Bayt al-Faqīh or Beit al-Faqih ; ) is a city in Al Hudaydah Governorate

Al Hudaydah Governorate

Al Hudaydah is a governorate of Yemen. Its capital is Al Hudaydah.This governorate borders the Red Sea and is part of the narrow Tihamah region...

 in Yemen

Yemen

The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....

. It is located on the pilgrimage and trade route across the Tihamah

Tihamah

Tihamah or Tihama is a narrow coastal region of Arabia on the Red Sea. It is currently divided between Saudi Arabia and Yemen. In a broad sense, Tihamah refers to the entire coastline from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Bab el Mandeb Strait but it more often refers only to its southern half, starting...

 plain between Al Hudaydah

Al Hudaydah

Al Hudaydah is the fourth largest city in Yemen with a population of 400,000 people, and the centre of Al Hudaydah Governorate.-Overview:...

 and Ta'izz

Ta'izz

Ta'izz , or Taiz, is a city in the Yemeni Highlands, near the famous Mocha port on the Red Sea, lying at an elevation of about 1,400 metres above sea level. It is the capital of Ta'izz Governorate...

. It is 50km south of Al Hudaydah and 150km southwest of the Yemeni capital of San‘a’ and lies at an altitude of 122m. Its population was 28,773 in the 1994 census and estimated at 41,652 in 2005.
Although today most of the population of Bayt al-Faqih work the weaving or jewelry industries, the city was historically known as the source of coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

 exported through the port of Mocha

Mocha, Yemen

Mocha or Mokha is a port city on the Red Sea coast of Yemen. Until it was eclipsed in the 19th century by Aden and Hodeida, Mocha was the principal port for Yemen's capital Sana'a.-Overview:...

. The town's Friday souk

Souk

A souq is a commercial quarter in an Arab, Berber, and increasingly European city. The term is often used to designate the market in any Arabized or Muslim city, but in modern times it appears in Western cities too...

(market) is a remnant of the town's once-thriving coffee trade.

External links

• "Hodeidah" with information on Bayt Al-Faqih at Yemen Old Splendour Tours