Mercure Sanaa

... for visitations of a recently deceased family member directly after death. My favorite place was the outside fountain courtyard, where visitors gather after the museum walk - a place where one could find peace.

اعج 76;ني بيت يحيى وساست 93;مل هذا قسم الموق 93 ...

... thing I would have probably enjoyed would have been a trip out to Socotra island since it's so different from the mainland, but it really wasn't possible in my short time frame. Highlights of Yemen: 1. Watching the activity of old Sana'a, from the Taj Talha Hotel rooftop, from the top of Bab al-Yemen, and from street level 2. Climbing up to Thilla fortress and taking in the views 3. Shooting photos of Hababah with the cistern in the foreground 4. Staying ...

... to the Taj Talha Hotel and checked back in to a $20 room. I then caught a taxi to Pizza Hut, ready for my first full meal in over 24 hours. The prices were great, with a small pizza costing $4, mozzarella garlic bread for $1 and a 7-Up for under a buck. I wrote some post cards while waiting for the food, occasionally looking up to see the Yemeni families enjoying their lunch with the women exposing their faces more ...

... for photos after they had collected water for their homes. I had great pleasure looking at the photos on my laptop later. They were some of the best photos I had gotten in Yemen yet. From Hababah I paid $2.50 for a taxi to Thilla where I found a pre-wedding celebration in progress. I wished I had the video camera to capture the men dancing while waving their jambiyyas, with deafening drumming creating a festive mood. It was fun to watch, in part because I was ...

... elements prone to kidnapping plan their attempts well in advance. He explained that organized groups can be at risk because radicals that do want to make trouble have time to plan abductions. Hotels have reservation lists; local travel agents have been planning tours for quite sometime; and all arrangements are pre-registered with the Ministry of Tourism. All provides the ample planning necessary to carry out an ...

... a bit dingy. All of this just added to the charm and character of the place. (Yes, Carma, it was old.) This is the type of airport that serves one flight at a time. We were 30 minutes early, so even immigration was surprised by our arrival. But they didn't make us wait. They came out quickly once we entered the arrivals hall. I was second in line and through in no time. Since I had no baggage, I was out the door immediately ...

... of the Agha Khan Foundation) are a sect of Islam with practices and beliefs similar to the Sufis. This center was built by Agha Khan for the Ismailis in the region (of which there are handful) and for other Ismailis who come from Pakistan and Afghanistan to study here. The Center is completely isolated from other villages yet like everything else in the area, it is perched on the peak of a tall, steep mountain. The place felt very serene and ...

... and brought back influences from all these places when constructing palaces and mosques in the area. On Saturday Johan and I went to Tarim. It has a quite famous library, which 'lonelyplanet' advised taking a look at, as some of the beautiful manuscripts are on display. Unfortunately, there were only about ten or so, but they were worth a look, and a challenge to try and decipher. We also took a taxi to the nearby village of Ayenat. It is something of a pilgrimage site ...

... off from 350." Even in the Old City, people were giving seriously inflated prices. It got tiring. All in all, the trip was pretty tame until the day I left. I decided to leave Sana'a a little late in the day on Tuesday because I wanted to look at some Arabic schools in the morning. So at around 1:00 in the afternoon, I left T's place and got a taxi to the bus station. I was wearing my abaya and headscarf (which is what I ...

... went on to a very impressive waterfall. known as 'Biny Matur'. It was a very beautiful and quite magical spot, and we climbed up the cascade and over some of the surrounding rock formations. Adil told me today that the place is said to be inhabited by 'jinn', or mischevious spirits, which take the form of beautiful women, and the local people calim to hear strange singing ...