By Vasuki G S PGP72
PGP ‘72 meets in Oman
A motley group of seven alumni and their better halves arrived in Muscat for a “reunion to remember”.
It started with a few members signing up at the previous reunion organised so wonderfully by K.V.Ramana and Vijay Sagar at Hyderabad in December 2016. The great feeling of being together once again led to great euphoria and, after tributes to dear departed batch-mates, it was resolved to have reunions as often as possible. After a brief discussion, Vasuki G S offered to organise the next reunion at Muscat in Oman. There were immediate sign ups, but finally, Prakash Telang and Anjali, Bharat Lakhkar and Dr. Leena, Varkey Mathew and Miriam, Satyanarayan Dangayach and Amita, B.S.Sachidanand and Padma, joined Suryanarayan Bajaj and Padma, Vasuki and Asha for a five- day programme of fun and camaraderie in Muscat.
The programme began with an Opera at the grand Royal Opera House on day one; an extensive city tour on day two, covering the traditional souq (market) in Muttrah, a drive through picturesque old Muscat past the Al Alam Palace; day three began with a cruise in the Sea of Oman amidst frolicking dolphins followed by a visit to the Al Zubair museum; day four started off with a visit to the exquisite Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque and a long drive out to the city of Nizwa which was once the capital of Oman. The group got a glimpse of the fort-based Omani life of yore, the unique silver and pottery crafts in the souq. The tour took the group to Barkat Al Mouz oasis to see the falaj system used over ages to convey water up and down hills to provide water to villages and farms using unique hydraulic principles like siphons and locks. Day five started with a visit to the Amouage perfume factory known for producing some of the most expensive perfumes based on Oman’s priceless frankincense that brought international merchants to Oman from the days of Queen Sheba. This was followed by a drive over pebble strewn Wadi Abyadh on an adventure-filled trip through water streams to get an experience of how water comes down from the Hajar range. The final event involved adventure of driving up and down huge sand dunes at steep angles, past Bedouin camps amidst their camels and livestock to finally arrive at the Al Nahdha Dune resort, which was the last point of the reunion. Every event over the five fun-filled days was interspersed with lunches and dinners at exquisite fine dining restaurants that provided unique cuisine.
The entire tour arrangements were organised under active supervision by Vasuki’s son Ashwin and daughter-in-law Monika who were at hand to ensure the full enjoyment of the group.
