Croatian President Stjepan Mesić visits Sultan Qaboos in Muscat

After all the rain – the flags are out.

Flags are out for the Croatian President's Visit

However there is no connection with the weather; they are out for the visit of the Croatian President Stjepan Mesić . He hopefully will enjoy the fresh sunny weather .

Flags of Croatia on The Mall in front of the Palace in Muscat

Jewel of Muscat

Just before it launches I took a look at the Jewel of Muscat, the replica of a 9^th Century West Indian Ocean (Arabian Sea) boat. This is being constructed in Muscat and will sail to Singapore where it will be the focus of a Museum about the Belitung, a wreck full of Chinese merchandise .

The boat is sewn, rather than nailed together, a technique used in Oman until the mid 20^th c .

Jewel of Muscat

The Jewel uses extreme sewing – which in most boats I’ve seen was used for structurally critical parts of a boat. Probably for a long ocean voyage, between Oman and China, every part of the boat would be considered critical.

Cruising into Muscat

Setting off from Australia , the Dawn Princess arrived in Muscat today, during its World Cruise .

Dawn Princess in Muscat’s Port

Its possibly the first World Cruise to start in Australia so, naturally, the majority of the passengers came from Australia and New Zealand. Muscat was cooler than it has been which was good for the people taking shore excursions.

Oman Air’s new Jets start arriving

Oman Air has taken delivery of the first of its new A330-200 Airbus jets. These are configured for 216 passengers, including 20 business class seats and 196 economy class seats.

Oman Air over Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque

That should allow more comfort to visitors flying from London Heathrow, Paris, Munich & Frankfurt into Muscat.

The airline is expecting 7 planes with an option of 6 more.

Oman Ministry of Tourism

Oman’s Ministry of Tourism invited Tour operators in Oman for an overview of the promotions that Oman’s Tourism Representative Offices have been doing over the past 12 months in countries from Australia to Britain .

Alison Cryer of the London Oman Tourist Office

There was considerable variation in their marketing approach – from extensive use of printed media – through to social functions. This variation continued in their style of presentation – with some emphasizing facts – others attitudes.