Living in Oman

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nqtabroad
nqtabroad

I know this is a travel forum but I have posted on a UAE forum before and people who lived there were so helpful when I moved there. Plus some of the questions are quite similar.

Im returning to the middle east after a 3 year gap. I ve missed it soo much!

I worked as a teacher in Al Ain, UAE. I loved it here but I left after one year in order to qualify and improve my job prospects as a primary teacher in the UK. I ve missed living abroad so much!
I ve gained some experience and the time has finally come for me to return!

I have been offered a job in a really good school in Muscat, Oman. Im 100% about the school and Im warming to the idea of Muscat.

People often described Al Ain as boring but I absolutely loved it. It was just basically cafes, manicures and the cinema. But I was quite happy there! I made some friends to hang out with. Saved some, travelled and had a ball

Dubai was not the city for me. It was ok for a weekend but it would absolutely annoy me if I lived there. The high rises, traffic, humidity wasn t for me. Also it just didn t seem foreign sometimes especially compared to Al Ain. Al Ain had definately more of an Arabic feel to it.

People have said to me if you like Al Ain you ll love Muscat. Im really hoping I will.

I ve lived in the ME before so I have a good idea of what to expect.
I ve already contacted some people but I d just like to hear a few more opinions on a variety of things.

  1. What is it like being a single woman in Oman? Is there much hassle from men? I ve heard mixed things about this. I ve heard Omani men like to talk to you but are quite respectful. I heard as blonde woman you do get alot of attention in hotels and discos but nothing too bad....
    In Al Ain not much hassle from men but some men can follow you in their cars if you walk (Im a great little walker and Emiratis could simply not understand why I walked ) I can handle stares quite well and men generally leave you alone if you ask them to.

Also in Al Ain I did have Egyptian and Lebanese male friends. I often went out to the cinema and out to cafes with them on my own. Would this be a problem? I heard Muscat is quite small and people talk but then so was Al Ain and no one cared what I did.

  1. Shopping. I ve heard mixed things about this. As long as there is a Carrefour and Souk Im delighted. Im not a fuss pot and the school will be providing alot of my meals anyway. Im going to be in Al seeb. Will there be little supermarkets around? I loved "walking" to them in Al Ain. The concept of walking to the shops seemed so bizarre to so many people

    Clothes wise is there a H&M or Forever 21? That was the only place I ever bought clothes in Dubai. Otherwise I just waited til I went back to Ireland. Clothes could be a bit of a rip off in the Emirates and not as nice.
    Is there a boots? I like their cosmetics but I d live without it.

  2. Clothes. Generally I was just sensible made sure my shoulders weren t exposed and I didn t wear shorts or skirts that went above the knee.
    Will that be ok? By the way in clubs and hotels anything goes right? In Dubai people wore whatever they wanted.

  3. Transport. Heres the big one. Im trying to pass my test. Even when I do I am a terribly nervous driver hence why i adore walking. I would like to wait a month or two before I am forced to buy a car.
    Just how much do taxis cost? Are they plentiful?
    Al Ain was a dream come true in that they were dirt cheap and everywhere!

  4. Internet. How accessible is the internet? Is it expensive? Can Skype be used?

  5. Cost of living. How would it compare to Dubai? Al Ain was dirt cheap so Im not expecting that plus my salary is higher than the one I was on in Al Ain.

  6. Girly question. Manicures and beauty treatments are they pricey? Can you find ones that do deals? Can you haggle? (you d know I lived in the middle east before)

  7. Access to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Even though Im not the biggest fan of Dubai I didn t mind the shopping and nightlife (just for a weekend). Is it costly to travel there? Can you get a bus or plane?
    Also is it possible to get a bus to Al Buraimi, I might like to return to Al Ain for a visit

I d really appreciate some responses! PMs would be really gratefully received as well!

Thank you in advance!

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genghis_caterpillar
genghis_caterpillar

Gosh, its so rare to get a really good set of questions to get my teeth into, I'm enjoying this one:

  1. I've never had a major problem but then I drive mostly, and if I'm walking I'm generally with someone else. I do know that single women walking tend to generate a lot more attention than was normal in UAE generally. Seeb is predominantly a local area and you may have issues with young Omanis - I've heard stories of stone throwing and name shouting quite often, when women walk alone, although never really experienced it myself. My overall experience of Omani men (and 100% guaranteed once you're introduced) is one of total gentlemanly behaviour. In clubs and bars, I've been more pissed off with young Lebanese and Indian men than Omanis.

  2. Having come from Dubai, I rate the shopping here as shite. Honestly, its rubbish. Theres multiple Carrefours, and some UK high street stores, but as I routinely have to go to UAE for work, I do all my main clothes / shoes / book shopping there. No Boots.

The Seeb fish and produce markets are legendary, and the souk is great for a wander at night. No shortage of corner groceries and local coffee shops etc.

  1. Muscat is much more conservative than UAE, and you dont get the same tolerance of the ignorant. Women exposing flesh is not accepted at all, unless you're at the beach or remote areas. I'd say that shoulders and knees are the critical level, but I'd go for longer skirts in general. Personally I never wear skirts so its hard to judge what is seen as acceptable, but I'd guess that 3-4 inches below the knee would be seen as more culturally accepted. Especially in schools. Short sleeves are fine.

  2. Taxis are all under private ownership so there's no central call line or booking available, and they're nowhere near as plentiful as in UAE. And there are any number of stories about really scary situations for single women getting into unknown taxis late at night. You need to start harvesting business cards of good drivers as soon as you arrive so you have a pool of drivers you trust. Especially if you're living in a more remote area where they dont come past your door. Getting a taxi in the small hours is impossible except outside hotels / restaurants, or pre-arranged. Based on UAE prices, they are expensive. If you're out in Seeb, then microbuses might be an option to come into town, but they have a shocking safety record, and I've never used them.

If I were you, I'd throw myself into the driving as soon as you can. Muscat is much more spread out than Al Ain, and being without transport would leave me deeply miserable.

  1. Internet is slow generally, and I think, slower than UAE. VPNs are blocked and although new ones come online every now and then, they seem to be catching up with them fast, so assume you cant bypass the proxy, and skype etc arent accessible. I pay 22OR per month for a broadband dongle with 2GB of downloads, which is fast enough for mail and youtube but useless for downloads.

  2. Food is much pricier than UAE - most of the imported supermarket goods come via UAE by road so theres a mark-up on everything generally. Power, utilities and petrol are all significantly cheaper. Taxis more expensive. Generally it all pretty much evens out in the end, but most of my recoup is on the power bills so if you're in staff accomm you wont get the benefit of that. Eating out is like UAE - you spend as much as you want to.

  3. Beauty treatments are much cheaper than UAE. Theres a couple of good hairdressers, and lots and lots of manicure / beauty places, prices vary based on nationality of their primary clientele, but generally the european based ones dont haggle and the arabic based ones do.

8 I've never caught the bus up to Dubai, but it runs twice a day and is cheap and reasonably fast, with the only potential annoyance of having to wait a while at the border while everyone gets their passports stamped. Air Arabia does cheap flights into Sharjah (around 500 AED) at least once a day. You might also find that colleagues with cars would be more than happy to split petrol costs etc. A lot of Muscat residents do shopping trips up to Dubai quite often for IKEA and clothes / shoes shopping etc.

I love living in Oman. It has so much more to offer than Al Ain and I think you'll have a blast. Feel free to PM for further advice or queries you dont necessarily want to post in public, and lets meet for a drink when you get here.

GC

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vonwerden
vonwerden

I'm SO much with genghis_caterpillar! Living and working in Oman was a blessing, and I enjoyed it day after day. Couldn't think of a nicer GCC location, and indeed it doesn't matter if you get the greatest shopping on earth or not.

That said, the amenities are improving significantly and you will find a lot more choice in Muscat than a few years ago. The latest addition is Muscat City Centre near Qurum with a wide range of outlets. H&M is there.

What you might spend more on groceries in Muscat will be made up by many other things. My female friends in Muscat told me that it was much cheaper to go to a beauty salon than in Dubai for example. As a man, I can only speak for barbers and they are about 1/3 of the Dubai price.

Oman Air have lowered their price for Dubai flights significantly since flydubai started offering the same route. Mind that checked-in baggage will cost extra with flydubai. As much as I like airarabia, the cost for a taxi ride from/to the airport is high if you decide to take a hotel in Dubai. There is a late night flight with Swiss as well, yet with the low cost carriers flying in and out of Muscat, their price is no longer competitive.

Again, life in Muscat doesn't have much in common with Abu Dhabi or Dubai. Therefore, with you having lived in cozy Al Ain, you will easily adapt to normal life there. Omani people are very curious, they will show genuine interest and be very friendly to you. I hope you will enjoy your time there! I would surely go back if I had the choice.

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veralynn
veralynn

Can't really add any more to GC's tome other than I would think as you loved Al Ain you will have no problems with settling into Muscat and that if anything you will love it more.

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nqtabroad
nqtabroad

Thank you so much for all the replies.
The quality of the replies on Lonely Planet is so much better than in the Teachers abroad forum that I know.. Im so glad I posted my questions. Im feeling so much better about going to Muscat now.
Thanks again!

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