Three veiled women at Mahktan Dam

Three veiled women
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

The Mahktan Dams are northwest of Sanaa, not far from the US embassy. There are two small check points on the way, but Paul was able to talk his way through them. The second dam is at the end of a wadi, which after walking for about 10 minutes forks into two wadis. It's been raining a lot recently and there was a small flowing stream in the wadi on the right side. It was filled with frog eggs and small tadpoles. We also saw two enormous frogs. We followed the rocky stream almost to the end, then climbed up and over the steep ridge and down to the second wadi. An excellent hike. The area is very popular with locals, especially in the rainy season when grass and flowers and small thorny plants the goats don't eat erupt from the dry soil and rock. As we walked back to the car, we passed many groups of people, including these veiled women and small child.

Wadi Hadoor for the 15 April bird walk run by the Sanaa Ornithological Club

The entrance to Wadi Hadoor
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

The Sanaa Ornithological Club, run by David Stanton, organizes talks and walks once a month. The presentations (ranging from movies to illustrated lectures) are held second Tuesdays at 7:30 PM at the YSPW Hall (Yemen Society for the Protection of Wildlife, on Algeria Street). The walks are held the following Thursday morning, often leaving as early as 7 AM. David takes us to various interesting places around Sanaa, usually within the security perimeter.

This past Thursday, April 15, we explored Wadi Hadoor, a 45 minute drive north west of Sanaa. Majestic! A lovely walk along a flat wadi floor bounded by sheer rock cliffs sprouting green clumps of varied vegetation. It had rained heavily the day before, leaving muddy ponds, an unusual sight in Yemen.

David’s getting better at selecting places where birders can bird and hikers hike. Although officially a birding club, these monthly walks draw people with varied interests. Kathy brought her sketchbook and was thrilled to find an interesting tree growing sideways from a muddy bank to sketch. Ingo, armed with bottles and a rake and suction devises, discovered a new species of beetle. Mats and Rosanna brought their dogs Olga and Amy and all were quite pleased to have a low-key, flat walk (most weeks they scramble up and over steep wadi walls).

Sarah, talking to one of the young Yemeni YSPW employees, recorded in a small notebook the Arabic names of things she saw. Roberto, prevented by his employer from driving through security checkpoints, was simply pleased get out of the city (Wadi Hadoor is accessible without a tasreya). I found a complete dog skull and the upper part of a cat skull.

Wadi Hadoor is a 45 minute drive from Sanaa, to the right when heading northwest on the Kawkaban / Shibam / Thula road. Contact David Stanton at david@yemenileopard.org for more information about the Sanaa Ornithological Club or to learn about his efforts to protect the endangered Arabian Leopard.

Two women in black baltos on a Fun City ride

Two women in black baltos on a Fun City ride
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

We took the kids to Fun City on Wednesday morning, the last day before spring break. A variety of other schools were also there, but the park was closed to the public. We paid a set price per child and they (as well as teachers) could ride every ride that was open as often as they wished. For lunch we ordered pizza and a drink. In total it cost about US $6 per person.

I brought my camera to record my students for the benefit of the parents. But I found the images of balto-clad women riding the ferris wheel more striking.

Wadi Siham in the spring

Wadi Siham in the spring
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

You can walk through water in Wadi Siham. It’s the only wadi I know near Sana'a where you can do so. Warm water bubbles to the surface from a collection of small springs and trickles along the flat wadi floor until it disappears back into the earth a few kilometers later. On Friday afternoons the upper part of the wadi is filled with picnicking Yemeni families, children splashing gleefully in the water.

The springs are called Hammam Jarif. They are 30 km south of Sanaa, but are within the security perimeter, so permission is not required. To get there, turn right off the Taiz Rd at the *Jarif Spa* sign (you will pass several villages after leaving Sanaa proper. If you get to a checkpost, you have gone too far).

Follow the paved road down down down into the valley, 1000 meters below. Keep going road until the road turns from asphalt to dirt. Drive past a collection of small stone huts over the springs to the mouth of the Wadi. If you have a four-wheel drive, you can drive into the wadi along a rough, rocky track. I was told it's possible to drive all the way to the Red Sea.

Wadi Siham is a wonderful place to camp. We woke early and Paul was able to be in his office by 8:30 AM.

Sanaa Hash (March, 2010)

Sanaa Hash (March, 2010)
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

The Sana'a Hash meets at different points around Sanaa every Monday afternoon at 4:15. We drive as a convoy to a nearby location and hike, inevitably climbing a steep mountain side at some point. The views from the top usually make the climb worthwhile.

Few of the traditional Hash customs are followed: a bottle of water is offered at the end, but no alcohol. There is no on-on, so people tend to disperse afterwards. It is always set by the same person (a former Yemeni army captain), who knows lots of different places to explore within the Sanaa security perimeter (I’ve never been on exactly the same Hash twice). Occasionally weekend trips are arranged, (but the Hash does not help foreign Hashers get the required security forms (tasreiyah).

To get on the Sanaa Hash mailing list, email Randall at: randallcameron@kpmg.com.ye

Wadi Hamel 03 - A shepherdess, Olga (the dog) and Rosanna

A young shepherdess near Wadi Hamel, Yemen)
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

I could see the smile in the eyes of the young shepherdess who squatted down to interact with Olga, the little furry white dog. Unlike many veiled females, the girl was quite willing to be photographed. We met her and another girl on the ridge, high above the wadi. Each was covered entirely, aside from a narrow slit in the cloth to see out of. They carried buckets and little sticks to help them tend the goats.

Wadi Hamel 02: Plowing fields for spring rains

A man and his donkey plowing a field for planting (Wadi Hamel, Yemen, April 2010)
Originally uploaded by Kate B Dixon

Last Thursday, Rosanna, Mats, their two dogs, and I hiked Wadi Hamel, an easy half-day trip from Sanaa. You pass no checkpoints, so a tasreyah is not needed. A 4 wheel drive vehicle is not required, but preferable if you want to drive to the end of the village and hike right into the Wadi. The entrance to Wadi Hamel is less than 20 km south of Sanaa, just beyond Bayt Baws. (Our next goal is to hike from one to the other).

We left their house in south Sanaa at a little past 8:30 on Thursday morning. (Adel, the young driver was late). Less than 30 minutes later the dogs were out of their cage and we walked past a group of veiled women washing clothes at a disel powered pump. An old man leaning against a tree called out to us as we passed, heading up the narrow wadi. So many trees! lovely.

No people aside from a young man who passed us quickly. We walked until the Wadi split into two and scrambled up the steep rocky cliffs to a ridge and could look down to the other side. Below in the valley, small terraced plots, carefully tended.

An old man plowing one with a donkey.