Pictures...

[mcgillianaire]

The photo above, taken in 1966, shows company-owned housing on the left, where the first expats lived.
Ras Al-Hamra Club is located on the first beach visible in the foreground, to the right of the graded path which is curving to the left. Quite different to how things look today, eh?


PDO's Ras Al-Hamra Club Today

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And here's a photo from around 1962 taken in Muttrah, one of the oldest parts of Muscat. Dates, fruit, silver, etc, were brought via camel and donkey to this terminus. For generations, Omanis have traded from this port to Persia (Iran), India, and Zanzibar. The photo on the left was taken just outside the back gate (still exists) of the Souq.



In its vicinity is the oldest hospital in Oman built in 1893 by a group of American Missionaries. I am in the process of trying to find some Old and New pictures of the hospital so that I can publish them in my journal. Eventually if I can gather enough information and perhaps with the help of a few others already in my journal, we can put together an LJ community on Oman. But only if anybody else is interested.


Muttrah Souq, the Port and Corniche Today
Thanks, http://www.m0rgan.com/Oman/Oman.htm

Comments

[brinker.livejournal.com]

Wow! That is.. Wow! Definitely not the same Muscat I know today.

Do you mind if I link to your post in my LJ?

[mcgillianaire.livejournal.com]

No, not at all. :) There are more such pages coming. It all depends on how many photos I can scan per day.

[brinker.livejournal.com]

:) All sounds cool. I'm going to link to your LJ generically. The history is interesting, too. I've always been just slightly paranoid about saying some stuff in my LJ. :) But the history is definitely interesting.

[mcgillianaire.livejournal.com]

I've always been just slightly paranoid about saying some stuff in my LJ.
Initially I wasn't sure whether it was such a good idea to write anything while I was still in Oman but then I figured what the heck. I'll be gone within a few days! Heh.

[brinker.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you're fine.... it's not likely that they'll track you down in Canada. I'm a bit more.... here. And I'd like to stay for a while :)

[68024.livejournal.com]

Ha! Amazing!

[mcgillianaire.livejournal.com]

Thanx! :) Where in Muscat did you live when you were here?

[68024.livejournal.com]

We lived in what is now the current PDO settlement (in the Mina al Fahal area, in Ras al Hamra).

The beach up there and the club is very familiar to us! I went to primary school very close to there.

In the PDO settlement we lived in a couple of places- "beach house no. 10" near the beach, Sunaina Road no. 4, and Al Ghubar Road no. 1. Also waay in the beginning in 1980 we live in Sico Hill for a couple of weeks.

I believe all the roads in the PDO settlement (Al Ghubar rd) have been renamed streets?

We lived in Al Ghubar Rd the longest- from 1981 until 1984, after which we moved back to the Netherlands.

Added, if u dont mind. :)

[mcgillianaire.livejournal.com]

Wow, your family left Oman even before we arrived there. Seiko Hill is probably much more different now than it was when you were there in 1980.

The PDO housing area has hardly changed since the time when everything came up. I believe Al Ghubar road still exists because the name came up in our car GPS system this afternoon. It may have been renamed though.

Unfortunately Ras Al Hamra Club is slowly going down in stature with poor maintenance and such like. There's not enough stability in jobs @ PDO these days. Just a few years ago in a whiff of Omanization hundreds of Shell expats were fired. Production went down like crazy and they didn't just overturn the Omanization policy ... they called back more expats than they had layed-off before.

Shell's contract is coming to a close here after a major problem which I believe had repurcussions world wide. There are regular rumors that PDO School is closing down. Each year several students from there come either to the school where I studied (the ABA) or go to the British School. Even those who haven't finished primary school yet.

I believe the British School now has some Dutch curriculum or its being proposed. A similar proposal went through the ABA Board but it didn't get enough votes.

Where are you right now and what are you doing? A few months ago I think I saw some pictures of Oman that were taken when you were here. Have you uploaded any others since?

Re: Added, if u dont mind. :)

[68024.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I heard it's not going that well with PDO.

> Where are you right now and what are you doing?

Now I am in the USA in New Jersey, working for a travel company as a database marketing manager.

> Have you uploaded any others since
No I haven't, a lot of the pictures from when I was in Oman are with my parents...

Re: Added, if u dont mind. :)

[chongmoma.livejournal.com]

Wow, are you serious?! that sucks that PDO is going down hill, because i quite enjoyed going down to the "Club" on the weekends and hangout with friends. Ah good old times. Never will I forget those memories!

Oh btw, I lived on Nimr Street 3A.

[brinker.livejournal.com]

Oddly, I just happened to be looking at your pictures again and noticed your mention of a LJ community for Oman.

I should note that I'd just finished posting my comments about a LJ community for the mid-east before seeing your comments above.

Anyhow, the point is, I'm in favor of it... although I'd rather be a bit more broad ranging (just because there is a fairly small number of us in Oman... Plus I'm interested in folks from around the Gulf.)