Muscat

London Heathrow Airport, 9.00pm June 23rd 2015

"Thank you for checking in, Miss. I'm sorry but your flight has been delayed for an hour. Please have a seat first and they will be announcing the Gate number on the information board in due time."

Oman International Airport, 7.00am, June 24th 2015

"Due to the delay, I'm afraid you are unable to board the next flight to Kuala Lumpur."
"What? But my transit here is supposed to only be for an hour?"
"Yes... we at Oman Air regret this incident. The next flight you can take is tomorrow morning. We will provide you with hotel accommodations, food and you will be granted visa at the immigration."
"Wait. So I have to be in Muscat for a day?"
"Yes. We have shopping malls.. and some activities if you wish."
"Activities?"

This is how, for one random day in June, I found myself climbing the rocks near Al Fateh and baking in the hot, middle eastern heat. I wouldn't in my life ever dream of travelling to Muscat, so to be granted the privilege of enjoying hot, arid landscapes (a far cry from the quaint, elegant European towns and tropical exotic Asian cities) in such a random, unexpected way, was a blessing beyond my dreams. Ramadhan in an Arab country, imagine! So many men in jubah, women in niqab, closed off shops during iftar, and late night shisha sessions over nasi Arab in a tent in the desert. It was as if someone had put a pause button and let me take a breather before returning to the humdrum of KL.

Ya Allah, I thank you for the opportunities you have given my in this life to see this world. Alhamdulillah.