Omani Heritage Village

Located at Shangri-La’s Barr Al Jissah Resort & Spa, this unique  Omani Heritage Village is worth a visit!  Anyone who has been to the Shangri-La here in Oman knows that the hotel grounds are gorgeous with flowers everywhere.  Large parts of this area for tourists are still under construction but there is still enough going on there to merit a look.   This place is open everyday from 9am to midnight!  The best part is that entrance is free, ha!ha!  This here rug is just one quick example of the locally produced handicrafts for sale at the Omani Heritage Village.  Some are even made right on site.  We saw one older Omani gentleman named Calif making baskets as we entered.  A lot of the clay handicrafts available  at the shops like the ones shown here, we were told, are made by ladies from the village of Bahla near Nizwa.  Omanis like to think that the people there have “magic hands” as that town is well-known for ghosts and magical legends…  5 OR  Che and an Omani gentleman, Calif, who is originally from the city of Rustaq.  He makes the dye for the baskets and hats himself and if you look at his hands, you will notice that they are purple from the dye.  He asked us for only 6 RO for the hat that Che is wearing in this photo.  Mariam, another kind employee at the Heritage Village, works at the shop that sells perfume, incense and provides “henna” (hand-decorating) for female tourists who are interested.  The people we met there today are exceptionally kind and we will try to make it back some Wednesday night.  On Wednesdays, there is a “cultural dinner” (for 15 R0 adults/7.5 for kids) that includes Omani dancing, music and Arabian horses and camels displays.   These cute camels are made of pure silver and sell for 22 RO apiece.  There are also larger ones available at 67 RO.  All kinds of souvenirs are available here no matter what you’re looking for and they are planning on opening even more shops as construction continues on the village.  My lovely wife, Che, with her new Omani hand-made hat!  I highly recommend anyone in Oman (Omani or expat) to come and support the talented artists at the Omani Heritage Village!  (Give them a call at 24776666, ext 6565 if you’d like to reserve a spot for their famous Wednesday night cultural dinner/entertainment.)