By the Beautiful Sea

"I'd like some ice," she observed lazily, "for my water, but it's too hot to get up and look for a waiter."

"Don't worry," I replied.  "It's nearly two, which means he'll be coming with our drinks any minute now."

One of the characteristic features of life in the Sultanate is that on Fridays, one cannot procure a drink 'til two, but you can, nonetheless, pre-order, so that at the magic hour, you needn't wait a moment longer than necessary.

We are vegetating in the shade, occasionally dipping ourselves desultorily in the turquoise pool or braving the long and winding stairs down to the beach and the tepid crystal sea.  Last night we caroused our way through tropical cocktails at that local bastion of cultural authenticity, Trader Vic's.  Tonight it's glorified curries at a trendy hilltop boite that morphs into a Bollywood nightclub later on.

Ah, but now it's two o'clock, so you'll forgive me...