Ready...Set...Oman!

I have been in Oman exactly 2 weeks, boy do I have a lot of catching up to do! I’ll start with today. I went to the Muscat Festival, the last day of this I think month-long celebration of (existence?) and saw, among other things, about 100 Arabian horses dressed to the nines, a break dancing competition, skydivers, a Bedouin camel show, and the most popular singer from Saudi Arabia. Quite a combination huh? Well, that’s pretty how its been since arriving here- Oman seems to be right in the middle between its traditional way of life and “modernity” (you can choose how to interpret modern, cause being here I really have no idea.)

We all arrived on Feb 1 and had five days of orientation, which included visits to the Grand Mosque, supermarkets, the City Center (the newest, biggest, best, and only mall in Muscat) taxi rides, souk (market) shopping and endless lectures on how different Oman is from the US. I think the purpose was to eliminate cultural misunderstandings and prepare us for the different mindset Omani’s may have about governance, money, modesty, being Omani, driving, toilets and “clean.” (to name just a few of the most interesting) Want to find out what I may be talking about? Well read on then- but just for my own piece of mind, these are of course my own opinions- arrived at not after any sort of scholarly effort but just observing.

Governance:
The Sultanate of Oman is exactly that- a country ruled by a Sultan who has absolute power. The great thing is that since he took power in 1970, his government has actually used their modest oil revenues to unify the country, build loads of roads, schools, and hospitals, and most importantly- has kept people fat and happy. I have not yet seen the interior [Oh, Oman is pretty much Muscat, the capital, and everything else] but here everyone seems to have a nice house, a couple cars that aren’t necessarily extravagant (you see lots more Toyotas and Hondas than luxury cars) but they are clean (there is a law saying they must be so), and plenty to eat. Oil revenues make up 80% of the economy, and it seems that even despite the widespread knowledge that ministers are absolutely up to their eyeballs in money- that’s okay cause everyone else isn’t being squeezed for it. Omanis seem to genuinely adore their Sultan because of all these things, and I am saying this not just because his picture seems to be in every house and in every business. There exists a different sort of thinking than Americans when people talk about their government. People either say that with all the good this Sultan has done- there is little that would turn his reign into a bad one; or that who are they to criticize the government. A local official, a minister maybe- but “me,” I am not involved and therefore am not in a position to judge. The position makes a great deal of sense, especially when you take into account that most people here are just so distant from any deliberation, disagreement, and all decision making. In short, while there are governmental restrictions on the media and other public expression- what Oman has done with its oil revenues is a hell of a lot better than what has been done in Venezuela, Mexico, Nigeria, Romania, Communist-Russia, Shah-led Iran, Iraq; and particularly the UAE.

Money: All I have to say is that Omani’s have little reservations in flaunting their money- it takes a bit of getting used to. People work hard for it though, many work 6 days a week and increasingly both Father and Mother are working to maintain their standard of living.

Modesty: Interaction between men and women here are indeed changing because of mixed workplaces, markets, and schools now- but the tradition of separating the sexes still manifests itself in separate seating areas in restaurants for men and for families as an example. Most public places are predominantly male orientated. It is really something that depends on a person’s preference at this point, but many still wear the traditional Dishdasha and Abaya almost al the time. Ahh- dress. Omani’s seem to selectively decide what inspirations to listen to when preparing for the day. I have seen a guy dressed full-on gangster above the waist but then techno rave style pants, or a guy wearing a cowboy hat and a phanny pack! These things mixed in with Dishdashas everywhere I go is almost a sensory overload.
When it comes to Westerners, and the way scantily clad women (almost 100% tourists only) dress it’s a rough topic because they will be harassed walking around. Luckily our group was prepared beforehand, and everyone has been appropriate. I was continually confused as to why in a country with a predominantly observant Muslim population why men might heckle and harass. The best explanation for this behavior I have heard is that watching western media- many (almost all depending on your movie preferences) white women are…not conservative (if you’re speaking in polite company) particularly juxtaposed with the modesty of women here. So the perception becomes that this is just the way women are- and if they are inappropriately dressed, well that means they are just like the women in the movies.
Something that I found helpful towards seeing this different point of view is this: Just imagine the type of reception that a woman from a country where the norm is to be topless would receive if she walked around (particularly alone) in a predominantly male public place- like a construction site- and there is little difference anyway between topless and what some people where on a daily basis! If you’ve ever seen an Abaya, you’ll agree with me that all of a sudden seeing short shorts and a low tank top has to pull out a reaction. Please know that this is not meant to be justification for completely inappropriate actions- but only to try to explain a mindset.

Well, I’ve hit only half my topics, and I still have to talk about my wonderful homestay family- but its time to study Arabic. Thanks for reading!