When their camels and merchandise were safely ensconced, small alcoves provided sleeping accommodation. Today the building houses art galleries and boutiques. I come away seeing Yemen as a land of extremes. The dry landscape is striking, but life depends on the floods. The architecture, which reflects both the need for protection against invaders and a paucity of building materials, is unusually beautiful.
People live in ancient structures, yet cell phones are common.
A man's futah and jambia are often topped with machine-made Western shirts, but women, rarely seen on the streets, are covered head to toe. While our government generously supports restoration projects and irrigation schemes, American tourists are not welcome in many villages. But I am grateful that I saw as much beauty and variety as I did. But it would have been a great experience to write about. Eva Harnik is a freelance writer based in McLean, Virginia, She last wrote for the magazine about hiking in the Japanese Alps.