Salalah: Even though the hovering clouds have increased the humidity level in Salalah, the people here are welcoming it as a sign of the arrival of the khareef season and getting into the mood even though the Covid-19 is playing spoil sport over
the festivities and businesses associated with them.
The first sign of the monsoon season is witnessed every year in Dhofar’s southern district, Dhalkout. The visitors to Dhalkout have started experiencing sporadic drizzling here and there, and as soon as they reach the place called Mukura, they have to be careful in driving further due to low visibility caused by fog from this point up to Dhalkout.
Dr Sandeep Ojha, who loves to explore the natural spots in Dhofar, experienced pleasant weather all through his drive from Mughsayl up to Dhalkout and drizzling off and on.
“Previous weekend, I decided to drive towards Dhalkout. I was surprised to notice the difference in temperature between Salalah and some places on the way to Dhalkout. In Salalah the temperature was 28/26, and I noticed temperature up to 20 degrees at some places’’, said Dr Ojha.
The sun played hide-and-seek with the clouds that left people sweating due to the raised humidity level that went up to up to 86 per cent on Monday. The temperature in Salalah city shuffled between 30 and 28 degrees Celsius.
The city remained cloudy most of the day.
“Thick clouds hovering over Salalah for the last two days has built up the humidity, and we were sure that these are the indications of rain. We were pleasantly surprised to see some raindrops on our cars early in the morning,” said Mohammed, a resident of Dahariz.
In search of early monsoon clouds Rajesh Pardeshi, another Salalah explorer, drove up to the Itin mountain area early in the morning. Hoping there would be cool weather over the mountain, he put on a light sweater. But to his disappointment, there was high humidity, and he had to throw his sweater in the car.
“I witnessed a sudden drop in temperature as soon as I started driving up. Due to clouds moving at a lower altitude, the humidity was very high... Greenery is gradually returning on the mountains. In coming days the visitors can see full greenery on the mountains and plains soon after the arrival of the monsoon,” he said.
As per the official calendar, the khareef season starts on June 21 and continues until the end of August.
Khareef is the time when Salalah turns into lush greenery. Its hills are surrounded by white fog. Light rains drizzle to cool the air.
It is frequented by many visitors, especially from within Oman and the neighbouring GCC countries during the season.
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