A Visit To Hajereyn

I still recall my first visit and view of Hajereyn in late 1984. I had just arrived in Yemen for the first time, and my younger brother wanted to show me around Hadhramaut; Hajereyn or Al'Hajereyn, in the Do'an valley, was one of the first places he took me to. I have never forgotten the site; I found it much more awesome than the old historic city of Shibam. The whole Do'an valley, is so magical and awe inspiring, that during that first visit, I just couldn't help gaping at the tall mud buildings on the side of the hills and the many palm trees and green fields in the valleys! I have visited Do'an many times, but whenever I do so, I still am filled with awe and wonder!


The Do'an valley is famous for its high quality honey; honey from Do'an - is always considered the best in the world, by Hadhramis. Hadhramis believe, no honey can match that from Do'an in overall superior quality. I too, agree! This has made the Do'any honey, the most expensive and most sought after in Hadhramout and Yemen as a whole; and wherever Hadhramis are found.

The Do'an valley, just like most parts of the Hadhramout valley, has a long history; predating Islam and Christianity. Due to being excellent businessmen, merchants from Do'an traveled far and wide doing trade; at the same time, peacefully spreading Islam too. Today, businessmen descended from those brave merchants of Do'an, can be found in almost all the major trading centers of the world: be it Wall Street or London, Singapore or Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur or Jakarta, Nairobi or Cairo, Dubai or Riyadh - they are there. Hadhramis are always reminded of the mesmerising, magical beauty of the Do'an valley - in popular Hadhrami poems and songs - by the most famous Hadhramy poet of all: the late Hussein Abubakar Al'Mahdhar. He too, came from the Do'an valley.