Job Discussion Forums

[AKSDCM]

Hi all,

I'm an avid reader and first-time contributer to the Oman forum. My husband and I are considering Oman as our next teaching destination. I have celiac disease and can not digest wheat, rye, barley or anything made from the flour of these products. I don't expect to be encountering ready-made gluten-free options, but would love to hear more about the general foods available in Oman, especially fresh produce and protein.

For those in Oman, what do you consider to be your staple foods? What about food labels...how common are ingredient lists in English or French? We're aiming for a place outside of Muscat (perhaps Salalah or Nizwa), which, I know reduces access to foreign imports.

Also, how is the water quality in Oman? (I assume bottled water is used for drinking) but is tap water ok for cooking/brushing teeth, etc?

Any feedback from others with sensitive dietary needs would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[veiledsentiments]

The best thing is for you to avoid the ready-made stuff - and almost all of it that you will find there comes from the US or Europe with their standard of labeling. If you are in the Muscat area, in particular, you will see little difference from super markets back home - it is just that there is more variety as suppliers are overseas, so you don't have the same stuff on the same shelf for years. I personally found that a good thing. What you will find is that the smaller the place you live, the less ready-made foods will be available as there is no local market for it.

The produce aisle is wonderful as they import from all around the world so it seems that everything is always in season. It certainly tastes better than the plastic produce that often shows up in the US ... which looks great... but has no taste. I found that I didn't like the beef there as it tastes a bit 'wild,' but the chicken was better... but in general the super market meat depts looked like home. In the smaller villages, you may have to head to the butcher in the souq, which gets you more up close and personal with the actual carcass than we are used to. If you are on the coast, there is ready supply of fresh fish. If you go the vegetarian route, the proximity of India means that the local diet is similar and there are plenty of different bean and lentil type of things.

Tap water is fine... never had a problem with it in Muscat as far as cooking or brushing teeth. Bottled water is readily available and if you run out, you can always just boil up a supply.

VS

[AKSDCM]

Thanks for the speedy reply, VS. It's great to know there's variety in both the supermarkets and souqs of Oman (sounds a heck of a lot better than small-town Korea!)

What about medical services (knowledge of Arabic is nil, but I'm willing to work on it). We're thinking of starting a family soon and I'm hearing great things about Oman as a place for kids.

Any parents out there with advice on hospitals/pregnancy/giving birth in Oman? What about attitudes toward pregnancy in the workplace?

Thanks!

[kuberkat]

Welcome to the forum, AKSDCM. I consider any finicky eater a kindred soul, so here goes. (But first an irrelevant health warning: I answered your post in full living colour yesterday, but it was deleted when my internet connection (predictably) cut out for the second time. The tech jinn is alive and well in the Arabian sands.)

Gluten-free breads are available from the Al Bustan Bakery in Qurm, Muscat. The Al Fair supermarket chain, also in Muscat, stock some international gluten-free and organic products. Outside the capital, though, the pickings are slim. I'm afraid the picture in the college towns (where most of the jobs currently are), is less rosy. Fresh produce is pretty limited. There are always cooking veggies, but for salads you may be limited to cucumbers, lettuce and squished tomatoes. Apples, bananas and oranges are always available, and some more exotic fruits appear with season and caprice. Apparently the fruit scenario is great in Salalah, though. As to tasty sources of vegetarian protein, yoghurt, laban and feta cheese, eggs, tahina and hommous, beans and pulses are available just about everywhere. Most packaged foods are labeled with English nutritional information. In short, with a little imagination you can rustle up wonderful made-from-scratch meals- and you're likely to be the best chef in town.

I haven't really dealt with medical services, but for specialised treatment you may prefer private clinics in Muscat. By the way, throughout the country much of the workforce is imported, so you are unlikely to need Arabic except for speaking to people in the Omanized industries. Even then, language is not as big a necessity as patience. Things happen un-be-lie-vably slowly.

To say Omani culture is family-friendly is an extreme understatement. Family is everything. That certainly won't pose a problem. It is also a country with amazing natural diversity and adventure, and it's considered very safe. Good for families, yes. However, foreign families (in college towns) do often struggle with other issues, like how to connect with families from their own culture, how to pay for an international school and how to maintain relative sanity in a country that is so eventless that the daily news headlines cover the Sultan's cables of greetings. Every day. It is a lovely country with lovely people, but nothing ever happens. And it happens so slowly! For that reason, I would advise any woman accompanying her husband to have either her own job, studies, a child, a time-consuming hobby, several affairs- or all of the above. And I'm only half-kidding... the stay-at-home wives I have met are miserable. So, pregnant or no, you might be best off working, cause the rural internet connection won't be doing you any favours, sister!

Hope I haven't been too cynical... if you've made it in rural Korea, you're sure to make it here- probably with a higher standard of living in many respects. Best of luck with the big decision.

[veiledsentiments]

Hey Kuber... I think she is a teacher too from my readings. So, I will add that many teachers had babies when I was in Oman (and the UAE). As I recall, there was a generous maternity leave and much understanding of the problems that can accompany pregnancy. There was one teacher who was older, carrying twins, and ended up taking sick leave for a number of months before delivery because of hospitaliztion. I believe that she went on half-pay when the sick leave ran out... and then she got full pay for her maternity leave after the delivery.

You may want to check on what the medical coverage is for any employer you are considering. Private employers will have different coverage from government... and I'm not sure what happens when you are hired through agents. Although I would try not to give them the idea that you are pregnant or planning to become so any moment.

VS

[kuberkat]

Yes, indeed, VS, that's my understanding, too. My meaning is that it might be best to continue teaching while pregnant, at least for the first few months. In fact, being a teacher is a good thing, since outside Muscat (and possibly Sohar, nowadays) other jobs may be open to Westerners, but the salaries are very low.

By the way, I don't look down on stay-at-home wives at all: I suspect they might be the smart ones, and I wouldn't mind being among their number. (But maybe not in rural Oman.) In fact, Oman has really made me wonder if women's liberation has actually sold us short. But that is for another thread and another forum.

[dmb]

[AKSDCM]

Interesting and encouraging to read your feedback VS and kuberkat. I'm still shocked that there is a gluten-free supplier in Oman! And no, dmb, I can't have real beer...which is fine with both the hubbie and me...although admitting this probably makes us the most un-Australian-Canadian couple out there.

Good to hear that there is generally flexibility towards the pregnancy issue. Makes me feel better about working for the first year, and allowing for those all-important social connections. Looks like medical coverage will definitely be high on the list of priorities when considering job offers (...if we should be so lucky!)

Has anyone heard of expat families in Oman that home-school their kids? I'm thinking that outside of Muscat, the international school scene may be rather sparse...

[veiledsentiments]

Yes, I heard of some that home schooled for a time because they weren't getting enough of an education allowance. That is something that can be done anywhere with the internet.

VS

[omanized]

Just browsing as I don't have any allergies to speak of, unless you consider an aversion to ghee and weekly goat carcass as one.....

Just wanted to bump the thread re maternity leave - for a culture that celebrates family and multiple offspring, the law on the books is weak - 45 days is the mandatory leave and most employers I know stick to it. You may have to quit and then hope to be re-hired but that usually comes with an "insha'allah" and no guarantees - just be clear and well informed from your employer about their policy - some might well be supportive and offer a variety of options.


omzd

[kuberkat]

That sounds pretty dire, Omanized. On the up side, it may be possible to resign for a year and join the fray for the next academic year, 14 months later. If things continue as they are, job shortages are nothing to worry about.

A greater concern might be the hiring conditions for couples. It may be wise to read the fine print. While a breadwinner gets tickets for the whole family, accommodation and furniture+applicances, I have heard of couples that got exactly the same benefits between the two of them, with no financial compensation. I don't presume that you want two fridges, but surely a wife should not effectively earn less than a single woman, should she?

Hmmm. Of course, all this only applies if you work for the same employer. If you work for different employers in the same town (Muscat, Sohar, Salalah or Nizwa have more opportunities) you may be able to get past this.

[KiteBiker]

If you're in Salalah and may have complications in doing a normal delivery, think twice. The hospital there is light years beyond what they had 30 years ago, and Oman keeps getting kudos for their efficient delivery of medical services from international organizations like WHO. But it's still a scary place to have a problem birth or even have a car accident. We decided to move back to Canada when my wife got pregnant. She was older [42+] and had high blood pressure. Both public and private hospitals in Salalah were not up to the task [when was the last time you had someone prescribe Valium to you to keep high blood pressure under control?]

Blood services were another wrinkle. She had a relatively rare blood type. There was nothing in the local bank to help her. Muscat is very far away. There is no air ambulance and very dodgy normal ambulance service.

If you're healthy, have had one before, and don't mind giving birth in less than sanitary conditions, then there's no problem with Salalah.

NOTE: home schooling is ok as long as you have a very good support network. CfBT saved us by ordering a set of Bluebird readers to have our little girl start school the right way. The Indian School was more interested in penmanship and discipline than learning problem solving skills and the British school was horrendously expensive.