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Socotra photo series
“It is not down in any map, True places never are” – Herman Melville This is completely applicable to Socotra Island, one of the most fascinating destinations I have ever traveled to as a professional...
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Money Matters Socotra
The four islands group of Socotra are located around 217 nautical miles off the Yemeni coast and approximately 130 off the coast of Somalia. This well kept Yemeni secret is a treasure trove of...
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How I ended up on the Socotra island
I first came to know of the Socotra island when I was in school. A brilliant TV commercial featuring the magnificent blood dragon tree, which is found only in Socotra made my jaw drop and I wanted to...
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Hadibo and the ugly side of urbanization of remote tropical paradise
“You will be staying at the Taj of Socotra”, beamed my affable guide to me. We were out of the tiny airport and driving towards Hadibo, the main town of the island. “You must be knowing the Taj..you...
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Losing time in Wadi Dirhur: being all alone in a canyon
Wadi Dirhur was a strange-looking peaceful place. We reached there by driving along Socotra’s only road through the Diksam Plateau and it was wonderfully empty drive. Diksam Plateau looked out of this...
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The drive-in cave escapade at the massive cave in Socotra
Our next stop after the beautiful Wadi Dirhur canyon was the massive Dogub cave. It was a couple of hours’ drive away from the canyon and we started early before the day got too hot. Socotra as I...
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A long drive from Qadama to Qalanciya
We left Omak in a cloud of dust, bumped over the edgy road, and rattled our bones towards Qadama till they felt brittle. Nogid was having a blazing hot day and I wanted to escape the heat before it...
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Abdullah, the amber hunter of Detwa Lagoon
The amber hunter of Detwa Lagoon! My Qalanciya days can be broadly divided into two parts: the unbelievable beauty of the place and the unimaginable warmth of the people of the little fishing town....
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A completely empty Moumi Plateau: the desert rose forest,
I left Qalanciya with a heavy heart. Our destination was the Moumi Plateau. Qalanciya was such a perfect place. We drive towards Hadibo again. Homhil, Di Hamri, Arhar, etc were yet to be explored and I...
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Socotra Yemen: travel dreams go from awesome to horrible.
My last few days in Socotra Yemen were spent holed up in my Taj Socotra Hotel room. I alternated between feeling horribly sick and homesick. The fever, which started because of a fast spreading ear...
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