Yemen, Week One

While I was making my summer plans, I heard many conflicting reports about Yemen. Some said it was very, very dangerous. Some said it was very, very boring. Some guaranteed that I'd get kidnapped. Some said I would have to wear the niqaab. Some said I wouldn't have to wear the niqaab. Some said that Yemeni schools were inaccessible and my efforts would be wasted; some said the program looked great, and what better place to get experience with development. As week #1 draws to a close, I thought I'd share some of my first impressions. These are subject to change as my experience here develops, but I thought I'd address first the major pre-trip concerns expressed by friends, family, and mostly, me. Arranged in order of frequency.

It is indicative of the people with whom I associate that we talked more often about the food than the real possibility of kidnapping...

1. Isn't Yemen Really Really Dangerous? Don't Terrorists Hang Out There? They Totally Do! OMG!

I guess they do. On a daily basis, though, we don't encounter them. Nor do, I imagine, most of the Yemeni population. Everywhere in the world is dangerous these days, and maybe there are more al-Qaeda members per capita than some other places, and there might be more firearms per capita than most places (except the US) but daily life is just normal. Boring, even. People take taxis and call their friends and go to the supermarket and buy mangos. At night, the streets get quiet at around 9. If you are picturing Sana'a as a hotbed for political activity, or similar to Beirut circa 1985, or with a City of God style gun battles, then I'm afraid you've been misled. The streets look like this:













All the time. Is it more dangerous than, say, Des Moines? Maybe. So is Washington, DC, though.

On a similar note, we live and work within about a five block circumference. We take reliable taxis and have everyone's phone numbers in our mobiles, which are always charged. We're not chewing qat in the mountains with al-Qaeda.

2. Dude, You Will Have to Wear the Niqaab.

This is a picture of me in Yemen.

Most women do wear the niqaab here, and if they don't, they wear the hijab, and I've seen a handful (exactly three) without a veil at all. I dress modestly in long shirts and loose pants and I don't feel uncomfortable in Sana'a without a scarf. I keep a scarf in my purse just in case. We work with clever and responsible Yemenis who advise us on our dress code, and I imagine some of our travels will take us to less liberal towns in the Yemeni countryside where the niqaab will be mandatory.

3. I am Warning You. Yemen is Really Boring.

I think the key to avoiding boredom is appropriate expectations. Sana'a is not Cairo, and it's not Paris, and it's not DC. There aren't crazy nightclubs. There's not a lot of alcohol. Women don't go out so much after 9 pm. There's no metro. It's hard to walk to the happening Sharia3 Hadda from where we live. It's quite provincial.

But the pace of life is nice and easy, and once you're friends with someone, you've a 100% chance of being invited over for the weekend, for the parties, for some qat, for some sheisha, to meet their sisters and friends and plan future parties. And at night, there's always Al-Jazeera, or your ab workout DVDs, or Arabic verb conjugations. In fact, one night I taught myself how to type in Arabic. So, yeah, it can be a little boring when it's Sunday night at 8 pm and sheisha is too far away and you can't occupy yourself by cooking because you don't have any ingredients, and you can't go shopping for ingredients because it's late for women to go out, and you can't understand what the heck they're talking about on Al Jazeera. But it's not like we're living on the dark side of the moon. There's always something to do if you adjust your expectations.

And if all else fails, spend all your money on international texts from your Yemeni phone. This can be endlessly entertaining.

4. The Food Is Great, Though!

The food is great. So far, we've enjoyed salta, fish, bint al-sa7n, Ethiopian food, kabab balady, tea with milk, sheisha (ok, it's not a food, but it might as well be, for as much as we smoke it), a homemade Yemeni feast, various assortments of salads, and of course, qat. Every meal has been delicious (although I am still out on the qat issue.) Maybe we got lucky and got all the best food in one week, but I think this is just a sample of pretty great, and distinctive, cuisine. I have started taking my camera to restaurants.

5. You Will Probably Get Kidnapped.

I want to get kidnapped. For the story and for the inevitable immersion Arabic lesson. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like that happens so much anymore, at least not around where we live. I'll keep trying, though, guys, don't worry.

6. No One There Speaks English.

This is sort of true. Arabic is by far the preferred language. But if all you want to do is buy your mangos, you'll get by with English.

7. It's Hard To be a Foreigner There, but I Guess Yemenis Are Supposed to be Very Nice?

If you've never been to the Middle East before, Yemen is maybe not the best place to dive in. It's relatively inaccessible, its closest neighbor is Saudi Arabia, and it just helps to already know your way around the culture and language a bit. In a more Westernized country (Egypt, Jordan...) you will probably find someone to explain the nuances to you in fine English, or you will be forgiven because they have experienced Foreigners Like You before. In Yemen, I'm not sure you would, unless you were living with a sympathetic Yemeni who understood where you are (literally) coming from and could guide you through social situations.

While Yemenis themselves are wonderful, warm, generous people, the city and infrastructure is not particularly tourist-friendly. A first-timer asking for help and/or explanations in English might find only confusion. Moreover, there are not a lot of good tourbooks about Yemen; I found one in Borders and the same one in Barnes and Noble and didn't buy it. It's really just better to get there and ask around when you arrive. This is, of course, intimidating and requires stamina, conversational Arabic, and lots (and lots) of patience.

But let me reiterate how wonderful Yemenis are. They're kind and generous and gentle. Once you're in, once you make friends, they'll take care of you and show you around and feed you and you'll never have to worry about anything. It's just a little harder than most places to get in. Unless you have a built in social structure, like work or school, it's hard to meet people randomly, particularly if you're a woman.