The Shangri-La Al Husn

First stop – The Shangri-la’ Al Husn

The beach and its sunset view

Perfect choreography

The frozen infinity pool

The hotel and it’s many bays

Maria

First mission accomplished.
Safe arrival to our very nice hotel near Muscat although we didn’t have a working Sat Nav. Well done Alex! (my part was easier considering that I slept most of the journey).

The hotel inspired calm, we were welcomed with a fresh juice and a wet hand towel which felt sooo sooo good to fight the heat of the country.

I would like to mention that Omanies are very friendly people, they are completely different than Emiraties, who are super serious. We noticed this as soon as we crossed different borders. Omanies were even able to make jokes, I suppose we were an easy victim as they might not see two European women driving a Jeep often (actually, we didn’t see anyone or anything else similar to us in the whole trip).

The hotel was very beautiful where I didn’t have any doubt we would spend fantastic days.
There was no time for boredom with a swimming pool, beach, bars… This was a paradise for Alex who is a fidgeter, so she started giving me all the lists of possible activities and trips WE could do (I was looking at the lovely sun beds on the beach, it was all I needed). We agreed to go for a dolphin watching and snorkelling trip, which was really good. It was my first time so close to dolphins, even though we stayed in the boat, it was amazing how synchronised they are, perfect choreography. Then, we did some snorkelling, it was so exciting to be able to swim so close to beautiful fishes and a huge tortoise. But let me explain how my very caring Alex got me ready for my first snorkelling adventure.

So, the day before of the snorkelling trip, Alex decided to interrupt my deep and peaceful rest on the dreamy sun-bed to give me a snorkelling lesson for beginners. She seemed super excited and I trusted her, so let’s do it.
First of all, use one kilo of sun screen psf 50 (no way I would get burnt), second, deal with the flippers, I hope they are useful in the water because it is not attractive to walk backwards on the beach with those things on your feet, and third, try to adjust the “not the most comfortable” snorkelling mask to your face. It was torture, because of the humidity at the time I was ready, I couldn’t see anything through it. So, take the mask off, rinse and try again…nope! one more time, mask off, rinse and s*** mist again. I cannot remember how many times I had to do it, I got a diploma for it (unfortunately it is in Arabic so I can not use it in the UK).

All right Maria, you are ready!! It only took you half an hour (applause). Then Alex tried to explain how I should breath under the water, it was obvious but knowing me, she had to mention “Maria, only use your mouth”. All good. Let’s do it. Alex wanted me to follow her to show me some kind of coral she found earlier. So, let’s go!

It would have been such a beautiful experience in a QUIET sea!! But the water was so choppy it ruined my first experience wearing a snorkelling equipment, every time I tried to immerse myself, water was coming through the tube. I swallowed more water than when I started to learn swimming when I was a kid.

Alex’s view

I deny categorically this base accusation. I absolutely do not fidget. I was just trying to keep Maria awake and alive.

Now that I settled that one, let me describe the Hotel. The Shangri-la’ is perched on an outcrop of rock with a couple of lovely bays which segregate the three hotels which form it. It is essentially a little village. Pleasant, well kept, luxurious. The staff is friendly and competent and the hotel has the added benefit of a few perks such as afternoon tea, a little cooler box on the beach, and other sweet touches which make the stay more pleasurable. The beach itself is delightful, and as it is blessed with a stunning peaceful view, gently lapping water and a snorkelling opportunity along its cliff edge. I am part fish, so it is absolutely necessary for me to be in the water at all times viable.

I thoroughly enjoy some time on the beach relaxing and reading a book, but I have a time limit. Needless to say on our first day, as Maria had only slept on the flight (7 hours), on the journey (5 hours), through the night (8 hours), she obviously was rather tired after breakfast. You know how breakfast can take it out of you, you have to walk to the restaurant, choose from the buffet, order hot food, eat it all, drink the delicious spiced Omani coffee…….. gosh, a real workout! It was inevitable that she would need a good restful morning sleeping on the beach. However, I am not one to linger and it became absolutely necessary to take action and organise an adventure, but always with safety in mind, hence the brief training session alluded to.

Maria’s first snorkelling adventure was not quite as sedate as she explained it. Firstly, she almost drowned by trying to walk forward on the sea floor….. with flippers. Her quick face first descent into the water woke her up better than anything else I had tried. She also harbours a genetic indisposition which makes her incapable of calmly and sequentially following instructions. Therefore, when one tells her, please pull all your hair away from your face BEFORE putting on the mask, she obviously puts on the mask, then tries to pull the hair out of its silicone prison. She became almost bald by the end of the 17 attempt. At least, after a while, she grasped that you had to breathe through your mouth ONLY WHEN the snorkel itself was in it. No wonder she drank so much water. The humidity was obviously a factor, which I would deem unsurprising when one is in the sea, but it seemed to shock her. Water in the sea….. who would have thought?

In all seriousness, after a couple of hours, she got the hang of it, and although the snorkelling was somewhat disappointing due to the evident coral bleaching which had occurred since my last trip to this site, four years previously. It was nonetheless, amazing. Equally amazing was the power boat trip to search for dolphins. Speeding through water is probably one of the best feelings in the world! Jumping over waves, hanging on to the boat as one is propelled left and right, the adrenalin rush was superb.

The shift from the beach to the infinity pool was a short stroll and while the pool was far too cold for my liking at 28 degrees. The jacuzzi was just right and the sea temperature was perfect, just like a hot bath. So all in all, the beach days were relaxing, just as the doctor ordered; and only punctuated by the hotel’s brilliant service, which featured a parade of fresh towels, ice-cream tasters, iced drinks, and lunch on the beach.