March 2016
Walking around the palace in Muscat [see: palace] these two old forts came into view, Al Jalali on an island and Al Mirani on the mainland.
Al Jalali Fort is a fort in the harbor of Old Muscat, Oman. The fort was built by the Portuguese under Philip I of Portugal in the 1580s on an earlier Omani fortress to protect the harbor after Muscat had twice been sacked by Ottoman forces. It fell to Omani forces in 1650. During the civil wars between 1718 and 1747, the fort was twice captured by Persians who had been invited to assist one of the rival Imams.
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"Muscat" means "anchorage". True to its name, Old Muscat is a natural port in a strategic location between the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean. It lies on the coast of the Gulf of Oman on a bay about 700 metres long, protected from the sea by a rocky island. The port is surrounded by mountains, making it difficult to access from the landward side. Muscat may have been described by the geographer Ptolemy in the 2nd century, who noted a "concealed harbor" in the region.
Al Jalali Fort lies on a rocky outcrop on the east side of the Muscat harbor. It faces Fort Al-Mirani, which is built on another outcrop on the west side. Muscat was strongly defended against attack from the sea by these twin forts, ...
(Wikipedia)
Oman is an Arab country on the edge of the Arabian Peninsula, yet the Omanis are a breed apart. Everyone agrees, the Omanis are different. For their oil-richer cousins, they are looked down upon to a degree and viewed as "cute" for their unique style of dress. For those from outside the Khaleej (the Gulf) their friendliness is a breath of fresh air in a region where most natives are insular and very distrusting of foreigners. I think the forts above, meant to protect Muscat from pirates, symbolize what a huge trading nation ancient Oman had been and how important international commerce was to them. The forts were not meant to keep people out - they were meant to keep people safe. The Indian community in Muscat is centuries old - they are not recent workers imported to do manual labor (although that category of worker also exists in the country). Oman was "international" long before the modern concept came into use. The Omanis were outward looking, preceding the likes of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the Emirates as nation-states. The only other similar country in the Gulf region is Bahrain which is ALSO known for its down to earth people. Unsurprisingly, Bahrain is also an historically important port city.
The forts were built to protect the lifeblood of the Omani economy (or rather Muscat - "Oman" did not exist), trade. Muscat was part of the ancient Silk Road via the sea route from South Asia to the Middle East. Many of the goods headed to Europe by sea came through Muscat - it was a Singapore of its time. Due to this, the locals developed more of an outward view and had more grounded personalities. Everyone I knew during my time working in the Middle East who had completed a contract in Oman had a very good experience living there. Not surprisingly, it was not as easy to land a job in that country as compared to other more "culturally challenging" places. In short, everyone wanted to work in Oman.
Some forts are made to repel totally, and others, just to keep "the bad guys" out. Al Jalani and Al Mirani now are museums - monuments to the past. They only guard the palace of the Sultan these days and pirates are few.
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