Job Discussion Forums

[Gordon]

[yaramaz]

We mostly cooked for ourselves but it could definitely be vegan friendly (as an ex vegan I notice such things). They have a lot of Lebanese restaurants and these have a lot of veggie dishes, similar to Turkish mezze (ie in olive oil). I don't know how Nizwa is, however, since we only ate in our hotel's restaurant (a frighteningly white-bread and nescafe based free breakfast) and didn't check out any of the few grocery stores in town. They had lots of fresh dates! And tea!

[kuberkat]

Food options in Oman are a real anomaly. Except for the capital, where there is more of a selection, most restaurants/ takeaways are staffed by foreign workers, usually Indian or Pakistani. This means you can get Indian food of varying quality in most towns. These outfits do also sell meatless Arabic staples: hummous, falafel and the like. If you are a strict vegan, though, do take note that these are prepared along with meat dishes.

The good news for vegetarians and vegans (and even the less devout fishichicketarians like me) is that there are many healthy, meatless options if you have the time and inclination for DIY foraging. Any grocer will sell a variety of grains and pulses, from bulgur wheat to couscous to basmati rice, lentils, chickpeas and beans in all guises. Nuts are also easy to find and relatively cheap. If you need more variety, Muscat's Al Fair supermarkets stock tofu and soy milk or soy powder. You may also want to head there for interesting fruits and veggies: town greengrocers and markets only stock a small variety of both.

And no, I am NOT trying to push Al Fair, but they do seem to consider exotic foreign infidel tastes better than any other.

[kuberkat]

Food options in Oman are a real anomaly. Except for the capital, where there is more of a selection, most restaurants/ takeaways are staffed by foreign workers, usually Indian or Pakistani. This means you can get Indian food of varying quality in most towns. These outfits do also sell meatless Arabic staples: hummous, falafel and the like. If you are a strict vegan, though, do take note that these are prepared along with meat dishes.

The good news for vegetarians and vegans (and even the less devout fishichicketarians like me) is that there are many healthy, meatless options if you have the time and inclination for DIY foraging. Any grocer will sell a variety of grains and pulses, from bulgur wheat to couscous to basmati rice, lentils, chickpeas and beans in all guises. Nuts are also easy to find and relatively cheap. If you need more variety, Muscat's Al Fair supermarkets stock tofu and soy milk or soy powder. You may also want to head there for interesting fruits and veggies: town greengrocers and markets only stock a small variety of both.

And no, I am NOT trying to push Al Fair, but they do seem to consider exotic foreign infidel tastes better than any other.

[denise]

Well, this just keeps getting better and better! I could live quite happily for quite a long time with Indian and Lebanese food. Yummmmmm!

d

[sid76]

So can a woman get away with trousers and shirts? I don't think I own any long flowing skirts. Please tell me trousers are OK.

[yaramaz]

I wore loose trousers. Seemed ok. But I was only around there a few days.

[dmb]

[veiledsentiments]

So... here we have dmb trying to inflict his fantasies on us again!!

VS

[yaramaz]

Wait til I tell Mrs dmb! (and for the record, I was wearing sandals too!)

[kuberkat]

Hope I'm not derailing anyone's fantasies, but loose trousers are no problem at all. (Provided they're worn with tops ). Skirts give better ventilation, though, which really helps you keep cool. There's a reason even the men here wear "dresses"!

[veiledsentiments]

Absolutely!! I only wore loose trousers in the coldest part of the winter (which lasts about a week... usually during semester break anyway...)

VS

[denise]

Well, I missed two connecting flights (bad weather in Chicago--how typical!) and my luggage is nowhere to be seen, but I finally arrived in Oman. Yay!

d

[yaramaz]

Oh, my raging pit of jealousy!

[veiledsentiments]

Ahlan wa Sahlan!!

Now let's hope that the luggage eventually gets there. At least you are arriving when it is cool.

VS