I have a story to tell you...

Back in Sana'a after a couple of weeks away. Before coming home, there's the familiar routine...

"Did you call the maid?"

"Have you told the driver to pick us up at the airport?"

"Does your Arabic teacher know you're coming back?"

As soon as we arrive, one batch of the laundry goes into the washer, the rooms are checked for any problems (like exploding boilers)...and long-running resolutions to lose weight are renewed (exercising more often and "just" soup for dinner)...

So as I wait for my carrot and tomato soup to cook, I'll tell you what happened to my Arabic teacher this morning.

I called her just before class to check if it was on. Sent an SMS the previous night but no reply - nothing unusual about that. Anyway, she answered and said she was going to be 30 minutes late and "I have a story to tell you."

OK, I said. Take your time. (Let's call my teacher Ahlam.)

So I went to her parents' house (where we have lessons). Was greeted by her youngest sister:

"Did Ahlam tell you??? Someone tried to kidnap her!!! She was in a bus from her house to come here and the driver tried to kidnap her...so she jumped out of the bus! She went to the hospital for a check-up."

HOLY mother of pearl...

Pretty shocking. Kidnappings in Yemen - usually foreigners or young children.

Ahlam finally came. After a scan, the doctors said she was fine... but there was a bump on the back of her head. She told me the whole story and couldn't believe it happened to her.

She lives far from town (because like most people she can't afford to buy in central Sana'a) and takes taxis/busses into the city. Usually she gets a taxi from her house to a bus stop, and then takes one or several busses (dabbab - minivans with yellow stripes) to class.

Today as she was about to stop a taxi, a bus was driving by and she thought, "Great! He'll take me to the bus stop or to town, even better."

So she got in. He kept saying he was going to take a different route. She started to wonder when he wasn't clear about which route. She began to panic when he didn't stop for other people, even though they were flagging him down. She told him to stop but he kept going. She thought, before this guy pulls out a weapon or picks up a bunch of friends, I'd better get off.

So as he took a turn and slowed down, she jumped out - aware that there was another car beside the bus...Fortunately, that car had swerved to avoid her. (The doors on these busses are usually left open.) Some traffic policement saw her and chased after the driver. A group of people helped her up. One guy even said: "Sister, your hair is showing" and tugged her niqab (face veil) back into place. Then she took a taxi to her family's house and then her parents took her to the hospital.

I'm glad she's ok (after she jumped, her vision was blurry for a few seconds). She is a strong and smart woman.