Culture

Today I strolled into town and experienced some of the culture of Muscat. It smelled like a thriving town that was piqued about modernization but wanted to keep its roots. It was cool seeing some of the western civilizations influence but also seeing the native Muslim roots. Oman does not have its own language so the majority of people there speak Arabic. While I was walking in Oman, I spoke to a local woman who actually spoke english. I asked her about some cultural differences between here and the US. I asked her which religion does the people of Oman worship? She responded that the people of Oman are all nearly muslim. They are basically divided equally into Sunnis and Ibadis with a few percentage of Shia. It did not surprise that Oman is muslim because they are from the Middle East and their main language is Arabic. I then asked her what is the food like here? She replied that every meal in Oman has rice in it. She said that Oman food is heavily influenced by Indian food so this means their meals consist of a lot of curries and bread. This also does not surprise me because Middle Eastern food has a lot of curries and bread meals. Then I asked her to tell me something that is interesting in Omani culture. She said that marriages in Oman are usually arranged and they are arranged to their cousins. I saw that as very interesting because I thought arranged marriages are a thing in the past but I guess not. I thanked her for taking her time to talk to me and we parted ways. I was extremely hungry so I decided to try some local Omani food. I ordered this red curry with rice dish and here is a picture of it:

This dish made my mouth water just looking at it. When I took the first bite, my mouth felt like an explosion of flavor and spice. It tasted so good that my taste buds were tingling in happiness.
         When I got back to my hotel room, I realized how much I learned about Oman and how different it is in comparison to the US.