Arun Rajagopal

69 things I will miss about Oman September 15, 2010

In no particular order of importance…

1. My den.
2. Calm, quiet and almost soporific pace of life.
3. Star Cinema and their very friendly staff.
4. And the box seats in Orchestra, Star Cinema, usually Seat #23 or #25. Seat #4, Row 1 at any of the Mini Cinemas.
   
5. The madness at Wadi Adai Roundabout: Thank God a signal junction is replacing the roundabout.
6. Parking woes at City Cinema Shatti.
7. City Cinema Sohar.
8. The drive from Muscat to Dubai and back.
9. The official superhero of my building: TopCat Ramos.
10. Moviestudio and his amazing collection of movies.
11. Mom.
12. The crazy airport flyover.
13. Muscat International Airport. Small but convenient. Friendly immigration, e-gate, reasonable duty free selection and helpful staff. And the free WiFi at the airport that made this post possible.
14. Annapoorna restaurant in CBD.
15. Lunch Thaali at Saravana Bhavan.
16. The service station at Wadi Kabir omanoil filling station. For giving my rides ‘Cleopatra Shower’.
17. Green Clean at Qurum City Centre. For giving my rides such amazing shine.
18. Early morning drives.
19. The luxury coaches of Muscat. The Beasts of Al Khanjry, Comfortline, GTC, CTC, Salalah Line, ONTC, Happyline, Al Turki etc.
20. My ride.
21. Friendly locals everywhere. Oman is really one of the friendliest nations on Earth.
22. Times of Oman.
23. @4jijesh.
24. My Laundrywallahs from Unnau, Uttar Pradesh and their chaste Hindi.
25. Rajan’s Barber Shop at CBD for close shaves.
26. Brands Elite and their casks of Stanley’s White and Red Lambrusco.
27. The superb view of the hills from my den.
28. The flowers at Al Fair Sarooj. They have made many a diva happy.
29. Shell Filling Stations.
30. National Bank of Oman Cash Deposit Machines.
31. The Dodge Chargers that make my head turn.
32. The crazy shop names.
33. Beef Ularthiyathu at Divine. Also the lunch thaali at Divine.
34. Salalah.
35. Chilis at Muscat City Centre.
36. Aldo at Muscat City Centre.
37. When it rains.
38. Uptown. The entire gang with a special mention to Nash.
39. Split Chili at Uptown.
40. Murgh Malai Tikka Masala and Garlic Rice at Uptown.
41. The uber cool Oman tweeps.
42. Marina Bander Al Rowdha.
43. Dolphin Watching.
44. Wahiba Sands.
45. Bus stop at Thumrait.
46. Counting the million stars at Haima desert.
47. Landing and take off at Muscat International Airport.
48. Amazing Shawarma at Muscat Bakery in Wadi Adai.
49. Swami’s Hotel at Ruwi High Street.
50. Happyline Transport.
51. Woodland’s for the occasional takeaway.
52. Nirvana. Because I love red and the ambience and the Corona is just spiffy.
53. Khyber. For their excellent service and garlic pickle.
54. UMS. For the memories.
55. Wunderman Oman. For broadening my horizons.
56. Bus Street at Ruwi, next to Sultan Qaboos mosque.
57. The Grand Mosque at Bausher. For its grace and elegance.
58. The Royal Oman Police. For being such stars in uniform.
59. Ghazal at Grand Hyatt. For the great band.
60. White Tiger Restaurant at Barka, next to omanoil. For the superb Beef masala.
61. Al Bahja cinema.
62. Plane spotting at Muscat International Airport. The Oman Air A330s make me beam.
63. All the friends out here who are like family.
64. How the roads go quiet during Ramadan. Lame.
65. Shopping for Jeema water and 6-packs of Coke.
66. Ranjan, Man Friday who cleans my den every Friday.
67. White Chocolate at Starbucks.
68. Nuts & Bolts. The newest pub in town. And themed on automobiles.
69. Driving Chargelina around Muscat.