A Relaxing Day Near the Strait of Hormuz

This is the map of the UAE showing the 7 Emirates, but at the northern tip is a small part of Oman (where we are) that is separated from mainland Oman.

Getting on board.

On board

The little islands we visited.

Very relaxing day.

Another dhow which joined us for the...

dolphin rodeo! I've got great videos.

The penguins make it to the Arabian Peninsula.

The water was very doable, in for an hour.

There were small villages along the shores that are only accessible by boat.

The geology of the rocks was very interesting.

Wednesday, February 18th.

This morning we took a short bus ride to the fishing harbour which also has dhow boats that take tourists out to the Khor Sham islands at the northern tip of of the UAE peninsula. This is where we are and it’s actually part of Oman. It pinches into the Arabian Gulf and forms the Straits of Hormuz, which is the narrowest portion to the passage between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Iran has threatened many times to restrict oil traffic through here which would cause international problems. At the current time the US under Trump is threatening Iran as the regime cracks down on the dissidents that were rioting against the government. Iran is threatening US bases and oil supplies if the US attacks. This is all happening now right where we are… 

 We spent a leisurely day on the boat as it traveled around Telegraph Island and Seebi Island. We were surrounded by sedimentary rock mountains that were barren and various light colours of brown, which was very beautiful with the blue cloudless sky and blue water. We went on a dolphin rodeo, where two of the boats corralled a family of dolphins that enjoyed riding the slipstream between the two boats. They stayed between us for about ten minutes and I got some great videos. We saw a few little incredibly remote villages that were squeezed on the shore at the base of the mountains. They exist on fishing, but it's hard to imagine living there. Later we stopped at an area where we could swim. I was the first in and last out an hour later. The water was lovely. While we were swimming the crew cooked us a fish bbq with some salads, chicken and fruit. Then we moved on to another spot where we could swim again. We returned by 4:30 and I went into the resort pool to rinse off the salt. This is the first night of the holy month Ramadan, which means that the Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset daily. As a result the bar in the hotel, which is the first bar we have had on this trip, is closed. It will be interesting to see how else Ramadan will affect us. George has pointed out that we don’t want to offend anyone by being seen eating or drinking anything during daylight hours. So, it will have to be inside hotels or… who knows where. Dinner was buffet style again and then everyone disappeared into their rooms by 8:30.