Traditional Fishing Villages of Musandam
Visit the isolated fishing villages accessible only by boat in the inner fjords, experiencing the traditional life of the Shihuh people who have fished these extraordinary waters for thousands of years.
- 1
Kumzar Village Approach
Approach Kumzar by boat, the most remote village in Oman accessible only by sea, home to a unique community speaking their own unwritten language Kumzari blending Arabic, Persian, Portuguese, and Hindi.
- 2
Traditional Shasha Boats
Admire the shasha boats unique to Musandam, small fishing vessels woven from date palm fronds that are cheaper to build than wooden boats and perfectly suited to the sheltered khor waters.
- 3
Cliff Face Houses
Look up at houses perched on cliff ledges above the waterline in remote khors, the Shihuh people building their homes in the most improbable locations for protection from pirates and raiders.
- 4
Village Fish Drying
See the fish drying racks outside village houses where the daily catch is salted and dried in the sun, the preserved fish sustaining these remote communities through periods of rough weather when fishing is impossible.
- 5
Traditional Boat Workshop
Find a traditional boat builder constructing a shasha from date palm fronds using only a knife and knowledge passed from his grandfather, the craft unchanged in Musandam for hundreds of years.
- 6
Khor Quiet Anchorage
Float quietly at anchor in a deserted inner khor at the end of the day, the cliff walls rising on all sides, the water perfectly still and reflecting the limestone faces in a silence of extraordinary depth.