Monthly Archives: May 2009

Trying To Ride Through Yemen And Failing

By Tom | Published: May 21, 2009
Aden turned out to be an interesting place to spend a few days. What the city lacked in architectural grace it made up for with its laid-back, low-key atmosphere and friendly people. In fact, it felt more like a collection of quaint seaside towns strung around a small volcanic island than a former national capital. Over [...]
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Southern Arabia And The Troubles Of Yemen

By Tom | Published: May 16, 2009
Until a few months ago, the Republic of Yemen fell into that embarrassingly large category of nations that I would struggle to point out on an unlabelled map. (Try it now. Yemen. Where is it?) Occupying the south-west corner of the Arabian Peninsular, this former British colony nowadays makes the headlines only for its continuing run [...]
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One Man, One Bike, And Six Hundred Cows In A Boat

By Tom | Published: May 12, 2009
At seven o’clock one May morning, as the sun was just beginning to make felt its long ascent into the heavens, a wooden Arabian cargo vessel set sail from the Port of Djibouti for the distant shores of Yemen. On board were an eclectic and rowdy Arab crew, a handful of Somali passengers, six [...]
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Notes From Afar, The Hottest Place On Earth

By Tom | Published: May 6, 2009
I gazed out across the plains from my vantage point by a military watch-tower at the eastern edge of the Ethiopian highlands. I was about to leave the familiar craziness of Amhara and to cross the Afar desert, the site of the hottest air temperature ever recorded, and the home of the nomadic Afar tribes. Even [...]
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