Camping dinner: Appetizers of Zalabia (fritters) and milky tea. Dinner of local roasted goat, aubergine curry and a stack of fresh flatbread called Malawach. Dessert of local mango.
Since reaching Socotra, I’ve unsubscribed from the Pacific Tsunami alerts and subscribed to Red Sea and Middle East security alerts. Our driver, Mohammed, plugs in the Starlink mini that sits on the 4×4 dash and our phones ping, alerting us that the US and Israel have just bombed Iran.
To be clear, Iran is far from Socotra but the whole region is a bit of tinderbox, so it’s anyone’s guess what this event will mean for us as we plan to head up the Red Sea.
Socotra is an island belonging to Yemen, appearing off the coast of the Horn of Africa like a punctuation mark. While Yemen is having a civil war, the UAE and now Saudi administered the island, and it’s hard to know which government believes themselves to be in charge. This doesn’t seem to matter to the 80 000 inhabitants on this island who are Socotri, whose mother tongue is Socotri, and whose lives seem to carry on despite the drama going on amongst their neighbours.
The economy is a eco-hippie’s dream of sustainable fishing, and exports of ghee, honey, and dates. Goats are everywhere. Tourism is (was?) just starting to flourish, where deserted beaches are backed by majestic dunes, fresh water pools sit in carved limestone cliffs, and one can fish at the intersect of the Arabian Sea, Indian Ocean, and the Gulf of Aden.
Like the Galapagos of the Indian Ocean, it’s isolation makes it one of those species-generating cauldrons where even the starlings and vultures are weirdly beautiful.
The Homhill infinity pool: Swimming in the fresh water pool surrounded by limestone cliffs, overlooking the Arabian Sea.
Camping on the plateau in the Dragon Blood Forest. The tree captures the dew at night as a way to withstand prolonged droughts that are more frequent due to our climate emergency.
The trees remind me of upside down suspended placentas and now I can’t unsee that. Trees in the area can be 1000 years old. The bedouin have Dragon Tree nurseries on their land to protect the young seedlings from the goats. They’ve done this for generations as each tree takes 40 years to reach robust maturity. This preservation practice for the next generation was done long before UNESCO declared the forest a World Heritage Site.
Camping is the way to see the island. Transport is by 4×4 and our ears pop as we ascend into the mountains. The evening quickly cools down and we dig out our sweaters we haven’t worn since New Zealand. The tour company’s professional staff set up our tents, make our beds, make our meals and clean up after us. Even for me, with my lukewarm love of camping, it feels like this is an amazing holiday after an uneventful but tiring 8 day passage from Maldives.
Ian and our friend Rui at the local money-changer. Stacks of local Yemenis Rials to buy fruits and veg and some handicrafts. I want to make a joke about how they look like they’re up to something illegal but it’s risky to suggest that in these times.
Raquel, Rui and I – Roadtrip around the island.
Breaking the Rhamadan fast: Dinner with Mohammed and Gahnem at their home in the capital Hadibou. Starters of the-most-exquisite dates with a brioche-like bread called Kabeneh, a stuffed fried pancake with spicey curried onions called Muttabbaq, and milky tea. Dinner of roast chicken and rice, Saloona (curried veg and potatoe) followed by local watermelon.
En route to Djibouti
From Socotra, we departed for Djibouti for a 6 day sail.
The Gulf of Aden is a major shipping lane to transit from the Med, through the Suez Canal and onto Asia. On a small map, it looks like you’re threading a needle between Somali and Yemen in one of the busiest shipping lanes of the world. But there’s a demarcated lane and there’s plenty of room.
We’ll watch the news closely and gather intel from friends of friends in-the-know. Our plan is to restock in Djibouti (diesel, fruits and veg) and source some French cheese. Then we head up to the Red Sea via the Bab El-Mendab Straight (bit more of a tight fit bringing us closer to the much disputed Iranian-backed Houthis area of Yemen (see here for an excellent brief explainer).
Hope all is well back home and y’all are enjoying the approaching spring.
Sailing Afrikii 
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