

Posted on May 11, 2013 | 8 Comments

Daiso Muscat entrance  The Daiso Japan store in Muscat Grand Mall (MGM) is huge and worth walking through if you happen to be in MGM with some time to kill.plenty of products  If you’ve never heard of “Daiso” you might like to check out their English website here.shop till you drop  All items in the store are 700 baizas or about $1.80 US.  When I enter a Daiso store, I always think about a similar chain of stores we have in Canada called “the Great Canadian Dollar Store“.other Daisos in Oman  It’s nice that they have informative posters like this in the shop letting you know that there are 2 other Daiso locations in Oman: Ruwi and Salalah. I wasn’t aware of the one in Salalah.

lots of cheap Japanese toys  All kinds of interesting toys and gadgets in Daiso.so many shelves   I wrote a blogpost about the Daiso shop in Ruwi almost exactly 4 years ago (at that time items were 600 baizas) and this shop in MGM is much bigger.computer items  I was surprised to see that they even have computer items like ipod silicone jackets and LAN cables as you can see pictured here.  Remember that items come and go and you can never be sure that the same item will be there on your next visit.  They do this to encourage repeat visits.another aisle  Daiso MGM opened up about 8 months ago in September of 2012.banana holderdo it yourself productsrefrigerant gel bottle  We bought several of these for our cooler for picnics, outings or camping.many items to explorerat traps  They usually have interesting and entertaining cartoons on most of their items.origami  What Japanese store would be complete without Origami?!protective sheetgnomes dogs and frogsbubble trinkets for kiddiesquite a large storedaiso store window  What do you think of Daiso stores?  Are they full of cheap, useless junk or are these stores a lot of fun exploring?

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Posted in Fun Things To Do, Gadgets Toys and Products

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Kharabah Island, the Damaniyat Islands Marine Park

Posted on May 8, 2013 | 8 Comments

Kharabah from a distance  In between dives this past Saturday, we dropped 3 Europeans off for snorkelling on this island before picking them up about an hour later.  The main instructor of Global Scuba, Abdullah, told me that the island/beach is called “Kharabah“.  It is one of the most gorgeous white-sand beaches I’ve seen in Oman!Kharabah Island photo 2  6 of us dove at 2 dive-sites (posts coming soon) and we saw all kinds of interesting fish and marine animals, but failed to spot any sharks.  The 3 snorkellers saw several black tip reef sharks just meters from shore!gorgeous area damaniyats  In addition to sharks, they saw a lot of colorful fish (which – like me - they seemed unable to identity!) and a lot of calamari which are a large form of squid. (I thought calamari was strictly the name for the dish! :-) )what a beach  If you are interested in snorkeling or scuba-diving at the Damaniyat Islands, I recommend either Global Scuba or Omanta as those are the dive centres I go with and they’re both great.  Other dive shops that travel out there are Extra-Divers and Oman Dive Centre (and others).fabulous beaches at damaniyat islands  magical waters of the Damaniyatsinteresting features gorgeous waters   Have you ever seen such water before?! It’s unreal!  Here’s a video from 4 different clips of the beach and immediate area to give you a much better idea of just how gorgeous this spot is:  The Damaniyat Islands are a definite must-see in Oman, whether you scuba-dive or not!

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Posted in Beaches, Fun Things To Do, Scuba, tourist sites

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Red Bull BC One Event at Bait al Zubair Museum, Thurs. April 25th!

Posted on April 23, 2013 | 2 Comments

Red bull One  This should be a pretty wicked event!  Anyone else plan on attending?

Since its founding 10 years ago, Red Bull BC One has earned a reputation as the premiere one-on-one B-Boy Championship. The international series will be hosted in Oman to choose the best of the best to represent the nation. Winners of the country cyphers will get the chance to compete in one of six global qualifiers in an attempt to reach the 10th World Final in late November. Qualifiers have been confirmed for the USA, Eastern Europe in Ukraine, Western Europe in Italy, Latin America in Colombia, Asia Pacific in Japan and Middle East & Africa in Egypt.  Please join us to watch the best 16 Omani B-Boys battle against each on Thursday April 25th at Bait Zubair Museum.

Here’s a video from last year BC Event in Oman: And a few pics:Competitor - Portrait  “London based DJ Renegade will crank the volume up and play a mix of electrifying break beats to absorb the audience.”Competitor - Performance  “Dancers will be judged on three main skills, including technique, innovation and dance flow by some of the best breaking stars in the world, the judging panel will include three members of the BC One All Stars including B-Boy Lamine, B-Boy Lilou and B-Boy Pelezinho.”

If you’re not doing anything onThursday evening, you might want to come by and check this out!

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Posted in Art, Fun Things To Do, Oman in the News, social events

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Black Tip Reef, The Damaniyat Islands

Posted on April 14, 2013 | 12 Comments

clear water of damaniyats  The Damaniyat Islands consist of 9 islands and there are a total of 12 recognized dive-sites to explore there.  Our first dive (which is my 19th dive to date) on Thursday, April 13th, was to Black Tip Reef; so named because of the black tip reef sharks which are often observed there. (Not on this dive, thank God! ;-) ) We were with Faisal, Muneer and the gang from Omanta Scuba.  It was a beautiful day for diving!our motley crew  Our motley crew heading to Black Tip Reef!ready to submerge  Getting ready for the dive…We were down for a total of 48 minutes at a bottom depth of 26 meters. (Apart from the 1st 2 pics of this post, all photo credits go to Denise Boyd! Amazing job as always, Denise!)April 11 Daymaniyats 017April 11 Daymaniyats 019April 11 Daymaniyats 020April 11 Daymaniyats 021April 11 Daymaniyats 024April 11 Daymaniyats 029April 11 Daymaniyats 030April 11 Daymaniyats 032April 11 Daymaniyats 033April 11 Daymaniyats 035April 11 Daymaniyats 038April 11 Daymaniyats 039April 11 Daymaniyats 043 - CopyApril 11 Daymaniyats 051April 11 Daymaniyats 054 - Copy  Here’s a video I put together from different clips I filmed during this dive:

Whether it’s for snorkeling or diving, anyone living in or visiting Oman should try to make it to the Damaniyat Islands at least once. Gorgeous!

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Posted in Fun Things To Do, Scuba, tourist sites

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Red Bull Soapbox Race 2013 This Thursday at Bausher Sands!

Posted on April 13, 2013 | 6 Comments

5 days till the biggest Red Bull event of the year here in Oman!!!red bull soap box racing  “The Red Bull Soapbox Race will be a family day out event to entertain the Middle East for the first time.  The Red Bull Soapbox Race is where crazy driving meets wacky and ingenious engineering, and a whole lot of fun.around the bend  Challenging the experienced as well as amateurs, this gravity-powered race pushes teams to design and build outrageous, human-powered soapbox roadsters, and compete against the clock as they plunge downhill.soaring through the air  42 teams will be judged on the basis of speed, creativity and showmanship, by a panel of celebrity judges.Ahmed Al Harthy  Oman’s acclaimed circuit driver, Ahmed Al Harthy, will be one of four judges at the Red Bull Soapbox Race.  “It’s special for me personally because I’m racing around Britain and Europe and to see this take place in Oman is something great to be part of.  It’s exciting that Oman is the first country in the Middle East to host this event and I’m sure it will have a positive impact.”  Sitting alongside Ahmed Al Harthy on the judging panel will be Radio and TV Presenter Murtadha Al Lawati, Oman TV Personality Ibtihal Al Zadjali and Director of the Oman Automobile Association Sulaiman Al Rawahi.more action  Familes will be amused, inspired and entertained by international performers including dazzling jugglers, stilt walkers, mimes, clowns, and more including a parade.should be fun   The craziest dressed couple will win a prize and if you arrive early you might be lucky enough to receive cheering horns and clapper sticks to create as much noise as you can.full speed ahead  The best things in life are free, and Red Bull Soapbox Race is no exception.  So bring your family, friends, neighbours and just about anyone else who would like to experience this wacky line-up of racers cross the finish line.downhill action  Everything goes downhill on April 18th at 2pm, and the swerving, hay-bale dodging and crashing will continue until 6pm.speed is the name of the game   Spectators can binge on food and beverages available at the stalls at the public village and around the track.  Of course you are free to bring along your own delicious snacks.sharp turn  The downhill road to wackiness for the Red Bull Soapbox Race will be smack in the middle of the Bausher Sand Dunes. Look out for road signage along the way or better yet plug in these GPS coordinates to make life easier:           N23°33.916′E058°25.008′ .”

 Here’s a pdf file map that you might want to download and bring with you on Thursday:  Soap Box Map (just click on it!)

I have a feeling you won’t want to miss this event.  From my experience here in Oman, nobody does events like Red Bull!  (A big thanks to Stacey Ross, Red Bull Communication Specialist, for all the info she’s provided in this post!)

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Posted in Fun Things To Do, social events, Sports

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