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behind the scenes

Aqabat al Hamra is tough to get to on a clear day, and inaccessible when it rains

It is 05:30am, and we wake up in Muscat to rain that has already been flooding the city for several hours. We are heading out to do our story on Aqabat al Hamra (turn to page 18), the village of ten people and one family, somewhere up the mountainside two hours above Misfah, itself about 3-4 hours away from Muscat.

Or so we thought. Half a day later, after plunging through water and debris right from Muscat to Nizwa, we were stuck, with nowhere to turn to except home.

We had thought it would clear up a half hour away from Muscat, but found instead an unending cover of cloud all the way to the Western Hajar.

These are photos of the old town and souq, of cars destroyed, and the aftermath: the eventual clearing of skies, and the flowering that must follow.