It was great to meet all the passengers who flew in for the start of their cruise from Salalah. I would give a series of talks on board about the region to, hopefully, enhance their experience and enjoyment.
The crew and guests overnighted in the Hilton Salalah after a long flight from London and were given a run-down of their initial couple of days so that all knew what how their luggage, and themselves, would get onto the ship in Salalah’s port, from Hilton in town.
Fortunately, Salalah has superb weather in winter, much nicer than the UK where most had come from. Adding to the tropical feeling, CoCo Nuts, fresh off the palms, were available as part of the pre-boarding tour.
We then all made a visit to the port of Samharam, located in Khor Rori which is is gradually being revealed as a very interesting fortified trading town from antiquity.
After that ‘city tour’ of Salalah, everyone was welcomed on-board, and we left dry land. I will be doing my best to add to what should be a fantastic cruise for the passengers – there were only about 100, so each would get almost a personalised time on-board.
Our initial section was to the north – in the wide open Arabian Sea. As Pirates had been active from Somalia, east towards India from 2010/11, some barbed wire was looped around the ship as passive protection, and probably more effectively, a few “sharpshooters” joined us on board to actively deter them. 
Arabian Sea Island Sky
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