Submitted by Anthea Whitehead, Bromsgrove u3a
Dhow Harbour, Maala
In 1966 I was an Executive Officer in the Ministry of Public Building & Works and was posted overseas to our Middle East regional office in Aden. This was only 10 days after my marriage, my new husband was a colleague at MPBW and this was a joint posting (very unusual). Our plan was that 2 years of extra pay for overseas service would enable us to save the deposit for a house when we returned to UK. The plan came unstuck!
Firstly, the security situation deteriorated with frequent terrorist activity targeting the British - our flat had bullet holes in one window (extra air conditioning) - that eventually led to civilians being evacuated. Secondly, our first child was born in the RAF hospital, Steamer Point. Not only did I need to take maternity leave but we also engaged a Somali ayah to look after the baby when I returned to work. Our 16 months in Aden were enjoyable: Christmas Day on the beach, a lively social life and a holiday in Kenya.
There were also constraints due to the security situation: a strict curfew at midnight, some areas were 'out of bounds', a maximum of 12 people for a private social event. However we had an excellent standard of living with an air conditioned apartment provided by the military and furnished down to cutlery and a large fridge by barrack stores. Our laundry went twice a week to the dhobi (laundry) and was collected by the dhobi-wallah who returned the laundered items neatly ironed. Initially we had a house boy who came in the mornings to do the cleaning but once we had the baby he was replaced by an ayah who did all the baby laundry and also my clothes but who flatly refused to have anything to do with my husband's clothes so those continued to go to the dhobi.
Working attire for European men was a short sleeved white shirt, white shorts, white socks and desert boots. It was virtually a uniform. Off duty, coloured shirts and shorts were accessorised by flip flops. The dress code was less restrictive for ladies. Due to the climate, the working day was 7am to 1pm and we worked an 11 day fortnight i.e. alternate Saturdays off. At 1pm everyone went home for lunch and a siesta, then shopping and social activities commenced around 5pm. Our social life centred around the beach and the officers' clubs. Being almost on the equator, night fell around 6pm all year - slightly later in the summer - so it was always dark by 7pm. We had film shows at the club with people sitting around the pool and a big screen at the far end of the pool. There was a cinema, a building with 4 walls but no roof.
As it hardly ever rained, no roof was needed. There would also be dancing, occasional fancy dress nights etc. There were no limits on the number of people attending social events 'behind the wire' i.e. on a military base but a party in a friend's flat was limited to no more than 12 people, babies didn't count! All social events ended by 11.30pm so we could be back home before the curfew at midnight. The security situation is documented by the Imperial War Museum website: https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/a-short-history-of-the-aden-emergency. British civilians were evacuated from Aden in 1967, families first and then the single men (no single women!). We were evacuated in June 1967 by sea, travelling home on the Italian liner Achille Lauro, (later hijacked in 1985 by members of the Palestine Liberation Front).
This was a blissful 10 days of luxury for us. Our route back to UK was through the Suez canal which I found really interesting. As we emerged from the canal into the Mediterranean, we noticed a lot of aerial activity - fighter planes zooming about. It was only later that we learned that Israel had launched an air attack on Egypt! This was the 6 day war (https://www.britannica.com/event/Six-Day-War) which was over by the time we arrived at Southampton. Our parents of course were extremely worried! However we sailed through a war zone in complete ignorance, enjoying life on board a luxury liner. Life back in UK was uneventful and lacking in luxury.
We settled in Hastings awaiting the delivery of our household effects and car. These were delayed significantly as the 6 day war closed the Suez canal for years so our crates sat on the dockside in Aden for ages before a ship collected them for the long voyage to UK. My son was 7 months old when we returned to UK and met his grandparents for the first time. During those 7 months he'd lived in an Arab country, holidayed in Mombasa (Kenya) and travelled by ship through a war zone. He is mightily miffed that he doesn't remember any of it!