Exploring Yemen: These are 5 interesting facts regarding the ancient territory of Arabia.

Yemen is an Arab nation popularly known as the ‘Cradle of Arabia’, is gifted with beauty of nature, impressive prehistoric past and cultural heritage. Yemen is located on the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula and has a history going back tens of thousands of years. Yemen has been through rough patches in the last few years notwithstanding; it continues to be a country that one would marvel at getting to explore. Read on to learn about five interesting things that might have slipped your notice about this country.

The mansion of the World’s most famous queen – Queen of Sheba

Yemen owes much of its early history to the Queen of Sheba who is accorded mention in the books of the old testament of the bible, the Quran of the Islamic world, and history of Ethiopia. She was a South Arabian Queen of the ancient Kingdom of Saba, which area is in the modern day Southern Yemen. Saba was once affluent kingdom famous for its richness including frankincense and myrrh which were standard reagents in the most popular commodity market in that age. The remains of the first capital of Saba, Marib continue to come to light, proving that Yemen has had her fair share of the glorious past.

Socotra: The Alien-Like Island

Yemen has the Socotra that many claim to be one of the strangest places on the globe.. Socotra Island which lies in the Arabian Sea has one of the ecosystems in the world; the island has more than 30% of plants species that cannot be found nanywhere else in the world. The largest and most famous is the umbrella like Dragon’s Blood Tree that bears a red gum believed at one time to have some sort of supernatural powers. Observing Socotra feels like stepping into a wonderland, which has remained extremely alien to any points of civilization.

The materiality of Old Sana’a

The ancient part of Sana’a, the capital of Yemen, an area can be considered the world heritage site due to its unique architecture. The city’s rectangular multi-terraced structures made of compacted earth and covered with geometric ornamentation have no counterparts in any other region. Some of these building were constructed over a thousand years ago and are still in use to this very date. As you walk through Old Sana’a, through streets that are cutoff, close and in some cases winding, it feels like being in an ancient city.

The Land of Coffee’s Origin

Blessing to Yemen, coffee enthusiasts have it because Yemen is one of the few places in the world that planted coffee beans. Originally, the Yemeni port city of Mocha provided the name of the well-known type of coffee. Yemeni coffee is even today regarded as being rich with unique flavor. Coffe culture in Yemen has long history and it is warm and welcoming, people of Yemen are always ready to offer the visitor a black powerful coffee say in qahwa and spiced with cardamom.

A Country of Parallel Civilizations

Yemen’s geography may be as varied as its people, which crafts its scenes and stories. Yemen has some of the world’s most spectacular terrain, ranging from the towering mountains of the Haraz range down to the lower Rub’ al Khali desert and the sparkling shores of some Red Sea beaches. This is also evident in people of Yemen with many tribes, languages and traditions of people of Yemen.

Conclusion

Yemen is a country of opposites and survival, and every piece of history that has surrounded the state deserves the same admiration. behold, fascinating archaeology, unique history, incredible views of the gorge, rock paintings, and powerful cultural background that will make any enthusiast of ancient and extraordinary impressed. Yemen is not only a place it is a narrative that is yet to unfold.