Author Archives: explorermikaelstrandberg
Back in Stockholm…..
….at first, it felt relaxingly cool and extremely silent. No buses, motorbikes or minibuses who tried to run me over, no Yemenis yelling at the top of their voices, no dirt, no potholes, vicious pollution or general disorganization, no harsh … Continue reading
Jihad!
In a few days I will be leaving Sana`a and return to Sweden. It feels exactly like when the woman you love more than anything has just left you. Your heart aches, you feel empty, you look at pictures of … Continue reading
Am I a taliban…..
…I guess to a certain extent, since the word is Arabic and means a student, and yes, I am a student of life in Yemen at the present. The following took place yesterday: ”What is it that you specifically like … Continue reading
I am right now Ahmed Al-Hamdani
”My father and his father and so on, they all travelled to Mecca by camel” , the old man explained whilst touching the top of his jambiyya , “It took my father four months to get there and the same … Continue reading
Me a Yemeni from Sanaa?
“Taxi, Taxi, taxi, we have to help this guy!” The old man shouting was, as always, Hussein, my landlord in Old Sanaa, where I am renting an apartment so I can work in peace, feel the atmosphere of the old … Continue reading
Finally I get out of Sanaa!
War planes continue to fly north, tens of thousands of people get displaced, far too many killed on both sides, worry amongst sanaanis (local people of the capital) is growing fast, the heavy rains have taken a break for awhile … Continue reading
Warplanes and Ibn Battuta
A few hours ago I woke when the muezzin called for another day of fasting, accompanied by warplanes heading for the Saada Province and realizing that the Yemeni government under Abdullah Ali Saleh was stepping up their attempt to stamp … Continue reading