And now for the most inspirational...

In the past I took the opportunity to show a film to my students - Not only was it relevent in many ways to the english curriculum - it is relevent to life - for All. The following quotes come from some of the students, who in turn inspire me.

I learnt that what you will for, you can get no matter what. As they say, every will has its way. Thankyou.
Go for what you beleive and don't worry about anyone else.
Never underestimate yourself, and don't care about criticism.
It doesn't matter if you win or lose, the important thing is to be proud and honored of yourself.
Whether you cross the endline or not, you should not lose your feeling of proudness and dignity.
If you are not enough with the medal, you won't be enough without it.
What I did really like about the movie is that although they don't have ice, they competed in an ice sport, and that means that you don't have to own something to be good at it. The most important thing is to do it in your own way.

Guesses anyone...?
Be Jamaican, Act Jamaican, Walk Jamacian, Talk Jamaican.

You may think it cheesy, but I think it timeless. I suggest everyone take a moment to watch or re-watch this classic and be inspired.

Wadi Hadhramout

Kyle and I took the opportunity to go out to the North-Eastern villages of Yemen, the Wadi Hadramout. It was majestic. We rode a bus for 14 hours through the various terrain of the country. And as usual it was all incredible.
We visited the city of Shibam, the oldest city around. It is surrounded by a wall made of mud bricks, just like the 5-8 story skyscrapers that fill the grid which is set in the valley of these monumentous ridge canyon walls.

We were able to hike a bit up on the hillsides to get stunning views that overlooked the various farm towns at sunset.

Their unique architecture is very functional, green, sturdy, and so appealing. The boxy and beautiful repitition spotted the landscape.

As we bussed along the coast, through the sand dunes, old lava cast deserts, up on the mountain cliffs, and through patchy green valleys, Kyle and I were amazed at the sheer greatness of it all.

Thank you.

The peaceful protests

Some of you have asked about the current protests in the Arab world. I am delighted to say that the protests in Yemen thus far, have been peaceful, the most peaceful of them all.

I could regurble some of the news you can find online, or from CNN, but instead i will give you a quick look into how this relates to us:

Thursday of last week was the beginning of the protests. We were told by everyone, to stay indoors at least through the afternoon. They all said it would be fine to go out in the evening because the protests would end as everyone would be chewing qat.

Students are giving a lot of input mostly pro-protest; meaning pro- new regime, and even separation between northern and southern Yemen. Some say that employment is a right and there aren't enough jobs in Yemen, others say that this is not a problem that will be easily solved by a change of presidency. From those in our sphere, the complaint is about wanting more money, and wanting more jobs.

I think that peace is one of the most powerful ways to protest.

The silent truth

The day to day in Yemen to this day is incredibly beautiful. The mundane drive to work reaveals sites that inspire.

I wanted to take a moment to mention - that one of the saddest things about blogging our updates is the limited information we share. For the sake of the privacy of our friends here, and to keep up with cultural and religious values, we don't share photos or even stories of those dearest to us. Therefore, it is hard to give a visual for the good things we are experiencing, and the fun we are having.... In spite of the silence of our friends along with so much more, we hope that you can feel the love of Yemen through our commentary.

This is a shot of the British Petroleum Division in Aden at unruly/lawless speed.

Desert anyone? I love the dusty terrain.