Murah Fish Market

"I'm going to the Mutrah Fish Market if you'd like to come along." As a vegetarian, fish markets don't necessarily entice me but new friends and experiences are hard to turn down. 

This is the view of the market from the outside. I love Mutrah, it's an older part of Muscat on the waterfront. Some of the notable sites are the Sultan's yacht, Sultan Qaboos' giant portrait on the grain silos across the harbor, the traditional Omani ships called dhows adding that vintage flavor to the ambiance, and the main street shops marking the outskirts of the famous sooq.  

My friend and I were pegged as tourists but since there are very few females at the market, we were unique.  I was pleased that it wasn't as stifflingly smelly as I expected, they were constantly mopping and fans were blowing. The days catch was relatively small and diverse. We were there late in the morning so much had been purchased already.

I was challenged not to feel sad for all the poor fish. I've heard Omani Lobster is quite a delicacy of the region. This was my first time seeing one. I think it would be a challenge to find that among the rocks in the gulf. Overall I'm glad I went. I bought some fun items at the fruit and vegetable market and I bought some shrimp for Brigham's sushi bowl birthday dinner when I realized I didn't have to clean or cook them(thank you Virginia!). The market has a cleaning section in the back if you pay a few Rial you can avoid cleaning! Special thanks for taking me Kimberly!