Taiz
Just got back from the historical city of Taiz - only a 30-minute flight from Sana'a on the new domestic airline, Felix Airways. We flew out on Thursday morning and back on Saturday morning... so we had almost two full days over the weekend.
To drive down, it takes around 4.5 hours - but due to company-imposed security restrictions, we're only allowed to fly there. The roads are good apparently, except for one dangerous stretch called the Sumarra Pass. Our driver made his way to Taiz by car the day before our flight, and met us at Taiz airport. In case of a breakdown, he was accompanied by a second car (ironically it was the 'security' car that ended up with a flat tyre).
Taiz is beautiful. Our first reaction was that it's very green ("very" being relative to Sana'a, not Southeast Asia!) and very hot (again, compared to Sana'a). Used to the cool highlands, the two drivers spent three hours driving around, looking for a hotel with air-conditioned rooms!
Taiz is quiet compared to the capital - I'm used to seeing more cars and people in Sana'a. (Having said that, I like quiet places.) The roads are better there - and some parts of town were recently spruced up for the President's visit during the 22 May/Unification Day celebrations. There is less to do in terms of entertainment, but they have a nicer zoo than Sana'a and their version of Fun City (called Dream Land) seemed bigger from outside. The Old City is not as big or as well-kept as the one in Sana'a - preservation work is needed to restore/maintain the town's historical treasures (there is a 1,000-year old wooden door being used as a toilet entrance).
We stayed at the Al-Saeed Hotel (formerly the Sofitel, whose license was apparently pulled because they served liquor); the best in town, hence "the best" prices but food isn't great. As usual with my hard-to-please husband, he wasn't happy with the view (nice mountains in the distance but above a tarmac-ed roof)...to his disappointment, the hotel was "full". We were sceptical, and rightly so; there was an international chess championship going on but we discovered (after taking a ride up the glass elevator) that the entire top floor of the hotel was closed off to guests. Still, the hotel was classy with good view, and clean.
DAY 1
DAY 2
- Al-Janad Mosque: the first mosque built in Yemen, during the Prophet's time
He also recommended a couple of nearby wadis: Wadi Al-Dhabab and Wadi Al-Barakani (where you will find plenty of mango trees).
Marrah thaaniah, insya-Allah! Maybe next time!
View from Jebel Saber
To drive down, it takes around 4.5 hours - but due to company-imposed security restrictions, we're only allowed to fly there. The roads are good apparently, except for one dangerous stretch called the Sumarra Pass. Our driver made his way to Taiz by car the day before our flight, and met us at Taiz airport. In case of a breakdown, he was accompanied by a second car (ironically it was the 'security' car that ended up with a flat tyre).
Taiz is beautiful. Our first reaction was that it's very green ("very" being relative to Sana'a, not Southeast Asia!) and very hot (again, compared to Sana'a). Used to the cool highlands, the two drivers spent three hours driving around, looking for a hotel with air-conditioned rooms!
Taiz is quiet compared to the capital - I'm used to seeing more cars and people in Sana'a. (Having said that, I like quiet places.) The roads are better there - and some parts of town were recently spruced up for the President's visit during the 22 May/Unification Day celebrations. There is less to do in terms of entertainment, but they have a nicer zoo than Sana'a and their version of Fun City (called Dream Land) seemed bigger from outside. The Old City is not as big or as well-kept as the one in Sana'a - preservation work is needed to restore/maintain the town's historical treasures (there is a 1,000-year old wooden door being used as a toilet entrance).
We stayed at the Al-Saeed Hotel (formerly the Sofitel, whose license was apparently pulled because they served liquor); the best in town, hence "the best" prices but food isn't great. As usual with my hard-to-please husband, he wasn't happy with the view (nice mountains in the distance but above a tarmac-ed roof)...to his disappointment, the hotel was "full". We were sceptical, and rightly so; there was an international chess championship going on but we discovered (after taking a ride up the glass elevator) that the entire top floor of the hotel was closed off to guests. Still, the hotel was classy with good view, and clean.
DAY 1
- Drove up Saber mountain; lovely hillside villages, terraced farming, up to the peak with fantastic views
- Lunch at the Jebel Saber Hotel; originally a gift from the UAE Sheikh Zayed, whose ancestral home was in Yemen
- Cairo Castle; a large fort on top of a hill, hosting groups of men sitting on the steps and chewing qat. A man gave me a small bunch of qat leaves!
- Cairo Castle; a large fort on top of a hill, hosting groups of men sitting on the steps and chewing qat. A man gave me a small bunch of qat leaves!
- Taiz Zoo; has about 30 lions (the most I've ever seen in a zoo), around 10 Arabian leopards, three cheetahs (one of my favourite animals), vultures, falcons, Arabian gazelles, goats, dogs, cats (I kid you not), gerbils sharing a cage with parrots, baboons, various birds...Entry fee for foreigners: YER 150 = USD 0.60 per person.
DAY 2
- Al-Janad Mosque: the first mosque built in Yemen, during the Prophet's time
- Walkabout in the Old City: Modhafer Mosque (the oldest mosque in Taiz - but we didn't go inside); Al-Ashrafiyah Mosque (contains tombs of the al-Ashrafa family and their security guard); a couple of other mosques; Bab Kabeer (the Great Gate); Bab Musa (the Gate of Moses); souk. As usual, a self-appointed guide suddenly appeared and showed us around...but he was really good.
S' colleague had sent a list of good places to eat but he emailed it too late:
"Go to Al-Mousala Street to drink natural mango you have never tasted in your life. There is a café in Al-Mousala Street and you can walk to this from Bab Mousa. Go Mohamed Ali Othman Street for tasty lunch, fresh sheep meat, Yemeni beard, and soup. In this street, you can to any Mekhbaza (restaurant), they are all almost the same. "
He also recommended a couple of nearby wadis: Wadi Al-Dhabab and Wadi Al-Barakani (where you will find plenty of mango trees).
Marrah thaaniah, insya-Allah! Maybe next time!
View from Jebel Saber
The Old City from Cairo Castle
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