Seiyun and Tarim

The Two Main Towns Of Wadi Hadramaut After Shibam: Seiyun, With The White Sultan'S Palace (Now A Museum) And A Lively Souq, And Tarim, A Centre Of Islamic Scholarship With 365 Mosques And The 44 M Minaret Of Al Mihdhar. Hadramaut Has A Cosmopolitan Seafaring History With Links To East Africa And South East Asia. Unstable Security In The Region · Seiyun, Hadramaut

Seiyun and Tarim are the two main towns of Wadi Hadramaut after Shibam, about 35 km apart in the east of Yemen. Seiyun has the white, many-windowed Sultan's Palace, built in the early 20th century by the Kathiri sultans and now a museum, and a busy souq. Tarim is a centre of Islamic scholarship, famous for its many mosques, often said to number 365, and for the Al Mihdhar mosque, whose square minaret of about 44 m is the tallest mud-brick minaret in the world. Scholars and students from Southeast Asia and East Africa have studied in Tarim for centuries. Hadramaut has a long seafaring and trading past, and the Hadrami diaspora in Indonesia, Malaysia, India and East Africa has shaped both regions. Shibam, a separate tier 1 listing, lies nearby. Security in Hadramaut is unstable, with militant activity, and most governments advise against all travel to Yemen. Access, roads and flights are unknown and changing.

Seiyun, with its Sultan's palace, and Tarim, with its mosques and tall minaret, in Wadi Hadramaut about 35 km apart, Seiyun, Hadramaut, Yemen

Museum and palace hours in Seiyun are not fixed in this record; expect morning opening and a midday break, and the museum is often CLOSED on Fridays, so confirm locally. Walking the streets and looking at mosques from outside is FREE at any daylight hour. Mosques are open to worshippers and are often CLOSED to non-Muslims, so ask before entering and respect prayer times. The souq is busiest in the morning and quiet or CLOSED at midday and on Friday. Museum tickets, guides and meals are paid for.

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