Wanderings into Nature-Continued

The next day we woke up early to capture the sunrise on camera. Witnessing the sunrise at the beach was a memorable experience-something to cherish ad infinitum.As the sun rose, the whole colour of the sea & sky started changing. I will always cherish the moment, when nature shines on you through the rays of the sun-there isn’t much one can do then surrender to gods limitless beauty & just bask in his glory.

As it turned out we werent the only photographers around. I observed two foreign tourists with lenses & camera kits all busy clicking shots of the sun rise. I have to admit, I for one got to see myraids of crabs at sunrise. Not only was I terrified with them but I was amazed how one of the foreign photographer, a lady in her 20′s was clicking the sunset by walking amongst the crabs on the rocks.

 We then headed for  Wadi Al Wurayah. We headed for the wadi , being guided by the locals( as there whas no such visible sighnage! welcome to the wild). Words cannot explain the awe with which I was struck by seeing huge mountains on either sides of a road which was in the shape of curvy crests & troughs. No human soul in sight, no human settlement around, no trace of human existence-for some time it felt like we had been thrown into a different planet. It was similar to what the world would be like, had we only been on it. I felt scared & terrorized.

After winding through the roads for about 30 minutes, we did reach the end of the road. There where some cars parked but we couldn’t find any human traces around. Little did we know then that the main attraction of the wadi, the waterfall was just a stone throw away.We clicked photographs of the place, the george which might be filled with water during the summer & the overall mysterious silence which engulfed us. If I do have a chance to visist the vadi again; I will surely love to see the waterfall.

 When we left the wadi,only then could I breath a sigh of relief, that’s when I realized what a blessing it is to have humans around us. Someone other than ourselves.

Driving along the road between Khor Fakkan & Dibba we found a very ancient structure with typical Gulf architecture visible. We stopped the car & found the name of the structure to be Al Bidya Mosque, the oldest mosque to be found within the boundaries of the UAE today. It isn’t any huge,grand structure which one sees commonly out here. But one gets  peace of mind,body & soul on entering this mosque nonetheless.

 It had a small structure, square in shape with four nearly squashed round domes on its roof, but no minaret.I was very curious to enter the mosque, & when I did I found so much peace & quite in that small space than I had in the whole wide world. Inspite of the killing heat, the inside was as cool as ice; the floor was covered with brightly coloured prayer mats. The mosque is built of stone and mud bricks and is coated in many layers of whitewashed plaster. Architecturally, the pattern of the roof being supported by an internal pillar is not only unusual for religious architecture in the region but also demarcates it as a structure intrinsic to the gulf region.

I felt relaxed just by spending a few minutes inside, it felt as if I had journeyed back in time when the people would live in this desert sans any air conditioning or modern gadgets; then this place would certainly have been a refuge from the heat & asking for God’s shelter in deed.

After this purifying experience,we went to see the  two structures located just uphill , above the mosque. The structure has a small mihrab,(used to indicate the direction of mecca) & a simple minbar ( the pulpit ). I had the view of the whole area right from that structure.It was a truly enriching experience,especially after the scary feel I had on coming out of the wadi

 Then we decided to experience the wild sea,if possible. We had a faint idea that there is a small part of the sultanate of oman which doesn’t require for passport/visa to be a pre-requisite for tourists. So we had the leisure & the time to check the place out. guided by our GPS we headed straight for Musandam peninsula. We where stopped at the entry check point by two friendly looking men in uniform. As it turned out, we had left the id card with the hotel but I had my national id card; so we where allowed into the peninsula with the reminder that we had to be back within a few hours time.

We followed the GPS to find ourselves before a vast expanse of sea.The beach was in the city of Khasab &  we sure where dumbfounded by its brilliance & beauty. The color of water was light green, unlike the usual blues one finds in the other emirates. I could literally feel myself relaxing amongst such serene surroundings.  

After that we saw a mountaneous range,which according to our one of our friends had the full view of the sea at its other end. So we headed into the mountains , all charged up & excited. We located an artistically constructed dam, which was indeed the khabb dam. We drove further, marvelling the beauty of the mountains; which had a beautiful & inviting countenance.  Halfway into the mountains we realised that the stipulated time we had been given was nearly over. Thus unwillingly we had to make our journey back; with the faint promise that the next time around we would surely explore the whole range of wadi khabb shamsi .

 Finally we reached our motel & within a few hours we where on our way back to Abu Dhabi through sharjah. While driving, our eyes caught the glimpse of plants being sold at the loacal market in masafi.  While one of us stopped the car to buy the plants, & I decided to relax in the car. However my eyes caught sight of pottery works on display at a shop, & the attraction was so compelling that I had to reach for my camera & click pictures; inspite of bein dead tired. I am happy that I did click those pictures, cause they are by far amongst my best collection

Indeed  nothing heals & recharges like nature; whenever you need a break..you know where to head to..

 Till next time

Asta levista

Five  images are © of kubra mubashshir.The Wadi Image is © of irfan fazili 

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