Making the steep climb up to Jebel Akhdar I arrived in the late afternoon to join the celebrations for a friend’s wedding . The formal betrothal had taken place last year and today would be the start of married life. Of course, it was a busy affair, as all Omani weddings are, with probably most households in the village joining in . Since this was a ‘town persons’ wedding we set off, in a queue of cars , to take the bride to the grooms home .

Jumping into my car we managed to be the first to arrive at the brides house so that we could enjoy the crowds there . Then, as is often the way, set off in a cacophony of horns to tour the area and, with a bit of careful maneuvering past the other cars, we arrived back to welcome the happy couple to their new house.

Next day, after an early morning walk, I returned as even more visitors arrived from long distances to congratulate the bride in her home and groom in the adjacent reception hall.