The Mountains - Yemen probably has the most striking geographical changes in such a small area as any country I’ve seen. Look for the unending mountain terracing. In Yemen, irrigation is a tremendous problem and drought is common if not indefinite. By terracing mountains, the mountainside becomes a natural rain catch enabling farmers to grow where they could not. Aside from this, amazing villages built on the true cusp of peaks are simply breath taking. We visited an Ismaili village, an Islamic sect of Islam that is poor in Yemen but internationally wealthy, with a tremendous mosque perched at top a mountain. Beyond that, we fortunately witnessed a Yemeni wedding in town. Unlike Our simple one-day affair (note the sarcasm), Yemeni weddings take several days and typically invite the whole village or town to participate. Imagine that in the States. It was extremely festive and didn’t shy away from explosives to intensify the celebration. Also, note how men hold hands. Its common in the arab world, not just Yemen, it is typically a sign of friends or a desire to have meaningful converstaion while walking — its not the same meaning as it would have in San Francisco or Provincetown, MA.

Click Here for the slideshow of the mountains.