The blends of Islamic and Neo-Classical Italianate styles. The Royal Opera House showcases a masterpiece of contemporary Omani architecture and can accommodate up to 1,100 people. The complex features a concert theater, an auditorium, beautifully landscaped gardens, a cultural market with retail shops, luxury restaurants, and an arts center dedicated to musical, theatrical, and operatic productions.
Hello, friends, travelers, and community greetings!
After visiting the Grand Mosque in Muscat, we checked into a nearby hotel that the taxi driver recommended. The hotel turned out to be perfect for us; it was centrally located, and everything was easily accessible. Once we arrived at our room, we found it to be nice, clean, and very comfortable.
As soon as we checked in, the hotel manager encouraged us to refresh and enjoy breakfast, which had been arranged in the dining hall. We had a lovely breakfast and then decided to take a short nap.
After 1 PM, I noticed from our hotel room that the sun was shining brightly, illuminating everything outside. I took some photos from the window and then opened the terrace door for a clearer view.
We requested a taxi from the reception and went sightseeing. Unfortunately, our driver had limited English-speaking ability, but we didn't want to waste time, so we asked him to take us to the Opera House that we missed on our last trip,
However, the driver misunderstood and took us to the beach instead. Although we were initially disappointed, we ended up enjoying the beautiful natural surroundings. After spending some time there, I told the driver that we needed to go to the Opera House, and this time he drove us in the correct direction.
While driving, we noticed a tunnel bridge connecting the Opera House to another building, which we discovered once we entered it.
The building features many shops.
As we arrived, at the entrance a representative approached us and began explaining investment opportunities in the Trump hotel and residential plans. For fun, I took some photos of the model.
To get to the entrance of the opera, we went through the archway; there we crossed many luxurious shops, for arts, jewelry, and restaurants, etc. We planned to take a guided tour. And joined one small group.
The guided tour Hours: Saturday to Thursday,8:30 am to 5:30 pm.
And ticket charges for non Omani around $10, for children $5.
The Royal Opera House truly embodies a sense of royalty. The rich Arabian culture is reflected in every wall, floor, window, and corner of the opera hall. The structure is mainly built from locally sourced limestone and Italian white marble, giving it an elegant and ornate façade. The entrance pavilions feature prominent horseshoe arches, reminiscent of traditional Omani fortifications.
Inside, the main auditorium's paneling is primarily crafted from Burmese teak wood, which complements the intricate carvings on the ceilings and entry halls. Additionally, mahogany is used in various decorative elements, including the grand hand-carved mashrabiya screens. The private sitting place for royal ladies was covered with a thin net.
The hand-carved ceiling of the Royal Opera House was fascinating. 1,100 seats are organized into a main floor (Stalls) and multiple tiers of balconies. The massive organ from Germany, weighing 50 tons and featuring 4,500 pipes, is centrally located on the performing stage. It serves as the foundational acoustic backdrop for the world-class symphonic, choral, and crossover concerts hosted at the opera house, as our guide informed us.
After exploring the richness of the Royal Opera, we continued our adventure and stumbled upon a tunnel bridge, which was quite amusing to cross.
From the tunnel bridge, the roads, and partially, the Opera house.
Our driver was waiting for us to take us to the next attraction. We said bye to the Opera House.
However, upon reaching the intersection of old Muscat, we discovered that the road was blocked by military and police due to the royal visit of the Palestinian president to Al-Alam Palace. It was quite disappointing. Our driver took an alternative route through the hilltop,
where we could see Mirani Fort, the palace, and police presence on the narrow streets,
When we descended the hill, we noticed that the police had blocked many taxis. We wasted a considerable amount of time waiting for the road to reopen as the sun began to set.
Finally, the road was cleared, but we were not allowed to get closer to the palace, so we turned around and headed back to the hotel.
On our way, we decided to stop and admire the sunset. But we were a few minutes late to see the sun. But we felt the presence of the sun beyond the hill
From this point, we could see the Riyam Park Monument, a white incense burner situated on a rocky hill in Muscat. The evening golden sunlight reflected on it beautifully.
We had witnessed many sunsets around the world, but this one felt different. The beautiful, clean beach and the tranquil sunset over the rocky mountains and breakwater walls created a well-maintained sunset point.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, the evening colors began to fill the sky. We returned to the hotel to have dinner and rest until midnight, as our flight was scheduled for around 3 AM.
On our way back, we caught glimpses of the Muttrah Fort dramatically at sunset, the bustling Muttrah Souk, and a manmade waterfall, which is normally illuminated with vibrant colors, but unfortunately wasn’t functioning.
After came back to the hotel and just looked out the window,
I noticed some school activities in the nice night lights over the town.
Thank you very much. Maybe a similar photo of the Grand Mosque I used in my previous post.
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