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"Al-Khowkha" a Yemen Travel Page by maykal

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maykal   
Motto? Motto?! What do I want a motto for?


Real Name: Michael
Lives In: Brandon, UK
Member Since: Apr 02, 2001
VT Rank: 312

 

maykal's Yemen Travelogues
Title [Click to view]Travel YearPictures
Ramadan in Sana'a2001 
Weather!- 
Qat- 5
Wadi Dhahr2001 6
Al-Khowkha2000 4
Yemeni Art- 6

Page Views: 1,270            Last Visit to Yemen: 2000      I Used To Live Here

Al-Khowkha

by maykal - last update: Sep 9, 2002

Yemen's Red Sea beach resort!

As beach resorts go, Al-Khowkha is not a bad place. It is certainly laid-back, and has some excellent snorkelling above the reefs offshore, but the beaches aren't really great. But I enjoyed my few days here, as I've never been to a tropical beach before, and was in need of a bit of relaxation after several months of studying non-stop in Sana'a.
I stayed at Sindbad's, which was a very basic collection of palm and brick huts surrounded by gardens and palm trees. The owner Ramzi was very friendly, particularly as I was the only guest, and I had one of the best qat chews there with him. The food was excellent...fried fish and rice, which was a welcome change to the spicy stews of Sana'a. And to share with me my meal, about a dozen cats and thousands of hermit crabs (which make a very loud clicking noise during the night, especially if they have a shell which is too heavy for them!). The shower was basic, the toilets even more basic, and the rooms were ...yes, basic. But that was part of the charm of the place.
On my final day, Ramzi organized a boat trip with his friend known as "The Hunter", and we headed out of the lagoon into the open sea to do some snorkelling. Before I go on to describe the snorkelling as amazing, I have to point out that this was my one and only experience of snorkelling, so it probably pales in comparison with snorkelling over the Great Barrier Reef...however, it was good enough for me, and once I had got over my fear of being eaten by sharks (Lonely Planet is to blame for that one..."Don't swim out past the sandbanks, as there are plenty of sharks!"), I managed to spend over two hours gawping at brightly coloured fish. Ramzi told me that he had only just learned how to swim, and I must say he was very impressive, especially when it came to diving. He also told me that he was planning on going to the Honeish Islands, recently the subject of an international dispute with Eritrea, which are supposedly renowned for excellent diving...only problem is getting there.
Al-Khowkha is well known (in Yemen, at least!) for it's traditional wooden ship-building. Much of the activity takes place on the beach, and it is a great opportunity to see an ancient art-form still in use today.
The beaches were always busy, with fishermen bringing in their catch, women washing clothes in the lagoon, and children selling fruit and sea-shells to day-trippers from the cities and the odd foreign tourist. Al-Khowkha is ear-marked for development...mind you, it had been for several years before I arrived, and nothing had ever come of it. Another plan is for a coastal highway linking Hodeida with Al-Mokha...this seems quite likely to happen in the near future, so Al-Khowkha's special atmosphere could well change for the worse soon.

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maykal's Yemen Travelogues
Title [Click to view]Travel YearPictures
Ramadan in Sana'a2001 
Weather!- 
Qat- 5
Wadi Dhahr2001 6
Al-Khowkha2000 4
Yemeni Art- 6

Comments for maykal about Yemen
zrim Fri Dec 14, 2007 14:56 UTC
 I really enjoyed your travelogue on qat.
janiebaxter Mon Oct 8, 2007 20:54 UTC
 I'm going to Yemen 10 November. Thanks for great informative pages. JB
jayhawk2000 Fri Sep 28, 2007 09:09 UTC
 Looks like a fascinating place, thanks for sharing!
grets Sat Jul 7, 2007 13:05 UTC
 I loved your stories about Al Mokha and the Zabid Rest House. It looks like I may finally get to Yemen this December. :-)
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