Monday 17 / March / 2025
Muscat: More than 40 women from across the Sultanate are selling a variety of goods at the Heritage Village of Al Amerat.
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Coming from South Batinah, Al-Sharqiyah, and even Muscat’s very own Muttrah, the women in the Heritage Village serve as a reminder of the diversity of Omani culture.
Incense, traditional perfumes and body scrubs line the shelves of the booths. Some distance away, customers line up in anticipation outside a few stalls selling a variety of fare, where the women serve hearty meals.
Maryam Khamis has come all the way from Salalah to participate this year. She did not attend the last few editions of the festival, but it is different this year, she noted.
“In the past years, we did not have to pay for a stall. Last year, I was told OMR50 was deductible, which would be reimbursed later. This year, however, it cost us OMR100. That too it is non-refundable,” Khamis remarked.
Accommodations can cost up to OMR300, with taxi rides costing OMR4 to OMR5.
“We make, on an average, OMR10 to OMR15 a day, but we are hopeful. We are here because our husbands can’t work or are too sick, and we need the money. So, we are doing all we can to make ends meet,” she said.
