Manthan hitchhiking to Muttrah in Muscat.
Muscat: This Indian lad is an amazing hitchhiker who is on a solo tour of Oman. He has already hitchhiked to erstwhile Soviet countries. As part of his unique adventure, 23-year-old Manthan Chittora reached Muscat on a free ride by hitchhiking with an Omani family from the Hatta-Dubai border and spent just 200 Baiza on potable water during this 450 km drive. As he hitchhiked to Al Khuwair in Muscat governorate, he was provided snacks, fruits, and juice by the good samaritan Zuhair.
This solo traveller has already explored Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and also the United Arab Emirates, for the last two months. All through this unique expedition, he has shared accommodation with the hospitable locals.
I accidentally met Manthan, when he was asking a public taxi van cabbie about how to reach his destination at Muttrah Corniche in Muscat. I provided him with the direction and during our 15-minute journey to Ruwi, we became acquainted and I asked him to take Mwasalat Bus Route No.4 which starts from Ruwi bus station up to the Al Alam palace. This palace was the abode of His Majesty, the late Sultan Qaboos bin Said who ruled Oman for over four decades till he breathed his last on January 10, 2020.
I gave him tips to visit the Al Alam Palace and also the nearby century-old Shiva temple, and also to the beautiful Corniche and the Muscat Souq, which are the main attractions in the city of Muscat.
During our brief interaction, Manthan revealed that he had worked as a data analyst with Deloitte for over one and a half years. He quit the job and took up his childhood passion of travelling to various parts of India and the globe and shooting pictures.
Recalling his journey to the erstwhile Kazaksthan, he said, “I met a young guy who hails from my hometown Udaipur, Rajasthan, coincidentally in the same colony where I live and also our fathers used to go to the same school. The host offered me to stay at his house during my 4-day trip to Kazakhstan, and I explored remote places near Almaty, Kaindy Lake, Kolsai Lake and Charyon Canyon. I hitchhiked to save the costs, as I am a budget traveller”.
From there he left for Kyrgyzstan by bus and went to Bishkek and explored the city and Karakol region and stayed in a traditional Yurt camp and was lucky enough to swim in the second-largest mountain lake in the world.
Thereafter, he proceeded to Tajikistan where he explored the Pamir Highway and Wakhan Valley (which borders Afghanistan), and the hot spring of Garm Chasma and took a bath there. Then he went to Yamchun in Wakhan Valley. “I walked around 15 km to and fro and also climbed the Yamchun fort. I was the only person there. Then on the Pamir highway, I went to Bulunkul via hitchhiking,” he narrated.
He said Bulunkul was a very remote village of 50 people, “cats, dogs and me”. There was no internet or public transport there and he considered himself very lucky to have found a hitchhike in the evening with the locals who were going to Bulunkul. It was an 8-hour ride from where he managed a hitchhike. “The guys offered me food and a place to stay with them,” he said. He saw some gigantic lakes and went fishing with the local guys and cooked in the wild. “People in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan love Indians and they wanted to have a photo with me wherever I was. They treat Indians like celebrities,” he said.
In Uzbekistan, Manthan explored the cities of Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva. “Uzbekistan is a very historical place but most of the places are renovated as they were destroyed in the war. Khiva is the most beautiful one,” he said.
As he was walking down the street back to his hostel, he was invited by a local lady to have dinner with them which was “very nice”.
Then again he did hitchhiking from Khiva to Bukhara and took a train from Bukhara to Samarkand. He found that the prices in Uzbekistan are very similar to that in India.
“Finally after my 45 days sojourn, I flew from Samarkand to Abu Dhabi in just Rs 5,000. UAE could have been pretty expensive but as I stayed at a local’s house, it became quite normal for me. I took a bus from Dubai to the Hatta border. The bus services are excellent, and although I was the only passenger on the bus, they dropped me at my destination,” he said.
However, when the authorities did not allow him to enter Oman by foot at the Hatta border, he again managed to hitchhike. “Thus, I met Zuhair and he gave me a free ride to Muscat along with his two family members.”
During his 4 day stay in Oman, Manthan has plans to explore in Oman the Nizwa fort, Jabal Al Akhder which is a beautiful hill station and known for rose and pomegranate farming. He found hitchhiking easy here as Omanis are known to be of helping nature.
He did face disappointments too at times when he was refused a free lift by the car drivers. But he also got some generous hosts such as the manager of the Platinum Hotel, in Al Khuwair, who hosted him for lunch. Manthan said he cherishes the beautiful memories of these unknown faces who helped him realise his adventure as a hitchhiker.
*Senior journalist
