The carved doors
Wood and white plaster.
Rod Waddington from Kergunyah, Australia — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rod Waddington — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rod Waddington — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Rod Waddington from Kergunyah, Australia — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Ljuba brank — CC BY-SA 3.0
The Historic Town of Zabid is a town on the western coastal plain of Yemen, with about 52,000 people, and one of the oldest in the country. UNESCO listed it as a World Heritage Site in 1993, and in 2000 its historic core was placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. It served as the capital of several ruling dynasties over many centuries. It began as a village known as al-Husayb and later took its name from Wadi Zabid to the south. Tradition links its early days to Abu Musa al-Ash'ari, a companion of the Prophet Muhammad, who is said to have built the al-Asha'ir Mosque. The present town was created about 820 by Muhammad ibn Abdallah ibn Ziyad, founder of the Ziyadid dynasty, who had been sent by the Abbasid caliph al-Ma'mun. You walk narrow lanes between brick houses, with facades decorated in white plaster and carved wooden doors. You see the town's citadel and towers, the Great Mosque with its arcades and buildings with brick domes. Not everything looks restored, and some houses are tired, which is part of its character but also shows how much care it needs. It is about 77 km in a straight line from Hodeidah. Heat and humidity are high most of the year, so visit in the morning and in winter. Dress modestly and ask before photographing people. The UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to the whole of Yemen and tells anyone there to leave, so check official guidance before making any plans.
Wood and white plaster.
Brick above the square.
Old buildings around town.
Western coastal plain, Al-Hudaydah Governorate, Yemen
Its historic core was listed in 2000 because of threats to its traditional urban fabric.
Winter and early morning, as heat and humidity are high most of the year.