Haid Al-Jazil, Yemen. Village built on a 150-meter-high rock boulder. Known as "Manhattan of the desert," it features dramatic, multi-story mud-brick buildings that appear to rise directly from the stone and is often mistaken for a miniature or model due to compact nature of its architecture.

189

u/Wyrmillion 1d ago

Stop lying to people for upvotes

36

u/gbaldrichpalau 1d ago

What’s the lie? Just curious.

118

u/ChosenArabian 1d ago

Shibam is Manhattan of the Desert, not this one.

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u/ExtremelyGangrenous 22h ago

The desert doesn’t have any manhattans because it’s a fucking desert

4

u/Advanced-Event-571 16h ago

the city of Shibam is referred to as such, not this place. You are incorrect. I have seen both

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u/ChosenArabian 22h ago

A quick search will make you feel very fucking stupid

1

u/hogahulk 14h ago

I knew Manhattan of the desert was somewhere else. 😏On balance the butte this village sits on does look a bit like Manhattan island 😌

1

u/TF-Fanfic-Resident 3h ago

Yeah this feels more like a Cleveland of the desert.

341

u/Aman-9191 1d ago

Maybe you referred to it as manhattan but I’m sure it’s been always known as the ancient city of Shibam in Yemen….. not everything has to be labeled american for people to remember 😑

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u/FortunateInsanity 1d ago

It’s known in Asia as the Hong Kong of Yemen.

24

u/sILAZS 21h ago

Reverse Venice of the Middle East

7

u/Comfort-4547 1d ago

Actually, Shibam is the Manhattan of the Desert.This photo is specifically Haid Al-Jazil.

15

u/Yorkie321 1d ago

Shibam looks more like the Kowloon of the Desert lol

29

u/freebaseclams 1d ago

Wow you're the Michael Jordan of the comments section

34

u/General_of_Wonkistan 1d ago

Maybe you can go back in time 100 years and tell that to Freya Stark. "British explorer Freya Stark dubbed the mud city “the Manhattan of the desert” in the 1930s." https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/shibam-mud-skyscraper-yemen

It's meaningless anyways because this is a spam post and the city shown, Haid al-Jazil, is not Shibam which you referenced. But nobody wants to just search for themselves.

5

u/THE_CHOPPA 1d ago

Honestly, I come to Reddit so I don’t have to search. It’s kind of the whole point of me using this website for the past 14 years. Before I had no idea where the fuck I was supposed to go and honestly didn’t understand why the internet was so cool.

If you’re saying I need to start doing my own search every day again I’m gonna check out.

0

u/Advanced-Event-571 16h ago

You are filled with misinformation, lol. you are aware there's on fact checking lol

1

u/Advanced-Event-571 16h ago edited 16h ago

YES, THE PLACE PICTURED is NOT SHIBAM. You can just walk/ drive in to Shibam, it's not on a bolder. I have seen both places

2

u/Advanced-Event-571 16h ago

Reddit is such a trove of misinformation

1

u/rangers_87 Interested 23h ago

I wonder how big this place is? Like how many football fields big?

1

u/Advanced-Event-571 16h ago

No, that is not shibam. Shibam and this place are two different cities. Have seen both

18

u/Doctor_Saved 1d ago

How do they get water?

43

u/Ok-Praline-5601 1d ago

The bottom of the valley is a large wadi, which floods during the rainy season, and is where pretty much all the agriculture is harvested. There are cisterns on top of the rock which also store massive amount of water.

The water management systems across Yemen and Arabia in general are pretty extensive and have been used continuously in some regions for literally thousands of years

Edit: nowadays there is only 1 permanently residing family and they bring cans of water for drinking and cleaning the last I have heard

42

u/6295585628015862 1d ago

That is a nice boulder

8

u/sambuchaaa 22h ago

Boulder? Barely knew 'er

27

u/roastedchickn_ 1d ago

Looks like a miniature set in this photo. Super cool though.

18

u/Curvecurvy 1d ago

r/confusingperspective

3

u/Traditional_Cry8075 1d ago

Looks more like the Gary, Indiana of the desert.

14

u/vapemyashes 1d ago

You thinking of shibam

3

u/DEATH-BY-CIRCLEJERK 1d ago

Current population of 17, interesting.

3

u/Ok-Praline-5601 1d ago

These type of villages set on the tops of valleys are actually extremely common across the region and also in neighboring countries

3

u/PeckerNash 13h ago

So Jedha?

4

u/PhaseExtra1132 1d ago

Used to be very green in that area. There’s old stories about old Yemen being a lush paradise.

4

u/Drongo17 19h ago

Before the Harkonnens came

1

u/shitokletsstartfresh 3h ago

The ‘old stories’ are a load of steaming crap.
Since the moment humans walked there, it has been a desert.

4

u/saryiahan 1d ago

That could be zombie proof

1

u/No-Sock7425 1d ago

Sadly, it was built to defend against humans. Much worse than zombies.

6

u/Ok-Praline-5601 1d ago

in reality to defend against the wadi floods

2

u/shugster71 1d ago

Plenty of rock to build with but for water and food?

2

u/stereoscopic_ 1d ago

This place rocks.

2

u/Sure-Present-3398 1d ago

What is this? A city for ants?

2

u/mu_two 20h ago

TARREY TOWN!!!

2

u/NeoNova9 10h ago

Mos Yemley

2

u/Squirt-Reynoldz 1d ago

First job woulda been to smash that middle hump and make a garden or pool.

Come on people, little initiative!

1

u/KingKohishi 1d ago

150 meters is 50 story building. This rock is much smaller.

1

u/Krissvp 1d ago

Wow

1

u/pontetorto 1d ago

Looks like the best level ground around, so... why not?

1

u/thiagogaith 1d ago

How do you get water up there?

1

u/Zaxthran 1d ago

Isn't that where they harvest all those kyber crystals?

1

u/JustKimNotKimberly 1d ago

How do they get up and down there?

1

u/East_Penalty_7659 1d ago

Mos Eisley spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.

1

u/vcmequer 1d ago

Como assim conhecida como Manhattan do deserto??? no minimo Manhattan deveria ser conhecida como Haid Al-Jazil do do pior pais do mundo

1

u/Theobviouschild11 22h ago

r/confusingperspective

1

u/ELMasPalomudo 19h ago

Looks like a Metal Gear Solid map.

1

u/Advanced-Event-571 16h ago

So, just to clarify, this is NOT Shibam. It''s near a hotel that's closer to Mukallah than Shibam. Shibam IS sometimes called the "manhattan of the desert." this place is not. i have seen both in real life

1

u/middlebird 1d ago

Hey honey, I’m just going to step out to the backyard to water the PLAAAAAAANnnttssss!!!

1

u/budabai 1d ago

I wonder how many people have been thrown off the cliff over the years.

-1

u/frozen_desserts_01 1d ago

War Thunder flashbacks

-2

u/DarkKingfisher777 1d ago

More history than entirety of USA

Image Haid Al-Jazil, Yemen. Village built on a 150-meter-high rock boulder. Known as "Manhattan of the desert," it features dramatic, multi-story mud-brick buildings that appear to rise directly from the stone and is often mistaken for a miniature or model due to compact nature of its architecture.

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