It’s Carnival Time!

Lakshmi Kothaneth & Samuel Kutty -

The first of its kind, Sur Al Hadid Beach Carnival aimed at promoting domestic tourism got off to a colourful start on Thursday at the Seeb beach in the Muscat Governorate.

The three-day carnival is an initiative by Tanfeed and jointly led by different entities such as Muscat Municipality, Ministry of Tourism, Oman Tourism Development Company — Omran with the support of various partners as well as sponsors.

“In order to create a fun-filled experience for the Omani community, we have come up with creative ways in organising various outdoor activities,” said Abdul Wahid al Farsi, director of Business Integration at Omran.

The carnival has been buzzing with activities as it has an open market with 70 participants providing food and entertainment. The kids’ corner has activities for children varying from water sports to arts. Beah Oman is conducting a workshop on environment protection and plastic recycling.

Mwasalat, the national transportation company, has been providing free transportation from Maabela bus station and from the various parking areas to the venue of the carnival.

Also, included in the activities are water sports starting from 12.30 pm to 5 pm. The carnival itself continues till 12 am. The water sports include banana boats, Jet skis and Kayaks.

The beach volleyball tournament is being organised by the Seeb Club, an initiative by the club to engage with the community. Artists from the Seeb area are also making the presence felt at the carnival. But it is the home businesses that are thriving with the opportunity to introduce their products.

“The Sur Al Hadid Beach is designed as per modern urban community needs by the Muscat Municipality. That is why the organising committee chose this particular beach for the first event,” an official from the organising committee told the Observer.

While children and adults equally enjoy skating and cycling, at the beach the Olympic Stables in Oman has joined the festivities with their horses and ponies for the delight of children who can enjoy short rides.

Wilie the pony turned out to be the major attraction with kids volunteering to braid for him. Sam Harrison encouraged the children while explaining, “This would give an opportunity for the children to understand the horses better and even take up horse riding.”