Adventure couple

HOW about modelling as a career and spending the returns from it to fund travelling. That’s what Marija Piskač and Thane Williams, a happy go lucky travel couple from Croatia and South Africa seems to be doing. Both modellers, they share a mutual passion for nature, sports and food. [gallery columns='4' link='file' ids='587926,587929,587928,587927'] They like to visit places that offer something different and authentic or destinations that are slightly more alternative to the norm. Their first trip to the Sultanate was a brief visit from London as they heard about ‘diving’ being incredible in Oman. Because of an expected storm they actually did not end up diving but got to travel around much. However, they came back to Oman a year later again and visited more locations and got enchanted with the place. The first visit was three days in November 2016 and they immediately noticed how clean and peaceful Muscat was. “It was quite refreshing surprise after leaving the hustle of city life in London. We were also surprised how big Muscat was and how much we had to drive around to get from one area to another.” They travelled back to Oman a year later in 2017 and stayed for five days. The couple agree that travelling broadens the mind and knowledge. “Experiencing new cultures and customs is a very enriching experience. It is important for one to learn the similarities and differences between cultures and to be tolerant and respectful to each other. We love meeting new people when we are travelling and friendship made during travelling holds a special bond,” say Marija and Thane. The couple recounts their meeting with local Omanis. While during their Muscat trip, they were fortunate to meet Fahad, a taxi driver on the very first day. Through a quick chat he organised their trip to Wadi Bani Khalid. Fahad has been their loyal guide and friend since then. The couple kept in touch with him and when they got back in 2017 he was with them during their entire stay. The couple noticed that everyone was very polite and respectful in Oman, not just towards themselves but among each other. They liked that Muscat was safe and that the locals were proud of it. “We enjoyed the fresh fish and local flavours in the fishermen villages as well as in towns. The scenery and nature in Oman are breathtaking. You have absolutely beautiful sand beaches, deserts, mountains with water oasis such as wadis. We explored most of Muscat and the sights on our two trips.” They strolled around Muttrah and the fish market, ate fish at Bait al Luban, their favourite Middle Eastern restaurant. They also visited old areas of Muscat, National Museum and were particularly impressed by Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque. They visited several neighbouring beaches around Muscat and fishermen villages. They drove to Rimal al Sharqiya desert to meet a bedouin family and visited Wadi Bani Khalid, Wadi Shab and Wadi Tiwi. They also spent a few nights at Muscat Hills Resort and performed scuba dives. “When we went scuba diving at the Muscat Hills Resort another tourist recognised us from our YouTube video which we found quite funny but were happy people actually watched the video which has over 45,000 views and people ask us regularly to share tips about Oman,” they said. During their second visit the couple visited Oman after arriving from Colombo. Coming from Sri Lanka they felt Oman was like a holiday. They would love to come back as soon as possible as they have an unfinished ‘business’ with scuba diving in Oman and would like to explore Dhofar Governorate. Currently based in Cape Town the couple got an idea for a blog about three years ago and regularly posts their travels on Instagram and YouTube. They blog on GoMaryandCoco with Mary short named for Marija nad Coco being Thane’s nick name.