Land of wonders

First – close your eyes and guess the population of Yemen. Wrong! It’s about 22 million and increasing annually!

You can hear all the stories and look at all the photographs but nothing prepares you for the first sight of Yemen, a land rooted in biblical times.
This is where the Queen of Sheba ruled in 10th century BC and her journey to King Solomon’s Court in Jerusalem is the stuff of legends, including that of the Hoopoe, who is said to have alerted Solomon of her approach.
Roughly the size of France, Yemen has been occupied by Greeks, Romans and Turks and became Islamic in the 6th century AD.
A land full of wonders, it’s not surprising that several areas are Unesco protected heritage and wildlife sites including Sana’a – believed to have been founded by Noah’s son Shem, Shibam – the ‘Manhattan of the desert’ and Socotra island – where some 300 of its 800 species of flora and fauna are unknown elsewhere.
Around every turn are dramatic mountains, villages perched on precipices above tiered terraces dropping hundreds of metres, barefoot children trying to jump onto your vehicle, handsome men with jambiyas stuck into intricately woven belts, veiled women striding over uneven surfaces balancing water containers on their heads and motorbikers miraculously missing throngs of people, goats, camels and cars.
Sana’a the capital, with three million people, sits 2,300m above sea level and is renowned for its beautifully preserved russet hued tower houses built of volcanic rock and sunbaked mud bricks, individually decorated with white gypsum, gamariya coloured glass windows and latticed balconies.
Soaring six or seven storeys to accommodate extended families, it’s surreal to realise that as the Gulf’s modern skyscrapers shoot ever higher, a mere two hours flight south lies a land of towering structures built thousands of years ago.
Bab Al Yemen built by the Turks in the 1870s, is set within the encircling walls of the old city and which, until recently, was closed at night.
Bargaining is essential in this Aladdin’s cave of winding alleys brimming with tiny shops selling handcrafted silver jewellery encrusted with pearls, turquoise, amber and coral, curve bladed jambias and woven belts, handwoven cotton marwaz (sarong).
Local honey, henna, coffee (Mokka) and halwa, vie for space between electronic items, sandals, carpets and bunches of Qat, the hard leafed narcotic chewed by 85 per cent of Yemeni men.
After midday, a typical sight is of men lounging in doorways, with one cheek puffed to bursting as if suffering from an enormous abscess, their bleary eyes revealing why this soft drug at $5 a bunch, has held back progress in this impoverished society.
We left Sana’a in a convoy of three Toyota Landcruisers led by our guide Saeed, an intelligent and enthusiastic Yemeni who entertained us with his encyclopaedic knowledge of his country. Driving in Yemen is not for the fainthearted. The average speed is about 100mph regardless of whether you are on a highway or negotiating the winding lanes of a tiny village. Everyone seems to have the right of way and horn blasting is obligatory. However, our cavalier driver Abdulrahman, managed to transport us over 1,000km without incident.
Wadi Dhahr, 10km outside Sana’a is a fertile valley presided over by Dar Al Hajar, residence of the late Imam Yahia. Arguably the most photographed building in Yemen, this architectural wonder stands upon a single rock
Following a scenic route of ancient queens and legends across the western highlands, we passed the hilltop towns of Ibb and Jibla, to Taiz, capital of the Rassoulides (1229-1454). 
We wound up the Jebel to Al Kaif village and had a picnic overlooking a spectacular panorama of terraces draping the slopes below. Yemen was once the richest land in Arabia, where wild animals roamed the forests and waterfalls overflowed the mountains, supplying precious water to the valleys.
Yemen was also the prime source of frankincense which was shipped across the deserts by camel train to Mesopotamia and India.  Due to centuries of overharvesting, today the precious bark is found only in Oman and Socotra.
Although the monsoon season from April to June turns the country green, it regularly suffers droughts.
Ninety per cent of Yemenis live in poverty yet own their land, often in the same family for 200 years.
In 2006, Yemen attracted nearly 400,000 visitors (Arab, Italian, French and German). The government recognises tourism as a major source of income and is actively promoting Yemen’s pristine seas and beaches, unique architecture, historical sites and challenging terrain to attract specialist adventure and eco-tourism, rather than the masses. And also to dispel its negative reputation for kidnapping and terrorism.
“Our ambassadors are being trained to be tourism orientated and to create international cultural awareness that terrorism is not exclusive to Yemen; it’s a worldwide threat,” said Abdullah Al Muttareb, deputy commercial director of Yemen Airways.
“It’s quite safe in the major cities but if people want to travel beyond, it’s advisable to use a reputable travel company.”
“The Yemenis are the friendliest, most hospitable and loyal people of Arabia, If they trust you, they’ll be your friend for life,” said Jordanian Saleh Farajat, who is currently with Accor Hotels.
We only saw a fraction of Yemen’s amazing attractions and I for one, can’t wait to return to explore more of Felix Arabia.