Oman
Sur
Dhow ribs curve beside a lagoon where Oman's seafaring craft still has a workshop.
In Sur, timber frames rise beside the lagoon while finished dhows sit high on their cradles. Across the water, Al Ayjah's white houses and lighthouse give the harbour a second, quieter face.
Sur built the dhows that ran to East Africa and India, and the craft has not quite finished: timber frames still rise in the yard beside the lagoon, the last traditional yard of its kind in Oman. The restored Fatah Al Khair, which sailed those routes for decades, anchors the maritime centre. Across the water, Al Ayjah's white houses and lighthouse give the harbour its quieter face. The yard is a working place, and the builders are asked before their work is photographed.
Solo
Sur rewards a slow loop on foot: yard, maritime centre, corniche, then the bridge or ferry across to Al Ayjah for the lighthouse.
Couple
Time Al Ayjah for the late afternoon, when light comes off the lagoon and the corniche fills with the town's own evening walkers.
- Dhows are still built by hand in Sur's yard, the last traditional yard of its kind in Oman.
- The Fatah Al Khair, a restored ocean-going dhow, sailed for decades on the routes to East Africa and India.
- Across the lagoon, Al Ayjah keeps white houses, quiet lanes and a lighthouse above the inlet.
- The corniche joins the working fishing harbour to the heritage quarter on foot.
Grilled kingfish or hammour off the day's landing at one of Sur's fish restaurants.
Khubz ragag with honey or cheese for breakfast before the harbour gets going.
Mikindani
Tanzania
Livingstone sailed from this coral-stone harbour on his final expedition.
Pienza
Italy
A pope rebuilt his birthplace as an ideal Renaissance city, five streets and one flawless piazza.
Flatey
Iceland
A tiny, car-free island where time has frozen in a cluster of nineteenth-century houses.
Moulay Idriss Zerhoun
Morocco
Five pilgrimages here during the moussem are said locally to equal one hajj to Mecca.
