The Yemen Chronicles Part 5- Aden

One day my Uncle Munir aked me if I'd like to fly with him to Aden.. for a night. Of course, I said.. Yes please!

Aden is a port city in the Southwestern part Yemen. It's history as a trading port dates back over 3000 years. In ancient times not much is known, but from explorers like Marco Polo.. Vasco de Gama and others, it's clear that it was a very rich and powerful port city.

Aden has a large natural bay that's located along an ancient trade route. The city benefited from monsoon winds that propelled ships between East Africa and Asia. This would explain why if one goes to East Africa one will see a great deal of Arab influence in the culture and language. In fact, my ancestors migrated from Yemen to East Africa generations ago, to the Island of Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania. Zanzibar used to be a major trading post along the east/west trade route.

The Portuguese tried to capture Aden in 1513 but they couldnt quite do it due to it's heavy fortifications.. In 1538 the Ottoman Turks managed to get a hold of it, but only because they had some inside help!.. In parts of Yemen it's common to see a bit of Turkish influence.. like Turkish baths, or Turkish writing on old houses. In the late 1700's Aden became an important component of the British colonial policy. The Brits made some deals with the local rulers and turned Aden into a Brit protectorate.. In 1967 (I think this is when they kicked the Brits out!) Aden became the capital of Southern Yemen (San'a was the capital of North Yemen.. in 1990 the two Yemens united into ONE) . In the 70's Aden started to decline as a primary port, due to intense competition and the temporary closing of the Suez Canal. To make matters worse Aden was pummelled during the 1994 civil war.. for quite a while the city stagnated and is still in poor shape.. but recently things have been improving. There's a plan to turn Aden, once again, into a major free port city.. anyways.. i'm digressing too much!!




My Uncle Munir and I stayed in the Sheraton.. it was pretty nice. I got a free emergency sewing kit! .. This was the view from my room :) The area is called Elephant Bay. Do you see the elephant? I was planning on checking out the pool.. but that never happened.




Eep! Here's another picture for you.. can u figure out what kinda bird that is?



The city of Aden is referred to as Crater simply because it is surrounded by a crater. I believe there are only two ways in and out of the city.. the rest of the area is surrounded by rock.



That house with the little ladder at the top is where my parents got married.. way back in the stone age. It supposedly was a nice house back then.. now we have no idea who lives there.



local pool sharks..


a typical tea/coffee/whatever place ..



Now I've realized that its common to find large scale models of fighter planes in the middle east. At least this one is in the shade.



I won't bother explaining :) Read the sign!



Isn't it cool?? It's all a big mystery!! These tanks extend deep into the mountains!



Local kids come here now and climb up these hills to chew their qat or scratch their names into the reservoir walls.



As I was starring at the sky, an old man called me over and told me to look... 'look over here!' I found this tree growing out of a well..



Doesnt this well remind you of that movie, 'The Ring'?

I'll soon post up a few more pics of Aden.. gotta go find some fooood.