So We Went to Oman for the Day, Part II

Because our day in Oman was so long (aided in no way by the heat or the fact that I consider it a sign of defeat by hailing a taxi instead of walking to our destination,) we decided to head to the Al Bustan Palace, a Ritz-Carlton hotel in Muscat. Here's Rob reluctantly posing for my obligatory Ritz-Carlton shot on the way out.

You'll seldom find us in a city with a Ritz-Carlton that we don't visit because 1) we're just that classy and more accurately 2) we both work for the company and like to see the other hotels in its portfolio.

Justification for spending time at this hotel was easy because it's actually a former government building where the sultan would receive his visitors. See? It's practically a museum. (The beach bar is not so historic, but that's where the cold beer was.) The lobby of this place is incredible, reminiscent of a church with its enormously high ceilings, angelic music and incense burning.

The fun for us stopped temporarily once we left the lobby because riff-raff non-guests are not allowed outside at the beach/pool area. As you know from previous posts, we are not so easily defeated, so we simply had to wait discreetly for an unknowing guest to let us out.

But feeling like a creep for a few minutes was totally worth it. The place is absolute paradise. We walked around the pool and on the beach, then Rob made friends with the bar manager so we could get off our feet and have a cold drink. And there we stayed for the better part of two hours.

We can't wait to go back as guests so we don't have to drag our tired, hesitant selves into an overpriced taxi and end the fairy tale. And when we do, I'd like to have dinner here. Amazing, right?