November 18 is Oman's National Day which meant the school held it on the 17th of November (no school on Fridays). National Day is one of the biggest celebrations of the year where people here dress in traditional dress, perform Omani dances, paint everything green, red and white and gather together for massive celebrations. The school put on a huge show which included a lot of Leanne's students' artwork and I had my band play the national anthem (a daunting task ...

October has been a very busy month! We've found ourselves settling in well at the school and starting to learn all of the kids' names (which has been a major challenge!). We are up every day quite early as school starts at 7:30 and we typically aren't home until about 4:30 or 5:00 so we put in some long days. Overall, the school is a great place to work and the kids have been very cute and eager to learn from us. Layla has settled in well at school and has made ...

We were on the road by 7:00 and the temperature was already at 35 degrees. We were headed to Wadi Al Shab, a desert oasis close to the coast and just an hour south of Muscat. It was a smooth drive on amazing roads over the mountains and back down to the coast. We arrived at a sinkhole that the locals like to swim in and had a quick dip. It was cool to feel the small fish nibbling on your feet and legs. After that it was back into the car and off to Wadi Al Shab. ...

Today was a pool day before we had to get on the plane to go back to Muscat, or 'home' as we were starting to call it. We had another delicious breakfast and then sat by the pool and chilled out by the beach all morning. After we checked out of the hotel it was off to the souks in town to see what we could find before heading to the airport for our late flight home. It was a relaxing day and an amazing weekend away from the grind of Muscat. We are already startin...

We got up at around 8 and had a delicious breakfast at the hotel and then got ready to head out for the day. Our first stop was Wadi Darbat where we found an amazing mountain creek and pond where we enjoyed a boat ride. After Wadi Darbat it was back in the car to head to Ayn Athum, a waterfall and natural spring in the hills behind Salalah. The water was beautiful and it was very quiet and serene. It was great to see so many Omani families out for a picnic and en...