Kate Kelley

Kate Kelley is well ... full of surprises. Our paths crossed only for  a brief moment but the encounter was memorable.  As I was arriving in Yemen she was enjoying her last week in Sana'a.  Despite this, she still managed to teach me the survival essentials.  She patiently taught me how to tie my scarf, how to get travel permits from the tourist police and the necessary arabic phrases needed to direct a taxi driver home.  She introduced me to her eclectic circle of yemeni and expat friends, the hidden gem Coffee Trader Cafe serving up real cheesecake alongside 100% yemeni coffee and Yayha's bed and breakfast in Kawkaban.  

On one occasion she even brought home  a complete stranger.   By chance he happened to be Danilo Perotti Machado, a Brazilian athlete who was cycling around the world (Homen Livre Project)!  Danilo had just arrived in Sana'a and was on his way to Aden but the tourist police insisted that he stay in Sana'a for the evening and continue his travels in the morning.  Lucky for Danilo, Kate spotted him.   Kate was actually going through the checkpoint on her way back from Zafar where some of the villagers were hosting a farewell gathering in her honor.  

While Kate originally came to Yemen to teach English at MALI Institute in Sana'a, upon her arrival, she was also recruited as an archeologist in the Ibb province.  She joined a team from Heidelberg University  led by archeologist Dr. Paul Yule and about 40 participants from the village to discover the remnants of the once powerful Himyarite Empire.  

This Year's excavation revealed numerous stone reliefs of mythological creatures.  However since 1998, when the project was initiated, over 1000 inscriptions and reliefs have been discovered and are being catalogued.  The inscriptions are in the Himyarite Language which was a South Semetic tongue spoken in the South Western Arabian Peninsula.   Inscriptions judged to be Himyarite have been found dating from before 700 BC.

Kate Kelly is an American from Everett, Washington who moved to Yemen in 2007 upon graduating with honors in Near Eastern Studies from Edinburgh University.  She is currently considering an opportunity teaching English in Iraq.   Kate is pictured above second from left.   Kate's dear friend and former academic coordinator at MALI Institute, Julie Manning is pictured second from the right. 

jam English flash cards Coming Soon!