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Page 53 text:
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accustomed, we found western civilization approaching in the guise of a fleet of native taxis. Nearly everyone decided it would be fun to ride in a car a V-8 Fords manufactured in the United States or Canada, many of them convertibles. The drivers offered not only to drive us around but to act as guides. After the usual round of bargaining and argument, agreements were made with the cabbies for the trip. gain. The taxis were Almost immediately, it was explained to us that we were not in Aden at all. The small town in which we landed was called Tawahi, or Harbor City, and contained little except the British Governmental buildings. The original Aden, or Crater, as the British called it, was -on the other side of the nearby mountain in a valley surrounded by high peaks. So we commenced our drive to the old Arab city of Aden. As we progressed, we climbed higher and higher above the harbor, until we could see much of the surrounding area below. Beyond the entrance to the harbor were a series of cliffs, cut by what seemed to be rivers of sand, instead of water. We reached the narrow, man-made pass that was the entrance to Aden. On either side of the road approaching the pass were both Christian and Mohammedan graveyards. After winding our way through the narrow pass, the ancient city suddenly opened before us in the valley below. We entered Aden and our driver pulled off to the side of the main street. He told us he would meet us at the other end of the street, thus per- mitting us to walk through and view a little of the local color. No sooner were we left to our own devices, than we were surrounded by a swarm of natives, young and old. Some would grab us by the arm and with the other hand point to their mouth, indicating need of food. Other appeals to our generosity included keeping an eye covered with one hand while begging with the other, or carrying about a small Cand definitely uninterestedj baby as an object of our pity. The business men would yell to us from their small stalls to cajole us into their shops to view their wares. A brief inspection indicated that what they had could be of use only to the Arabs themselves, or to people of more imagination than we. Perhaps what attracted our attention most were the Moslem womenis veiled faces. The veil usually consisted of a thin piece of black or colored cloth, completely covering the face, it was a weird sight to the Occidental eye. VVe were' glad to return to the safety of our taxi fortress and to be off once again. t Our guide then suggested that we view King Solomon's wells. VVe assented and with no litle curiosity were on our way. These wells, situated on a height overlooking the town, were discovered in 1854 by the English Governor of Aden and were opened to public view by him. Their original purpose was to collect the rain water that ran down from the mountains, providing one of the few available sources of fresh water in this vicinity. Approaching the wells, we passed through the better section of Aden and were impressed by the modern Arab buildings we saw. The wells are situated in an ever- narrowing canyon whose mouth points to the most rugged peaks in southern Arabia. Calling them wells is perhaps inaccurate, for actually they are huge stone and cement tanks, some as much as one-hundred and sixty feet deep, dug into the walls of the canyon. Arranged in step-like fashion, these tanks are connected by pipes and tunnels, so that as one tank fills it overflows into the next. Those at the higher end of the canyon serve as dams as well as tanks. All had stone steps cut into their side to allow descent to the bottom as the water level dropped. It is said that the famous Queen of Sheba often came here to bathe, and no doubt the part, Cresulting from the presence of fresh waterb, was quite popular with early desert monarchs. This was evidenced by the number of Egyptian and Arabian tablets found in a museum nearby the wells. It was at the museum that many of us had our first glimpse of the famous incenses, frankincense and myrrh, indige- nous to this section. C405
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Page 52 text:
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ARABIAN TAXI RIDE - Aden - Aden Harbor Few of the crew expected a visit with the Arabian people when we dropped anchor in Aden's outer harbor the night of March 12. It was near pay day and finances were low, yet everyone has much to remember of the quaint town of Aden. Perhaps it was because more time was spent in wandering and sightseeing for a change. Since it was too late to continue into the inner harbor that evening, we waiied unt'l the following morning. Once inside this diminutive harbor, surrounded by breakwaters, we could see only a small group of buildings. From a distance there appeared to be the familiar harbor installations, oil tanks, governmental and Naval buildings. With only this in sight we considered that there would be small possibility of a pleasant visit here. The peaks in the surrounding area were as immense as we had ever seen, and, though quite barren and burnt, they afforded a picturesque background for the town below. Not long after the ship was moored to the buoys, we were introduced to still another type of Oriental salesmanship. The ship was besieged by a Hotilla of rowboats and dhows, from which native Arabs tried to sell their cheap souvenirs. At 1430 the starboard liberty section left the ship for the Prince of Wales landing, only a stone's throw away. Liberty boats were jammed and anticipation high. On reaching the pier, instead of being accosted by the rickshaw drivers to whom we had become 39 i C J it
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Page 54 text:
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Prince of VVales Landing Harbor Ciy Pass to old Aden Old Aden 1-Y 1 k 1 W . , d,ddd d Wells, loolcln g towa rd s Aden I . ,-,,Q M, Y f ' ,. , fax My Wells, looklng towards mountams ' - 4 j,m+1iva,f1,.f,, W, ,, ' Anc1ent Shlpyards 415
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