BootsnAll Travel Community

I've just extended a 3 month East Africa trip to a whole year and a half crazy journey. After Ethiopia I will fly to Egypt to do 2 semesters at the American University of Cairo. On the way I have a layover in Sana'a Yemen and have decided to make it a 2 day stop (it's the same price for the ticket so why not?). Is this enough time in Sana'a? If I could expand it to maybe 5-7 days would it be worth the time? Is the public transportation good enough there to get me to a couple different towns within a week or should I just stick to the capital?

I would say skip the arabic in Cairo and stay in Yemen, but anyway.

There are a number of sites around Sana'a that you can take taxis to, if you stayed for longer, you could take the bus to Aden, very different than Sana'a, might be nice to see.

I would look for another place to learn Arabic besides Cairo. The city is such a massive overload, it might detract from your learning Arabic. I hear Syria has great Arabic courses.

Of course, I only spent a week in Cairo, so perhaps I'm over-rating the high pollution index and difficulty of crossing a major street, not to mention the difficulty of obtaining cheap meals of any quality whatsover, unless you like fried falafel. Perhaps I was unique in finding many people in Cairo absolutely money-hungry. Is it possible, at all, to take the same kind of courses in Alexandria, or Luxor, or any other college town?

You might want to look into it. It will be a calmer experience, to be sure, and you may not get asthma at the end of it.

You probably don't want all these suggestions, but learning another dialect than Egyptian is a real advantage, depending of course on what you want to use your Arabic for.

If it's just for general travel, then the Egyptian is fine, and although Cairo (I've not been) is huge, and crazy, most people who I know that studied there said it was great.

The problem with places like Syria and even into Lebanon, is the French influence, and the popularity of English make speaking out of class sometimes difficult.

But back to Yemen. A day trip from Sana'a could be to Dar Al'Hjudra, an old iman's palace. Overnight the Shahara bridge. If you went for longer, then Aden or Hadrawmut. If you only have the time for a few days, then just stay in Sana'a and maybe a trip to the palace.

Walking around the old city, the Souk Al'Milh, and the new city are all really interesting and the people are very nice, no hassle. You can look at all sorts of things without any pressure to buy. Be warned however that there is very, very little English spoken.

Can you tell I'm desparate to get back there?

Okay, interesting that this got turned into a post about Arabic. My purpose for studying at AUC Cairo is not for the Arabic. I'm going as a study abroad student and I'm majoring in African Studies and minoring in Political Science so I will be taking mostly those types of classes there. They have a wonderful selection of courses on N Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa that I can't get here at my home institution. The Arabic is required for at least a semester by any who study at this school. So.. I appreciate your help, but I don't really need suggestions on where to take language courses.

Ivy, I want to thank you for your info on Sanaa. I'll be in Yemen for exactly 1 week and have arranged to stay at the Hotel Felix. Apparently they do tours there that have been recommended on the thorntree, but I have to say where I want to go. Sounds like the bridge is worth a look, and Aden. I can't wait to go!!

Happy New Year, and hope you have safe & hassle free travels where ever you venture off to.

Cheers,
joe