Today was a Tuesday. I had a nice one day break after the Sunday trek to Mount Pinatubo. I was to leave Manila and head to Cebu by flight. I thought I’d take the train to Pasay and then take a taxi or jeepney from Pasay/TAFT Avenue to the airport.
But that was a mistake. When I got to the Cubao station, first there was a line for tickets. After I got the ticket, there was another line just to pass through security. Then another line after security just before taking the steps up to the platform. Then another line to get inside the train. This was done because that’s how many people there are during morning rush hour! It took an hour after getting my ticket just to get inside the stuffed train. It was such a struggle to stand inside with my two bags but I somehow survived! I got to Terminal 3 in time… which was not that important as the flight was later delayed by half-an-hour.
Anyway, my Cebu Pacific flight landed in Cebu safely, but getting to my hostel took more than an hour due to the line for taxis, first, then the city traffic. As irritated I was arriving past lunch time, it was nice to be back in Cebu since 2011.
I was staying here, Tr3ats Guesthouse. (Just read it as ‘treats’). The hostel was a short jeepney ride away from Fuente Osmeña circle which has a Robinsons mall and many other eateriesThis is the room I was given. They would later shift me to another room a day later but this is how little space there is to walk around once you leave bags on the floorThey have 3 bathrooms, but the shower heads needed some cleaning up. You had streams of water shooting in every other direction besides your head.Beside the bathrooms
I stepped out soon after to first, get some drinking water, hand over my laundry, and then to have lunch. Fortunately, just across the road from Tr3ats Guesthouse were many laundry shops (₱25/kg). I then took a jeepney, paid minimum fare (₱8) to get to Fuente Osmeña circle. It was already well past 3pm and I was late for lunch as it is. I went downstairs where the supermarket and food court is.
₱170 for some garlic chicken, stuffed crab, and fried rice
After lunch, I went around to find travel agencies offering trips to Oslob for the whale shark sighting tours. A few of the travel agencies I visited said they need a minimum of 3 people for them to organize a tour and even if I managed to group together 3-4 people, they told me it would still cost me ₱3k or more, per person, which was way too much. Back at the hostel, the staff told me how to get to Oslob by bus (which I also read online). I convinced myself to wake up really early — like 3am early — and so I went to bed early.
April 30th, 2014 – Cebu to Oslob by Bus
I woke up at 3:30am and took a taxi to the Cebu bus station, which only took 10 minutes to get to due to the lack of traffic.
Even though there were air-conditioned buses to Oslob, I hopped into the first regular bus leaving the bus station — mostly because I didn’t want to wait, or freeze. The one-way ticket to Oslob cost ₱150.I slept through much of the journey, but by the time I woke up, the bus had reached Oslob provinceLook at how amazingly calm the sea is. It was beautiful.The bus dropped me at Tan-awan, which is where you need to disembark and right where the Oslob Butanding (whale shark) Briefing Center isIt was just past 7am, which is when the center opensI walked straight to the briefing centerI assumed at 7:30am in the morning, things would be just starting upBut there was a trail of boats already out in sea!
As a Keralite who grew up in the Middle East (Bahrain to be specific), I always wondered how and why people from Kerala were in large in numbers in the Gulf region. As I grew older, traveled more, visited Jew Town in Kochi, read up on the Spice Route, etc. I began to learn more about my state’s role in Middle East history.
Indian immigration, past or present, has been for money. In the past it was trade, mostly by sea. The Gujarati traders dealt with textiles, and the spices predominantly came from Keralite traders. Pepper was once called “black gold” and Kerala was, and still is India’s largest pepper producer. The global spice trade owes a lot — then and now — to Kerala. And traders from the Middle East sourced much of the spices from traders from Malabar (north Kerala). But where does the Sultanate of Oman come in to all this?
Being at the tip of the Arabian Gulf, Oman is the Middle Eastern nation traders would have first landed at sailing the Arabian Sea from India.
In 2006, my father was posted in Sohar, south of Oman, for a year-long engineering project. When he landed in Oman and drove from Muscat to Sohar, he told me about what he had seen. Oman, unlike other Gulf nations, had coconut trees! (You will most likely only find palm trees and date trees everywhere else in the Gulf). He had later visited a region called Salalah and told me about the many banana plantations he had seen there. That really piqued my interest in Oman.
How did the banana’s reach Oman? Coconuts have an island history, and are known to travel
This is a market in Salalah, Dhofar (Image source)
the seas because of its buoyancy. Did Keralites bring in crops, besides spices? Did the Malabar traders grow the first banana plantations centuries ago? Kerala, after all, is famously associated with the fruit (we produce LOTS of it). Kerala also has a history of visitors from Oman and vice versa. Salalah is the capital town of southern Omani province of Dhofar. An old king from Kerala, Cheraman Perumal, died in Dhofar. I’m not saying he’s the man credited to bringing bananas to Oman, but I’m sure the cultivation of certain tropical fruits and trees could have some historical connection tracing back to Kerala.
History aside, research more about Oman and you’ll be amazed by what you see.
When I saw photographs of Salalah my father took, I was amazed by the lush greenery in some parts of Oman, especially in the South. Oman even enjoys a monsoon season (or khareef as they call it), a rarity among Gulf nations, whose geography doesn’t offer much besides scorching heat and desert sand. So if I were to ever visit Oman, Salalah would definitely be on my ‘must-see’ list of places. It would be fun to share photos of myself at a coconut vendor, share it on Facebook, but tag the location to Oman and see how my friends react. 🙂
My friends in Dubai had also told me about Musandam, another beautiful region of coastal Oman, known for its pristine waters, dolphin sighting tours, and scuba diving. My friends being legal residents of the UAE, would drive to the border of Oman (with passports in tow), spend the weekend in Musandam and then return to UAE. Ras Al Jinz at the eastern tip of Oman is famous for its sea turtle reserve and conservation of marine life. I’d love to try and capture a photograph of a huge turtle on the beach sand!
Of course, as soon as I land in Muscat, the nation’s capital, I’d want to check out the city too. Visiting Muscat’s many museums would definitely help in learning more about Oman’s history and its trading past with India and other neighbouring nations. Then there are the souqs (markets), watching the sun set at Muttrah Corniche, and enjoying some great Omani cuisine for dinner. (Read my travel blogs and you’ll know how much I love Middle Eastern food).
The more I research about Oman, the more amazing I find it to be. Check out this video taken by an Indian who visited Jebel Shams — dubbed the “Grand Canyon” of Oman.
Where else but Oman can one find a camel amongst coconut trees?
Although I’ve seen my share of vast desert sands in the Gulf, Oman with its unique natural landscape, unspoiled shorelines, lush green hills and biodiverse vegetation, seems to be a GCC nation like no other. After 2010, I honestly had no desire to visit the Middle East, as Dubai is the absolute pinnacle of a Middle Eastern city. But then I was enamoured by the beauty of Iran. And now Oman. At least in Oman, you’re not just stuck inside malls and gawking at materialism that’s out of most people’s reach (a la Dubai). Oman has a history I would be very curious to learn more about. It would be interesting — and refreshing — to visit a GCC nation that is quite remarkable and geographically different from the rest. Maybe it wasn’t just spices traders from Kerala brought to Oman. And I hope I this Keralite gets the chance to do discover Oman’s history one day!
This entry was made for Indiblogger’s Beautiful Oman contest.
Here it is. Linkin Park’s sixth studio album. 2012’s ‘Living Things‘ was not half-bad so I was interested to see which direction one of my favourite rock bands was headed with their next outing. When Linkin Park released their collaborative track with Steve Aoki last year, fans were worried if Linkin Park would go all electronic on their new album.
Quite the contrary. ‘The Hunting Party‘ is the most guitar heavy Linkin Park has been since they released 2007’s Minutes to Midnight. That said, when the first single “Guilty All the Same” was released a few months ago, I wouldn’t say I was very pleased upon hearing the track. Anyway, my thoughts on the rest of the tracks on the album are below.
That’s the album cover. Pretty neat.
1. “Keys to the Kingdom” – What a way to kick off the album! Chester Bennington screams right off the bat. Ha! Mike Shinoda handles much of the verses, including rapping… before Chester screams the chorus. It’s a weird track no doubt, but this should give you a good indication about what to expect on this album. Some fans labelled it punk, some heavy metal… I wouldn’t say either. Heck, I don’t even know where to place it. It’s rock, that’s for sure. – 3/5
2. “All for Nothing” (featuring Page Hamilton) – Ahh, don’t you just love it when you Mike kicks off a LP song with a kickass rap verse? This is a great track featuring Page Hamilton who sings the chorus, and even features a guitar solo (even though it’s nothing special). Hey, guitar solos are rare on Linkin Park songs. – 4/5
3. “Guilty All the Same” (featuring Rakim) – I didn’t like it much when I first heard this songs and months later, my opinion hasn’t changed much. I’ll appreciate LP trying out new sounds, but this song feels raw (probably intentional) and it’s really not a track I find myself listening to much. – 2/5
4. “The Summoning” – Just a minute-long interlude. Sounds creepy though.
5. “War” – As soon as the guitar riff hits, I had a smile on my face. Then Chester sings. Wow, what a beast of a song! Absolute screamer of a track. It’s one of those songs that sounds awesome on record but may not make it to their concert set list every night because it’s going ruin Chester’s already abused throat. Great track though. – 4/5
6. “Wastelands” – The beats, the riff and the rap all sounded promising — but when the chorus hit, the song somehow felt generic. That’s all about I can say about the song. – 2.5/5
7. “Until It’s Gone”
If there’s one track on this collection that reminds you of the “old” Linkin Park sound, it would be this song. It’s structured like you would expect from a Linkin Park “signature” song. The backing hook, the guitar riff, the sing-along chorus, atmospheric — all good. That said, on any other prior Linkin Park album, this track wouldn’t have made it as a single. But given how the other tracks on this collectionsound, it’s understandable why the label would have insisted on making this the single. It’s familiar. – 4/5
8. “Rebellion” (featuring Daron Malakian) – Daron is the guitarist from System of a Down, so if this song sounds inspired by SOAD, now you know why. That said, “Rebellion” was one of the few songs on this album I loved instantly upon first listen.A song to get pumped to! – 4/5
9. “Mark the Graves” – The beginning (and bits) of the song does remind you of “Blackout” from A Thousand Suns, but the rest of the song is nothing like it. Just when you think this is another heavy track, Chester’s verses lower the volume… for a bit. The ending is all loud, guitar solo and Chester screams. It’s not a bad song though, just quite a mish-mash. – 3/5
10. “Drawbar” (featuring Tom Morello) – For those who don’t know, Tom Morello is the awesome guitarist from Rage Against the Machine, famous for his playing style and the sounds he comes up with on the electric guitar. “Drawbar” is an instrumental and a rather somber interlude to lead into the next track. – 3/5
11. “Final Masquerade” – If you were seeking a power ballad on this album, this is it. I like it, although it feels a bit dated — in the sense it could have even appeared on MtoM. It’s even got the quintessential “woah oh oh” bit for that concert sing-along moments. -3/5
12. “A Line in the Sand” – The final track is a big one. At 6:35, the song packs in fast-paced guitars, screaming vocals, thumping drums, and towards the end — all three, before closing with Mike Shinoda. A fitting close to the album in my opinion. – 3/5
After three albums produced by Rick Rubin, ‘The Hunting Party’ is an album largely self-produced by Mike Shinoda and guitarist Brad Delson. I’m guessing “hey, let’s make this guitar-heavy” suggestion came from Brad 🙂 And why not? Rock is dying on mainstream music charts as it is and if a mainstream band can bring back heavy riffs on radio, I’ll take it.
I really liked A Thousand Suns and I don’t mind if Linkin Park does a similar concept album in the same vein with future releases. I’m someone who is quite open-minded with musical tastes. I listen to every possible genre of music out there, from boy band pop, K-pop to heavy metal… and Coldplay. I’m not ashamed about it. I like diversity and I accept the fact professional musicians are no different. I only question Linkin Park’s promotion of this album. I really don’t know why they chose to promote “Guilty All the Same” — quite possibly one of the weakest tracks on the album — as the lead single. It really put me off and lowered my expectations for this album. This is an album quite a departure from their previous releases. While ‘Living Things’ tried to bridge the “old LP sound” with the new, ‘The Hunting Party‘ is throughout a hard rock album with a very organic sound. Poor Joseph Hahn doesn’t have much of a role to play on this one (but will do live in concert, obviously). Sure, many songs end with some kid’s chatter and weird sound bytes but they did the whole interlude thing with the last two albums as well.
Fans have been complaining about Linkin Park “changing” for the worse for quite a few years now, but I guess you can never please some people. For those who appreciate change — and rock music — ‘The Hunting Party‘ is a good album. It may not be the band’s best album till date of whatever, but it’s still a Linkin Park album worth adding to your collection. Only if your collection of music includes varied tastes.
My final rating for ‘The Hunting Party’ – 3.5/5 (Pretty Good)
