Mid-year update

Sanaa is warmer now, in the high 20s or even touching 30...It will get warmer over the next couple of months. The house gets a little hot (sometimes hotter than outside) because there are no ceiling fans. The bedrooms have airconditioners but otherwise, there's one fan and a noisy "air-cooler" that we move around the house to wherever we are.

Lots of short power cuts during the day, some days are better than others.

World Cup fever hasn't reached us because we haven't been proactive enough to get the extra channels. (I thought it was on normal FREE tv in the UK and Malaysia??? ) But it's a big deal with the Yemenis - men and women - they love it.

We discovered a new Indonesian restaurant just a few blocks from our house. Limited menu but not expensive. We tried the beef satay (quite authentic but the satay sauce was a little watery and they threw in some uncooked keropok, which was strange); chicken soto and bakso. The nasi goreng looked good - for next time. The manager was Yemeni but spoke Bahasa Indonesia.

Not sure if I mentioned this before but the Old City now has a lot of better quality handicraft from the Saada area, where there was a war earlier this year. When the fighting was at its peak, there was limited stock and the pieces were smaller. Now they've got bigger and better baskets, woven schtuff, trinkets, etc. What a difference.

WE LOVE THE OLD CITY!

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