The Castle Village and arrival in Sana'a...at Last!

We didn't exactly beat the sun up this morning but in time we made our way upstairs to the rooftop for "Breakfast with a View". It was a gorgeous day for hiking and even mid-morning the weather was still cool and dry. We took our time meandering through the village, meeting people, watching people, repeating "no pen" in Arabic as the children were persistent. We finally made our way to a hiking path across the mountain toward what looked like an abandoned castle perched even higher on this mountain range than the village of Hajjara. Our hike took us across a number of stone terraces which looked quite small from a distance but in reality each were at least 6 or 7 feet in height.

Once we reached the cluster of tall stone and mud towers we realized it was an inhabited village of 10-12 families. Eilidh (a fluent Arabic speaker) quickly established rapport with several of the villagers and we were followed by a group of lovely children, dressed in bright colors and with henna painted hands. The view, the air, the terrain, the food, the charm of the local people all combined for a memorable mountain excursion in the beautiful and historic region of Yemen.

We then made the 2+ hour journey to Sana'a, entering this 2000m high city from the South. Since Eilidh was still getting

settled and not yet in her new home, we stayed in the guest quarters of her British Council Director, Elizabeth White. The home is a beautiful old Yemeni style on the exterior while the interior was a Turkish design. It was originally built for the Ottoman mayor of Sana'a and is situated in a spacious private compound with a lovely garden room and fountain area.

That evening Christina and I provided a few hours of labor assisting Eilidh in the on-going job of setting up her new home.

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