Holiday Inn Mukalla

... my journal. I felt such accomplishment in staying atop both of those. At 8 am I went down to have breakfast in the common room of the hotel, and I was all alone since I was the only guest staying there. At 8:30 my guide, Wasela, met me and we hopped on moto-taxis to go up the road 5-10 minutes to Hoteib. I don't know if there is a single motorcycle helmet in Yemen (I hadn't seen one), and I was a little nervous sitting on the dirty sheepskin ...

... it. I had been awake for hours, but I appreciated his wake-up call since I didn't realize the sun rose so early. It was cold as I stepped outside, and I wrapped a bath towel over my head since my stocking cap was one of the items I had left back in Sana'a in an attempt to travel lightly on this overnight trip. I caught the sun rising over the distant mountains, the morning clear as could be. I was the only person out at this early hour, and the sandstone houses ...

... only dispensed US dollars. That was pretty strange since dollars are not an official currency here. I decided to stay at the Taj Talha even though Lonely Planet and Bradt both spoke so highly of Arabia Felix Hotel. It cost $20 for a tiny room with shared bath, but I seemed to be the only person on the floor anyways. The room itself provided a nice taste of what it would be like to live in a traditional Yemeni tower house, steep steps, thick walls, no ...

Early wake up as we had to leave the hotel at 5am... we were taken to the airport in a convoy of big cars, and there we found the project Dash8 airplane, a 20 seat carrier. The flight over Yemen, from Sana' to the Gulf of Aden, was incredible. The sun was just rising, as we passed over moutains, deserts, a plateau veined with deep canyons, a few villages, sand dunes, and eventually the shoreline as we reached Balhaf. We landed ...

despite the many fears that resulted from civil disputes, yemen is definitely worth a visit. i see the backward way of life as refreshing and a good change from the fast paced way of life in other countries. and yes, a lot of its people are real and engaging

If you really want to have a wild time on New Years eve, DON'T be in Yemen! Yemen is a facinating country filled with beautiful scenery and interesting people but its entertainment options are a little limited. My friends and I arrived in the seaside village of Mukalla hoping to enjoy a few drinks and bring in the new year. Unfortunately after walking in the hot sun for several miles to the Holiday Inn we ...

... a third to their neighbors, and a third to the poor. They are supposed to use the entire animal.



Anyway, since we got a week off, it was a nice occasion to travel around Yemen - something we hadn't done yet. So two of my roommates (T and Mandy), another male teacher and I went on a trip to Hadramaut. This is a famous valley in the east which was mentioned in the Bible and is home to ancient civilizations which became rich through trade with the ...

Et oui un nouvel email, finalement c'est moderne le Yémen. Je vous écris d'Aden, la ville ou a vécu Rimbaud. On vient de se taper 9 heures de bagnole. Il y a un coin paradisiaque sur la côte. Les touristes venaient et dormaient sur la plage de sable blanc. Maintenant s'est monté une petite guesthouse dont le domaine couvre toute la plage donc t'as plus le choix. Is ont fait des paillotes et ...

Salut les travailleurs... Je suis allé dans un coin au nord est du Yémen. La température est assez cool, environ 39 (pas d'erreur dans les chiffres!!) degrés à midi à l'intérieur d'un bouiboui... je peux pas garder les lunettes de soleil car les montures en métal sont bouillantes... Au fait, je tenais à remercier les donateurs de stylos. Je pensais les donner à des profs dans des écoles plutôt que les donner dans la rue mais mon chauffeur ...

Mahaba, Having metaphorically washed off the nightmare that was our bus journey with a nice cool shower, we were ready to do some exploring. As we left the hotel the southern heat instantly hit us. Even though it's the depths of winter here it still reaches above 32c (90f in old money) by as early as 8am. Having got used to the mild climate of elevated Sana'a, this was a real reminder that we were still in the Middle East - apparently in the summer months it reaches the mid-50c's ...