The city of Sana’a is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its poetic mixture of land and stone alone is a reason for a trip to Yemen. Our journey begins here. The day after our arrival, we set off for the coast after breakfast: past mountain villages perched among the rocks, slopes literally covered by thousand-year-old terraces and broad valleys filled with banana palms, all the while with the climate gradually changing and the fresh Red Sea breeze starting to make itself felt. We arrive at the port of Al-Salif, an unusual yet practical departure point for the Boreas of Katharina. On our first morning aboard, we visit Kamaran, the largest island of the arcipelago which takes its name, taking time for a dinghy trip to the fishermen’s village, a settlement that still feels mediaeval. 
We visit the ruins of an Ottoman fortress, see the mosque and meet the local women, sparkling eyes and bright smiles under their black veils. Nearby is a mangrove lagoon inhabited only by herons, pellicans and eagles. We spend another two days around these islands: Al Badi - a long spit of sand, rubbed out and redrawn by each tide, which cuts the sea in half: turquoise on one side, emerald on the other; then Uqban with its white and pink beaches.
On the night of the fourth day we sail towards the Zubayr islands, an arcipelago slightly South-West of Kamaran. The morning greets us by unveiling the volcanoes that make up the arcipelago. These are untamed, uninhabited islands: 23 volcanoes and steep drops to the sea, populated by large manta and whale sharks.
The eighth day, our last, is spent travelling back to Salif. Days aboard the Boreas are spent swimming, snorkelling or diving (the boat is fully equipped with scuba gear and an air compressor - in short, everything needed to set out and discover the underwater panorama. The Captain, himself a trained scuba-diving instructor with a vast knowledge of these waters, is happy to accompany and advise those who wish to see first-hand these most beautiful of places, with their majestic corals.
The second land journey of the cruise takes place on the ninth day and takes us back from Salif to Sana’a. We stop for lunch in the village of Hajja, then reach Sana’a as the sun sets. A whole day is dedicated to visiting Sana’a. As we enter the city via the principal gate, Bab el Yemen, it’s as if we had stepped back in time and into a fable from One Thousand and One Nights: 
the wondeful mediaeval architecture, the clay houses with their multicoloured windows, the facades decorated with white and ocre arabesques, the alabaster, the white domes and the slender minarets. Naturally we pass through the bazar, where the scent of mountains of spices, sold next to fruit, twine, silver bracelets. In the evening, back to the airport.
The trip can be organised for between 6 and 18 particpants. The visit to Sana’a can either be made before or after the sea trip.