Qaboos Mosque

Driving to the city of Muscat from their international airport, you cannot miss the ornate mosque on the way. It is the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque.

Built by 2001, this mosque is huge and can host twenty thousand worshippers. The large grounds around it look like an oasis.

On a sunny day, I decided to visit the mosque. It is customary to wear full pants, shorts are not allowed. There is an entry ticket, but it was not being charged on the day I visited. From the entry door, the beautiful golden dome of the mosque is visible.

The mosque has a sandstone facade and has four minarets around it.

The lawns and gardens around the mosque are huge and well maintained.

As you make your way towards the mosque, you can see the beautifully carved sandstone and minaret in the background. The marble surface to walk on is smooth, pretty and delightful to walk on.

The chandeliers and the mosaic tiles on the ceiling are a good complement to the arches on the courtyards.

The intricate artwork carved on the sandstone and the delicate mosaic tilework are on all the walls and ceilings.

The entrance doors to the main mosque are very tall and have flowers and vines carved on them and the door frame has semicircular carvings.

Inside the main mosque the stained glass on top of the doors let in the daylight and the multiple chandeliers accentuate the aura of the mosque.

The high ceilings have wooden beams and recessed alcoves while the floor is covered with the carpet reported to contain 1.7 billion knots and weighing 21 tons in aggregate.

The chandelier above the praying hall is 14 meters (46 feet) tall, weighs 8.5 tons, and has 600,000 crystals. Thirty-four smaller chandeliers of the same design are around the main one.

The stained-glass windows gave the inside space a surreal look.

Outside on the corridors, there were many styles of mosaics on the wall. This one with gold and blue ceramic was one of the many varieties.

The overall architecture of the mosque can be seen from the very large marbled grounds outside.

Each side you turn your eyes, you can notice the beauty of the mosque in the detailed work.

One side of the corridor outside has multiple tall arches.

Behind the three arches is the minaret.

The arches also have an intricate carving on them.

The inside of the mosque is very peaceful.

The grand chandelier hanging from the main dome was stunning.

Each corner of the monument had detailed design that one could admire for a long time.

The most ornate part of the mosque was the prayer area with verses from Koran inscribed on the pillars.

There are many long walkways in the main prayer area which continue the elegant motif of the mosque.

Everywhere you walk in the mosque, the delightful design keeps you mesmerized.

The imposing minaret is right outside of the mosque as you exit the main sanctum sanctorum.

The symmetry and grandness of the arches is awe-inspiring.

As I was returning to my car, the last picture I took was the arch of the mosque looking outwards at the Al Hazar mountains.

I spent nearly two hours visiting this grand monument and enjoyed the beauty of the mosque.