CHAPTER 10Ta’izz, Highlands of Southern Yemen
April 13
The campus of the University of Ta’izz, founded in 1993, sat on a rise off the Sanaa road, a bit over a hundred yards from other buildings. Sparse shrubs and stunted trees clung to the steep and heavily eroded hills that formed the backdrop of the university. A tree-lined drive made a loop from the road to the university and back. The Life Sciences building was five stories of sand-colored concrete and glass, its entrance set in a four-story, crenelated sandstone arch that looked like the gate of a tenth century city. The outer walls and windows suggested an arched colonnade. The design of other buildings at the university, were variations on that theme.
Asphalt drives and parking lots separated the buildings. Except for the green g
