I am splitting up my time in the capital city, by going on a trip half way through my stay. I have a hankering to see a fort that’s been on my radar for quite some time, mostly because of its aesthetic beauty. Without the funds to hire a car and driver like most do, I’m taking the local bus. Its time for a road trip! Muscat to Nizwa by bus and everything that entails.
Mwasalat
This is the name of the large transportation company in Muscat and the one I use to get to my destination. I take an Otaxi to the main bus station a few days prior to purchase my return ticket. I had read that the buses could be full, so I didn’t want to arrive the morning of and find I was out of luck.
Otaxi is an incredibly affordable ride share app to use in Muscat. It cost me 1.1 OMR or $4 CAD to travel the 12 minutes across town to purchase my tickets. The central bus station called Azaiba, is easy to navigate with only this one company that services it. The ticket cost to Nizwa return is 5 OMR or $18 CAD.
Muscat to Nizwa
On the day of departure I take another Otaxi to the station for my departure time of 7am. While a google search indicates there are several trips for this route during the day, currently in person, there is only one scheduled in the morning and one back in the evening.
In typical Carol fashion, I arrived almost a half hour early and there are already some people waiting in the small lobby area. The empty bus pulls up at 6:55 and it is a time-consuming process for us to show our tickets and confirm ID. When everyone is on board the bus is perhaps one third full. Any men that had sat themselves at the front of the bus, were not too kindly shuffled to the very back. The driver gave the space at the front to the women.
Second & Third Stop
Before even leaving the city, we stop another two times to take on more passengers. The first one is at the airport. Here a group get on and they are all men. Again, the checking of the tickets and ID’s is a time-consuming process. Men who took seats at the front, are gruffly shuffled to the rear.
The final stop before leaving Muscat is at an absolutely massive bus station on the outskirts of the city. Here the bus fills up completely, again with only men. Us women are compacted into the front few rows and the men are squished in the remainder of the seats behind us.
I am thrilled when the driver puts me into the very front seat and places his suitcase beside me. This is the best spot for me to take photos from and I don’t have to have another human beside me, something my introvert soul is grateful for.
Leaving Muscat
We are at least half an hour behind schedule but we are on our way! This scheduled three-hour journey has now had the first hour pass by. Once we are on the main highway leaving the city, the landscape quickly changes to flat and arid but those ever-present mountains always seem to be in the distance.
The driver had lowered the front window shades so much that I couldn’t even see out of them. He notices me trying to take photos and lifts the one in front of me on the right side. I am ever so grateful for this kindness I give a big smile and ‘shukran’ to which I receive the tiniest grin from this stern and gruff man. 😊
For almost two hours we pass small settlements on the sides of the roads and a few larger towns. Mostly visible are the white and cream minarets from the humble mosques and patches of palm trees. At some points the mountains soar in front of us and create a spectacular scene. I keep an eye on my google maps and realize we are closing in on Nizwa.
Nizwa
This is a much larger city than I anticipated. The new section is a full-blown metropolis with a large mall and even larger shops. Its not this that I have come for though, it’s the historical part that I want.
With only 20 minutes left on the schedule before we ‘should’ be arriving at my stop, which is the Saal Pedestrian Bridge, the bus pulls over for a half hour toilet break! What the heck man? 🤯 Most of the men hop off and go searching for food and to smoke. Us few women stay on board. Its another time-consuming ordeal to now check everyone’s ID again, to get the men back on board so we can carry on. My patience is coming in handy at this point for I am busting to get to my destination so I can begin exploring.
The driver starts up and we pull away. It’s only a short distance now until we get to the stop that I want, which is the closest one to the fort. I gather my belongings, and get off the bus and head across that huge overhead bridge catching glimpses of the fort directly in front of me.
Feeling like an adventurer I head straight for my hotel, hoping they will at least let me drop my bag if I can’t get into my room. I am eager to begin my explorations of Nizwa, the ancient capital of Oman!
