MUSCAT: The month-long festival, Muscat Nights, has less than 10 days left for visitors to explore all its venues — Al Qurum Natural Park, Al Amerat Public Park, Oman Automobile Association, Seeb Beach, Wadi al Khoudh, Qurayat, and Bausher Sands.
The festival has been offering diverse cultural, entertainment, and sports activities across multiple venues, featuring fireworks, drone shows, heritage zones, concerts, adventure activities, SME markets and family fun, transforming the capital into a major winter destination with a strong local economic focus.
Seeb Beach activities have been a major attraction with the youth because they have water sports, beach volleyball, and sandcastle-building competitions to choose from. The location has been a hit with families, and food vendors have been doing a brisk business.
The Muscat Nights have been an ideal platform for SMEs. The SMEs have been benefiting from "live marketing," allowing direct customer interaction and immediate product experience. There are designated areas for SMEs, especially at Al Qurum Nature Park and Al Amerat Public Park. Some of them have their shops, but being part of Muscat Nights has been doing wonders for the small businesses.
One such individual is Jamal bin Juma al Balushi, an antique dealer who buys, sells and appraises old, valuable items like furniture, art, jewellery and books. Amongst his many collections are gramophones, cameras and a typewriter. People come to him and get stuck in time as they explore memories. When he played the record on the gramophone, although the record was scratched, the sound it produced was pure nostalgia for the ones who had gathered around him.
"I deal with antiques, silver, jewellery, stones and so on. And lately I have started with toys too because it is nice to see children happy. Sometimes they may not buy the antiques, but they come and look. I see they become very happy. Everyone is happy here," said Jamal who is at the Heritage Zone at Al Qurum Nature Park.
The international communities in Oman have also found a true representation through Muscat Nights to showcase their culture and talent. "My name is Mary Wangoing Chugia. I come from Nairobi, Kenya. The business is fantastic," said a vendor at the Kenyan pavilion. She has a collection of bead jewellery consisting of bracelets, necklaces and earrings. "I normally do it in my free time. It normally takes time. One necklace can take about three to four hours. Some others can take even three days to a week, depending on the details and size of the jewellery piece," she explained.
Azra Aleem is at the Pakistan Social Club booth and has been meeting hundreds of guests, and she makes it entertaining for all by conducting a quiz and if the answer is right, the participant walks away with a gift. "We arrive at the venue around 3 pm and leave by 12 am," she said.
Azra expressed gratitude to the Government of Oman for offering all resident communities the opportunity to highlight their culture. Since the festival’s inauguration on January 1, 2024, Pakistan’s pavilion has drawn significant attention with its diverse cultural and culinary displays.
The Pakistan pavilion features traditional cuisine such as samosas, chaat, dahi bhalle, halwa, gulab jamun, laddoos, rasgullas, gol gappay, biryani and kulfi.
Interactive experiences include a photo studio decorated with images of Pakistan’s landmarks, cultural props for visitors, and competitions including “Colour and Win” for children and “One Question, One Prize” quizzes for women.
Daily performances of folk music and dance, along with the spectacular drone show, have further enriched the festival atmosphere.
"Pakistani artists visiting Oman have also praised the hospitality and organisation of Muscat Nights," she noted.
On Saturday, January 24, 2024, at 7:00 p.m., the Pakistan Social Club Oman will host a grand Qawwali evening at the Layali Muscat stage. Renowned qawwals Fareed Ayaz and Abu Muhammad, accompanied by their ensemble, will present soulful Sufi renditions.
The Al Amerat Public Park has all the cultural elements of Oman featured, including the heritage through crafts and cuisine, and not to forget folk music and dance.
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