Archaeology handicrafts and science and technology sites to visit Mascate

The main entrance to the souk opens onto the cornice, to the left of the great blue mosque as you head towards Old Muscat. With your eyes closed, you are sure to arrive safely following the heady scent of incense! The main street of the market, entirely covered like the rest of the spaces, quickly splits in two. On each side, alleys full of all kinds of goods leave. Those that run to the right lead to the jewellery sector and its display cases of necklaces, bracelets, pendants, in silver and solid gold. Immediately after the entrance, still on the right, stands the corner of perfumes and pashminas. When you leave the central axis to the left, it is the area of poetic bric-a-brac. At the far end are the garment stalls. The atmosphere isn't intrusive, the salespeople just encourage you to come in without ever chasing you. Aboriginals and tourists rub shoulders in a good mood. First necessity purchases for some, superfluous for others, the possibilities are not lacking: from a pair of sneakers to old chests, through spices, jewellery, kandjars, pottery and various handicrafts. The stroll can be pleasantly prolonged, not to mention the time spent haggling for a "good price", a vague and rather arbitrary concept. Even if one has nothing to buy, the place is worth the detour for its very oriental atmosphere, its painted ceilings, its sometimes decorated beams, its scenes of life.

A must-do, even if you don't live in this area, to discover this particular facet of the capital: the mountains that come close to the coast and plunge into the sea, cutting into bays and valleys where luxury resorts or white neighborhoods like villages in the city are tucked away.

From Old Muscat, follow the coastal road to the Al Bustan traffic circle - you can stop to marvel at the atrium, which is open to all if you are dressed appropriately. Turn right onto An Nuzhah Street and then take the first left onto Qantab Street. Well before the junction leading to the new residential and hotel area of Jumeirah Muscat Bay, a wide esplanade offers a sublime panoramic view of the jagged coastline, the white neighborhoods encircled by their chaos of brown rocks, the hard blue of the sea so photogenic echoing a sky often of the same blue, powerful and limpid. Continue straight ahead on Al Jissah Street in the direction of the Shangri-La. At the Bandar Jissah traffic circle, start the wonderful panoramic descent towards the Muscat Hills Hotel just for the photo and the pleasure of seeing the bay gradually unveil itself between two twists and turns. Go back up to the traffic circle, gain height and continue for a few more kilometers on the ridge of the coastal mountains, until you reach the Shangri-La hotel area. Then turn around.

Amouage is a luxury perfumery founded in 1983 at the request of Sultan Qaboos with the aim of reviving the Arab tradition of prestigious perfumes. It was by calling upon a famous French nose, Guy Robert, a perfumer in Grasse, that the first essence was created in 1984 under the name Amouage Gold. Today it is still as popular with the ladies as ever and remains one of the most expensive fragrances in a collection that now includes some forty fragrances. To discover this world of scents that is part of Omani heritage, there's nothing like a visit to the Factory. You're immediately struck by the building's elegance and the care taken in its decoration: outside, water flows into fountains adorned with white and gold mosaics; inside, you'll find the same layout with its arabisante notes as in the perfumer's boutiques. It's absolute chic! You're greeted in the factory hall where all the fragrances are displayed in their ornamental bottles. You can touch, smell and discover the compositions of the famous fragrances. Accompanied by a hostess, we then enter the Amouage corridors to observe the manufacturing process, the storage rooms, and the bottling. Anachronistic or the sign of a great House, the labeling is always done by hand... an astonishing particularity when we know that no less than 3,000 bottles are produced here every day! For the record, Amouage means waves in Arabic. Online purchase possible.