Aaron and Anne-Sophie

I hope all of you had a Merry Christmas. For us it was a little special as obviously it is not widely celebrated here, but we still had our own holiday. First of all we took a day off, and we gathered with our fellow American teachers to eat and exchange small gifts. Then we all sang Christmas Carols to put ourselves in the mood of that day. We ended the evening by playing cards. Overall it was avery pleasant day, even though we all miss our family and the atmosphere of home for that occasion.
The students have made an effort to participate in this occasion, while of course as Muslims they don’t celebrate Christmas and don’t really know what it’s about. A lot of them made a point to tell us “Happy New Year” (the difference between New Year’s Day and Christmas is not very clear in their mind), and some even brought presents. I got a fragrance (for men, but it’s the thought that counts, isn’t it?) and some jewelry.

On another topic, I got to experience recently another aspect of Yemeni women’s life, as I went to the hammam with my friend. Many women go to the public bath, it is a place to relax and socialize, as well as clean up. Most women still wear a light cover from their armpits to their knees, so they are not entirely naked, but it is still a big change from the outside world where only their hands and eyes are showing. The funny thing is in this context I don’t stand out anymore, I look just like one of them, which is weird cuz I’ve become so used to people staring at me. Some women addressed me in Arabic, which means I guess that I can pass for a Yemeni… until I speak, that is. I really enjoyed my time there, you feel so clean and refreshed when you come out after an hour or two in the hot and humid rooms. I’ll certainly go back.

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