Welcome!

In Oman.
The people here are extremely kind and welcoming. Everyone greets us with "Hello! How are you?" Which is kind of funny because more often than not that's the only English they would know!  So, when you try to reply and ask 'how are you?' back to them they look at you confusedly. Everyone smiles at me and I get treated like I'm a celebrity, the girls giggle and wink like I'm someone famous. I'm not going to lie that's pretty cool.....

One observation however has caught my attention, and that is the inequality of ethnic groups. Sure, there are class differences everywhere, even back in the US gasp!  But nothing like what I am witnessing here where it appears to be Arabs over Indians, Africans, Pakistanis, and Bengalis. Many of the people I am meeting, usually Arabs can be lazy, arrogant, and impatient with non-whites or Arabs. Some are just downright snobs. Not all of the Arabs are like this, probably not even half are, but many seem to have this superiority attitude.  The privileged stay up all night smoking and drinking, and then sleep until the afternoon and they expect everything to be served up to them in seconds.  The foreign workers carry their heads low and work in fear of losing their job or offending anyone.  I see the Arabs and their families play and litter the public scene, while the Indians follow them around picking up their trash and waiting on them hand and foot in designated jump-suits.  All of the Asian workers have to wear uniforms, and when not at a task, I find them standing behind doors and in corners....out of sight really. Always staring at their feet and keeping their hands behind their backs like servants, it's disgusting. One of the managers of our excavation workers was arguing the other day with an Arab, trying to explain how his people don't know how to serve the Arab because they are afraid to screw up. The inequality of the people here makes the Mexican-work-immigrant issue back home look petty.

That picture is of me and my unit workers, they were all from Bangaladesh. But these guys busted their asses all day in the sun and would end up with about $10 for the whole day. 6am to 4pm.  The first month they didn't even get paid, and yet after a mild complaint, went right back to work because they had no other choice.  A Mexican worker can make that in 2 hours on only minimum wage. And these guys get sent back to their countries once work is finished, they have no job security and may only work when they are needed.  They live in barracks of about 10-12 men per 500 square feet.  They always have smiles on their faces and positive attitudes.  It really makes me angry how they are treated.  How unfair it is. I can't imagine being in their place, I wonder what kind of things they've seen. Do they have families? What are their goals and dreams?

First bit

Okay. Okay. Okay. Good. Okay. Okay. -I said that at least 150 times today plotting points from a $40,000 tripod today as we began excavations. I volunteered to do topographical survey of the site and as a result the word 'okay' has lost it's meaning as I told the guy with the reflector pole it was 'okay' to move to the next point and plot the elevation. But it had to be done to put the archaeological site into the computer, plus it was good experience for me.
But any who, here I am now in Oman. I've been here a week....and to be honest I don't feel like I'm on the other side of the world. Home seems near. But Nope. It's not. It's far. 18 hours on a plane away to be exact.
The environment is deffinitely different. Not what anyone expects the Middle East, coconut and banana trees, white sandy beaches, blue water with dolphins, mountains with green vegetation. But, there are some not-so-surprising things; the dress of the people in one-color robes (dish-dashas), completely spotless and bright I might add, women's faces and heads covered with hijabs, turbans, camels, abundance of cell phones, sand, heat, language that sounds alien, and countless mosques.
One thing that constantly reminds me of where I am is the eerie but magnificent sound of the salat (prayer) call--5 times a day. The echo of the muezzin carries and bounces from mosque to mosque and hushes out any and every noise in the city. Each mosque calls in rythm and their voices are quite moving. In Salalah, whole city appears to go quiet, and all you can hear is the waves breaking on the beach and the muezzin's voice. The scenery is breathtaking from the 3rd floor roof of our villa, so I run up there to listen to the call because it makes the hair on my neck stand up.



Oman is so extremely diverse in landscape. About 120km to the North of where I am there are endless sand dunes and the famous Empty Quarter where the national boundaries are arbitrary.  Halfway that far north are Mountains and cliff faces worn from ancient seas, and humongous, canyon-esque wadiis from long-gone running rivers.  To the south is the Arabian Sea and the endless waves of the Indian Ocean that roll into no other landmass until Antartica. The beach is like 50m from my room!

Some other observations are that everyone speaks relatively good English, and this is by far the cleanest environment I have ever seen. There is no trash anywhere and all public buildings are well kept...I wonder how they manage this?