A Safe Harbour: Oman ranked 20th by New York Times in places to visit in 2015 and my reasons why

Beautiful Oman

We came to Oman as a young couple with an infant daughter and twenty four years later, we are still here.

The reasons are many- the beauty all around us, the warmth and hospitality of the people, the love and admiration they have for their leader Sultan Qaboos Bin Said and the rapid development that has transformed this nation into a world class entity in just over four decades.

Oman is also the country where I have nurtured and developed my passion for writing and photography and therefore it was only natural that when I wrote my first work of fiction A Safe Harbour in 2008 it was set in Oman and India.

A Safe Harbour - My first book

So when the New York Times recently named Oman ranked 20th on its list of 'must visit' destinations for 2015, for me, it was a moment of wondering why it had taken so long for this beautiful country to find its true place under the sun.

I'm now going to 'show' you some of my 'reasons' why it truly deserves that place.

In random order, I'm sharing some photographs I've clicked and I'm positive that you will see why.

Jabal Al Akhdar- The Green mountains

Abdullah, the award winning rose water maker in Jabal Akhdar

In his terraced gardens

Kahwa and dates- Omani traditional hospitality

Celebrating 44 years of Modern Oman at ROHM

Glorious moments and vibrant colours

Trekking in Wadi Bani Khalid

Mysterious Girl- one of my favourite photographs

Father and son bonding at Al Hamra the oldest village in Oman

Matrah Corniche

A lady models an outfit from the Dhofar region

Beautiful horses and spectacular displays

Breaking Dawn

Spoilt for choice-Superb artefacts and curios

Marking the 40th National day with spectacular fireworks

Incomparable beauty and even better sunsets

As mentioned above, these shots are what I've selected at random and in no way can I say that these are the best . However if you want to take a look at some more of my art and photography work, you are most welcome to check out my Art

and photography website at -

http://sunaina-serna-ahluwalia.artistwebsites.com/index.html