A combined military intervention made by the transitional government and Ethiopia at the beginning of January 2007 led to the retreat of Islamic tribes from Mogdisho toward the southern part of the country close to the Kenyan border.
Somalia suffers from drought and famine. Surely the only reason you'll travel to Somalia is for humanitarian purposes. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly advises against any trip to this country. A multitude of organisations have been unable to curb problems and end all of the suffering.
Security: the FCO advises against all travel to the whole country. See full official advice.
Some of Somalia's authentic souvenirs are gold and silver jewellery, wool garments, Muqdisho baskets, sea foam pipes and wooden sculptures.
Shops open Saturday to Thursday from 8:00 to 12:30 and 16:30 to 19:00.
Rice, spaghetti or macaroni is served with all types of sauces, mutton or goat. In addition, roast kid served with rice is one of Somalia's traditional dishes. Somalis also eat a lot of fish, seafood (shrimps, lobster, crab, tuna) and fruits (mango, banana, papaya).
A Somali's breakfast has nothing to do with our European standards, since goat, mutton or dromedary liver fried with onions and bread is served often.
Islam requires people to wear long garments on the beach. No shorts: only children wear these!
Buy films before leaving and seek people's approval before taking snapshots, as there are restrictions. Avoid taking pictures when you are uncertain.
a 10% tip is common practice in hotels and restaurants.
?t's okay to be paranoid: any day spent in Somalia is risky.