Oman: a short visual diary

Back from Oman. A beautiful country, with barren and rocky landscapes and breathless canyons, carved by rivers that flowed powerful here at the time of the dinosaurs. And then a sea of ​​bright green waters, inhabited by tropical fish, corals and rocks carved by oysters, sand beaches full of incredible shells and still frequented by giant tortoises. And then very hospitable men and women, men with hats by colorful embroidery, women with clothes from fabrics similar to Indian saris. Carpets and teapots also on the boats, on the beach or on the ground in the middle of a plaza. A country with an architectural tradition still very evident, in which even the humblest home has its crowning balustrade, windows adorned and protected by fretworks, iron doors each with its own design. And a landscape characterized by the constant presence of water channels. And then Muscat, a city with in a nature reserve of mangroves, a long public sandy beach, a beautiful architecture of white houses. A city that seems grown without losing herself. A country in which to return…

Driving around


Inside the Wadi Shab

The Balcony Walk inside the Wadi Ghul

The fishing village of Qantab, near Muscat

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Places, people, architectures…

In rientro dall’Oman. Un paese bellissimo, con paesaggi brulli e rocciosi e canyon vertiginosi, scavati da fiumi che qui scorrevano potenti ai tempi dei dinosauri. E poi un mare dalle acque verdissime, abitate da pesci tropicali, rocce intarsiate da coralli e ostriche, spiagge dalle sabbie cariche di incredibili conchiglie e ancora frequentate da tartarughe giganti. E poi uomini e done molto ospitali, uomini che vestono cappelli dai ricami colorati e donne con abiti dai tessuti simili ai sari indiani. Tappeti e teiere anche sulle barche, sulla spiaggia o per terra nel mezzo di una piazza. Un paese con una tradizione architettonica ancora molto evidente, in cui anche la casa più semplice non rinuncia ad un coronamento con balaustra traforata, finestre adornate e protette da trafori, porte in ferro ognuna con un proprio disegno. Ed un paesaggio caratterizzato dalla presenza costante dei canali per l’acqua. E poi Muscat, una città con dentro una riserva naturale di mangrovie, una lunghissima spiaggia pubblica, una bella architettura di case bianche. Una città che sembra cresciuta senza perdere se stessa. Un paese in cui ritornare…

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About paesaggisensibili

Architect and senior fellow of the McLuhan Program in Culture and Technology of Toronto University, I'm a member of the board of directors of the Italian National Institute of Architecture (IN/ARCH) in Rome, where since 2003 I am in charge of the Institute Master Programs. My studies are rooted in the fields of architecture and philosophy of science with a special interest in biology and anthropology. Key words for my research are: Man, Space, Nature, Technique, Webness, Ecology, Relations, Interactions, Resources, Energy, Landscape, Footprint, Past and Future. My goal is to build critical understanding of the present to suggest useful strategies to build the future.

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