From hanging out with a sheikh, who asked us to cover up before going to the village so we wouldn’t shock the locals yet was stopped with a missing number plate and out-of-date licence while driving us to the desert for a boozy sunset BBQ to gatecrashing a wedding, swimming up a stream in our smalls and eating a bad, overpriced Ritz Carlton dinner one day followed by a wonderful super cheap Indian feast in a rinky dink café in a wadi the following day, a trip to Oman with Monique proved full of surprises.
Our best trips take us out of the bubble of five-star service and accommodation and lead us on a messy yet inspiring adventure.
Here are my top tips for ensuring a holiday becomes a unique experience:
- Connect with a local while you’re planning the trip
No matter how tenuous the link, most people love showing off their ‘hood. Our friend of a friend put us in touch with an eccentric sheikh (whom we nearly inadvertently married). - Choose the right travel companion
Monique was up for getting up at dawn to see a sunrise, swimming in her undies (because we might not get the chance to swim that stream again), wore her pyjama bottoms in an attempt to get into a mosque (we still weren’t allowed in), and even mimicked a bleating goat in an attempt to communicate with some bedouins. - Hire a car
You can’t beat the open road even if it means getting lost and/or getting stuck. If we hadn’t been buried in sand, we wouldn’t have enjoyed the hospitality of bedu ladies. - Leave the guidebook behind
Unknown to the likes of Tripadvisor, one of our best meals was enjoyed in a tiny café. We had to take a key and walk round the corner to use the squat toilet (tip: avoid squatting directly over the hole which can cause water to splash back up when using it). - Say hello to your neighbour during your flight
Our eight-hour journey flew by while we learnt about life on an oil rig from a fellow Englishman. On my final leg home, without Monique, I discovered that, after spending New Year’s Eve with friends in Milton Keynes, my Japanese neighbour had packed Marmite, brown sauce and Yorkshire Tea for his return to Rotterdam. Our chat gave me a sense of gezelligheid.
