Strategically located at the southern entry to the Red Sea, Aden was for years the British outpost in Arabia. This port occupies a flat coastal region of Yemen called the hadramaut. Most of Yemen is a rugged, mountainous terrain, and it's capital, Sana'a, lies in a valley at nearly 10,000 feet surrounded by even taller peaks. Over the centuries, the industrious Yemenis have terraced these slopes by hand and developed fertile fields on even the steepest of inclines. This is the age-old homeland of the Arab peoples, called by the ancients Arabia Felix (Pleasant Arabia). The port of Aden is the stopping off place for visiting Sana'a, a very old city with remnants of its impressive ancient walls still standing, surrounded and embraced by modern developments. You may feel as if you have slipped into another century as you wind through the narrow streets, passing veiled women balancing stacks of bread on their head. The main highway from the capital to the coast ascends mountain passes with walled fortress towns atop the peaks, and skirts vast canyons with steep walls terraced into fields. The provinces are basically feudal fiefdoms ruled by traditional chieftains.