Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Ramadan 17, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

A place where you love to return

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A single Nigerian based in the US is bitten by a travel bug. She loves to explore the world and share her experiences.


Victoria Alao quit cushy jobs to plunge full-time into travelling and her adventures have so far taken her to the Middle East, Asia and Africa. She travelled to Oman in March this year and had a whale of a time.


Two years ago, curious about Oman, she glanced at the map of the Middle East trying to decide what to add to her bucket list when she noticed Oman.


‘Oman is Arabia’s hidden gem,’ Victoria says and admits she was not sure of her expectations prior to visiting the country but came with an open mind.


According to her, travelling helped expose her to various types of people, food and culture. This, she says, was possible as she wanted to come out of the comfort zone.


Travelling full-time has been the most rewarding decision ever, she mentions.


It was her quest for change, that she got an opportunity to visit Colombia in March 2016. During the visit she experienced a different culture, which was definitely the change she had longed for. “This taste of freedom inspired me to travel more and see the world,” she adds and there has been no looking back after this.


“Oman is also a country that a lot of tourists are reluctant to travel so I felt the need to visit and show people the beauty of this country,” says this intrepid traveller.


Her earlier plans to visit the Sultanate about two years ago failed as she did not want to travel alone. She did not know much about the Sultanate earlier and decided to visit during summer as she conducted research and found out that Oman was one of the safest countries in the world!


“I wanted to see the landscape, sights and meet with the locals so I decided to visit alone,” she mentions.


She stayed in Muscat and visited tourist spots around Old Muscat, Al Alam Palace, Muttrah Souq, Muscat Gate Museum, Wadi Shab, Grand Mosque, Hawkyat Najm Park, Sur, Rimal al Sharqiya Sands, Wadi Bani Khalid, and valleys around the capital.


Having a passion for trying different cuisines in different countries, she enjoyed new experiences and challenges in Oman.


Travelling over 33 countries so far, she worked with several travel companies as a media representative namely Travel Start Nigeria, Ubud Food Festival, TEP Wireless and most recently for Acacia Africa.


Having earlier worked and saved up for two years to be able to achieve her travel dreams which she reveals, has been nothing short of rewarding!


A travel, food and lifestyle blogger (@thestylishtrotter), Victoria now recommends the Sultanate to anyone as a holiday destination. A graduate in Chemistry, Victoria is now back in Illinois, after her recent travel jaunts to various African and Caribbean countries.


“Oman was a beautiful place to be on those three days. With such a heavenly experience, the visit was truly rewarding,” she concludes and plans to come back again.


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