The ancient land of Arabia Felix, modern day Yemen, lies in the south west corner of the Arabian peninsular. It borders Oman in the east, Saudi Arabia in the north, and lies on the Red and Arabian seas. After an eventful, and often violent history, Yemen is now a united and increasingly forward-looking country, having held its first multi-party elections earlier this year. However, Yemen still retains its old world charm and laid-back lifestyle.
Islam is very much a way of life, the tribal and family structures are still rigidly strong and the renowned Arabian hospitality is demonstrated on a daily basis. To me, Yemen is the most Arab of the Arab countries and that is why I chose to spend a year there as part of my Arabic degree course.
In the term prior to going to Yemen I had a few lessons in Yemen dialect with the other Yemen bound Arabic students and we were also given a couple of leaflets about life in Yemen and what to expect when we arrived. Needless to say this only gave us a vague idea of what it was going to be like, and from the moment we stepped into Sana'a International Airport we realised that the year was going to be fun, challenging and above all extremely interesting.
Whilst in Yemen I attended The Yemen Language Centre, which is a privately-run language school in Sana'a. The teachers were all native Yemenis and classes were conducted entirely in Arabic, and this, combined with the fact that I was living in the Old City, proved to be an excellent learning environment. Living in the Old City was fascinating, and we soon got to know our hospitable neighbours, especially through their curious children. Old Sana'a is a preserved and beautiful city. The city is a maze of narrow cobbled streets, which all seem to lead to Bab al- Yemen souq (Gate ofYemen market). This is an enchanting place, rich in colour, smell and activity, where you can spend hours wandering through the many different component souqs.
Sana'a is the most architecturally beautiful town in Yemen, but the rest of the country has lots to offer. In our first half-term break a few of us went down to the Red Sea coast. The scenery coming down from the highlands was spectacular, and once on the coast we spent a relaxing few days on the beach, staying in simple palm-leaf huts and eating the local seafood. On our way back to Sana'a we visited the pretty mountain towns of Taiz, Ibb and Jibla. During the next week, my room-mate and I hitch-hiked through southern Yemen. Our first stop was the picturesque and bustling Arabian Sea port of al-Mukalla, which is the gateway for Wadi Hadramaut and the famed cities of Shibam, Seyun and Tarim. The road out of al- Mukalla takes you along the coastal strip, before climbing steeply up to the rocky, desert plateau. Having then travelled for four hours across the monotonous desert terrain, the road suddenly drops down into the Wadi and the scene could not be more different; the contrast is spectacular. Lush date-palms line the valley floor and big, bold houses hug the wadi walls. The journey through the wadi took us first to Shibam (popularly known as 'The Manhattan of the Desert'), and then onto Seyun ('The city of a million palm trees'), before stopping in the theological town of Tarim. In my mind, Tarim is one of the most beautiful towns in Yemen. A seat of Islamic learning, it boasts a mosque for every day of the year in addition to an array of spectacular palaces, which have been occupied through the ages by various sultans and other members of the ruling elite.To top it off, we stayed in a lovely converted sultan's palace complete with swimming pool and exotic gardens. We were the only guests, and at £3 a night you can't complain! From Tarim we returned back through Wadi Hadramaut and al-Mukalla enroute to Bir Ali, which is the site of the ancient Qana. Bir Ali is a small fishing village with an incredible beach. The mile-long beach is of fine white sand which leads down to the warm, shallow water. The beach is completely deserted except for a small shelter which houses the occasional visitor. Our last stop before returning to Sana'a was the former Crown Colony of Aden. This cosmopolitan port still retains surprisingly noticeable British influence and is a fascinating place, steeped in history.
