Don't worry, I haven't done anything drastic. Aden, however, is getting a drastic makeover in anticipation of the Gulf 20 Soccer Tournament that will be held here November 22 to December 5th.
The Gulf 20 is a regional tournament for gulf states. The participating countries this year are: Yemen, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Iraq, and the Emirates. For those counters out there, you're right, that's only eight countries. I checked the schedule and there are only 16 games in the tournament. I'm not sure where the 20 in the title comes from.
The government allocated 120 million Yemeni riyals, almost half a million dollars, to build, repair and refurbish stadiums, roads, and public spaces. It seems almost anything that can be painted is getting a fresh coat of paint. Aden will look nice! Not that it looks that bad now but it will looker nicer. While the new appearance is a welcome change, it sense that it will be a veneer that will fade when the tournament and tourists leave. I'm interested to see what the hangover from the tournament is like.
And then there's the 30,000 army troops sent to the Aden and Abayan area to protect teams and citizens. A British friend of mine was joking that Yemen would have real security problems if the British national team and its fans were coming. Ha.
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