Yemen, the cradle of civilization, occupies the south-west of the Arabian peninsula. The fertile soil and the higher average annual rain contributed to the success of agriculture and the ancient Yemeni's settlement, who established great civilizations. Yemen was the link with the ancient world and dominated the international trade then. Yemen was famous for it's frankincense and incense. Yemen was rich and wealthy; so the Greeks called it "Arabia Felix" or Happy Arabia.

Although Yemen is an agricultural country, but the variation of climate helps to vary the crops. "Happy Yemen" is famous for its delicious grapes and coffee as well. We can find on the other hand that a lot of crops are being grown like wheat, cotton, apples, and oranges.
The Yemenis are very friendly, brave and generous. The tribal traditions dominate their life. Although Yemenis are fond of carrying guns, as a tradition, but they harm nobody without reasons. The prominent social custom is chewing 'qat'. But still the worst tradition is 'REVENGE'.

Al-Sheikh is the head of the tribe and who able one to solve its problems.
The unique Yemeni uniform can distinguish the different regions. But the famous Yemeni dagger may indicate the class and position of the man who wears it. 'As-Salta' and 'Bain-as-Sahn', are the most popular and delicious Yemeni food.

The Yemeni unity is considered as a significant achievement in the present age. Many attempts had been done to unify the two Yemeni parts, but unfortunately many conspiracies delayed it. The unity is a new addition in many aspects of life, for instance in the political, economical and social fields. No doubt, "Unity is powerful".

Tourism is one of the prominent and important aspects of life. Although Yemen is considered as a cradle of antique civilizations, there are many antiquities deserve to be seen and observed. Yemen has many antique cities as Sana'a, Aden, Mareb and other cities, but the most interesting one is "Shibam" the two of skyscrapers of mudbricks. Also the first thing which attracts the visitor's attention is the unique type of architecture.
The mild weather, the finest landscapes, the grassy hillsides and the verdant valleys qualify Yemen to be one of the most attractive countries, therefore thousands of tourists flow it round the year.

Nowadays Yemen is striding towards the 21st century with a steady progress. Many changes and improvements, in different aspects of life have been done. The achievement are many; paved roads, big hospitals, many schools, museums, modern airports and factories are built. Since the discovery of petrol many changes have happened rapidly. But the picture was very, very different only short time ago. The Yemeni people are vivid, practical and hard workers. I think a very glorious future is awaiting them. I wish that.

By: Abdul-Mahmoud Idris Ibrahim
Sanaa.