What can we learn from them?
Local Culture
01
Oman is a place where I have met the nicest people during my visit. The people greeted and welcomed me with their friendly gestures. However, there are strict cultural practices that visitors are expected to follow. Oman remains a country that is profoundly traditional and conservative, and while it becomes more accessible to visitors, old traditions run deeply.
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At the National Museum, one of the staff that showed us around could not speak English and I found it surprising as I thought that Omani are capable of conversing in English. At first, I was taken aback because I was thinking; "How can you work at a landmark where foreigners come so often, and you are unable to communicate in English?" Despite the setback, I could tell that he is very proud of his country and was eager to show us more about what Oman could offer. This confirms that Omanis are friendly as they care for their country and its visitors.
This is the National Museum and the picture was taken by me in Oman on 25 October 2019
Miza Hamizah
Next in the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, the staff was very friendly and he gave us a tour around the mosque. Lastly, he invited us to eat some dates and drink local coffee called Kahwa. Serving Kahwa and dates are an essential part of Omani hospitality. They explained to my non-muslim friends about the Quran in a very interesting way. They gave us free several books that explained in detail about Islam as a religion and the Quran as a holy book.​
One thing I observed while in Oman is the greetings. I saw nose and cheek kissing among the males. Based on my general knowledge as a Singaporean Muslim, males greet each other just by shaking hands also known as Salam.
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In conclusion, Omani is proud of their traditions and cultures and would do the most to conserve it.
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From the interview, that I conducted with Dr Kalpana, she said that from both of her visits to Oman, she finds that Omanis are friendlier than Singaporeans.