5 February 2010
Al Hazm Castle is a magnificent fort, which is at least 300 years old. It is known to have made full use of traditional defensive features, secret escape tunnels, dungeons, cannon towers, gun ports in the upper floors and a machicolation above the entrance for pouring boiling oil or date syrup onto unwary attackers below.
Eewen, Esheng, Wei Kin, Wei Han and Wei Zhen at the main entrance to the fort.
The highlight of this fort is the massive carved wooden entry door with beautiful designs and arabic writings on it.
We were given a warm welcome of coffee and dates! The kids were looking at the well and started throwing stones in it until the guardhouse stopped them.
Rustaq Fort
This fort was built four centuries prior to the dawn of Islam in Oman. It is an imposing structure built on three levels, containing separate houses, an armoury, a mosque and four towers.
Weapons room
Everyone looking at some fishes at the clear water channel, which I believed is the falaj system
Entrance to the fort
Passage way
Roof top
Spectacular view of the date plantation and mountains
We found the Rustaq hotspring which is not very far from the fort. The hotspring is known as an area of healing warm springs. Its water runs at 45 degree celcius and is regarded as a cure for rheumatism and skin diseases due its sulphur content. Its is an enclosed hotspring, well maintained with separate sections for drinking water and bathing. I expected a more open hotspring where we could dip our feet in but to our disappointment we could not do so. The enclosed area is quite cramped and the pool is rather deep.
Esheng, Wei Kin, Wei Han and Wei Zhen who were all dying to jump into the pool, only to realise that the water is too hot and too deep.
We saw bubbles popping up to the surface.
Esheng has to be contented walking to the other end of the hotspring, all safely fenced up.
This is the section where we saw the locals collecting the water in plastic bottles and I was told that these were the drinking water. So we decided to try and taste the water, not everyone braved that, instead everyone had their hands dipped in to wash faces. How did the water taste like.......mmm......slightly salty.....!
No comments:
Post a Comment