The yearly mild weather spell that brings Yemen’s coast back to life

Mukalla, Yemen – Before the sun rises over Mukalla’s beaches, 15‑year‑old Abdulrahman Badr and his friend Tareq are already at their usual spot on the sand.

They’re brewing tea and kneading dough for bakhmari, a traditional fermented flatbread from Hadramout – the vast governorate in eastern Yemen that Mukalla is the capital of.

Their customers are the thousands of beachgoers gathering along the Arabian Sea shoreline thanks to a yearly climate phenomenon that turns the desperately hot summer cooler for a few weeks.

Al-Baldah, as the climate pattern is known, typically lasts from late July to early August, and draws thousands of visitors from across Yemen and abroad to Mukalla.

Before sunrise, the beaches, normally known for scorching heat and humidity, are packed with men, women and children enjoying the cool waters and refreshing sea breeze.

“Al‑Baldah is a wonderful season. Business is booming and people are coming from everywhere,” Badr told Al Jazeera as he gently pressed and shaped pieces of dough by hand.

Like many others, Badr is taking advantage of the seasonal crowds to earn money. At the start of the season, he and four friends set up a wooden table serving bakhmari, sambusi (a pastry similar to a samosa) and tea to hungry swimmers in search of a hot breakfast.

“I will save what I earn from my work here to buy supplies for the new school year, which is about to begin,” said Badr, a student, his tired face dusted with flour and beach sand.