From Wikitravel

Somalia is located on the Horn of Africa, a country with a troubled past... and the present and future don't look bright either. Civil war, military coups, border disputes and warlordism are the general course of events here.

Contents 1 Regions 2 Cities 3 Other destinations 4 Understand 4.1 Climate 5 Get in 5.1 By plane 5.2 By train 5.3 By car 5.4 By bus 5.5 By boat 6 Get around 7 Talk 8 Buy 8.1 Costs 9 Eat 10 Drink 11 Sleep 12 Learn 13 Work 14 Stay safe 15 Stay healthy 16 Respect 17 Contact 18 Get out

Regions

In addition to the territories under local military control and nominal government authority, Somalia is the site of two self-declared – but unrecognised – countries:

• Somaliland
• Puntland

Cities

• Mogadishu is the capital and generally considered one of the most lawless cities in the world

Other destinations

Understand

The simple fact of the matter is that tourism to Somalia is NOT an option. This is not a country in which tourism can be done with military escorts or carrying guns, this is a country to which tourists should not think about going.

Turmoil, factional fighting, and anarchy have followed since the overthrow of the national government in 1991. Much of the country is controlled by independent clans and warlords with no allegiance to the current "transitional" government. Northern clans declared an independent Republic of Somaliland, which is not recognized by any foreign government, but has maintained a stable existence under its ruling clan, based on the economic infrastructure left behind by foreign military assistance programs. The neighboring self-declared state of Puntland, has been self-governing since 1998, and has made strides towards reconstructing legitimate, representative government. Puntland also claims Sool and eastern Sanaag. The remainder of the country is essentially lawless. Numerous warlords and factions have finished fighting for the so called capital, Mogadishu, for the first time in 15 years the city is under control of 1 faction, though it's unclear how long this will last. Accusations of Somali links with global terrorism complicate the picture.

85% of the population is ethnic Somali. The remainder are Bantu and other non-Somali ethnicities, including 30,000 Arabs.

Climate

Somalia is principally desert. December to February is the northeast monsoon, with moderate temperatures in north and very hot in south. May to October is the southwest monsoon, torrid in the north and hot in the south. Irregular rainfall, with hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons.

Get in

By plane

There are two options regarding plane travel to/from Somalia.

• Daallo Airlines is the only international carrier to fly to Somalia. They operate 2-3 services per week from Djibouti using an Ilyushin-18 aircraft.
• Jubba Airways is a Somalian airline that operates from Mogadishu to/from: Dubai, Bossaso and Jeddah. The Jubba website also indicates that flights are available to/from: Galkayo, Hargeisa and Sharjah - but there do not appear to be any current schedules to these destinations. Their aircraft is also IL-18.

Both Daallo Airlines and Jubba Airways use Mogadishu International Airport which re-opened in August 2006. Prior to this, both airlines used an airport many miles from the Mogadishu due to security fears over the city's main airport.

By train

By car

Somalia has not had an effective government for 15 years. As one can imagine this has had a negative effect on the roads. The stop lights are out of order, and there is no form of traffic police; speed limits (wherever signs remain) and road markings (the few which have not quite faded from the ashphalt) are widely ignored. Ashphalt itself on the roads is a rarity with most of it worn off long ago. Also since there is no government, license plates from previous governments exist on some cars, but they serve no real purpose since you can't report a number because there is no database and there is no one to report to either. Insurance is also rare. Driver licenses have not been issued in some time either, so be careful.

By bus

By boat

There are ports in Boosaaso, Berbera, Chisimayu (Kismaayo), Merca, and Mogadishu.

Get around

Somalia has approximately 22,000 km of highways, all but 2,600 km of it unpaved.

Talk

Somali is the official language, however Arabic is spoken by some. The country has a history of Italian occupation, however it is unclear how much Italian is still spoken.

Buy

Costs

Eat

Breastfeeding is the predominant form of nutrition for children under the age of 2 years. One of these preferred items is camel, both as source of calcium (its milk) and of protein (its meat). Camel milk, Somalis believe, is the most nutritious of the animal milks they drink - which also includes goat and cow. Southern Somalia has a large agricultural and international trading component to its economy, thus, in southern Somalia diets are richer in green vegetables, corn, and beans. Southern Somalis, especially those in the cities are more familiar with Western foods such as pasta and canned goods. Northern Somalia's nomadic lifestyle fosters a diet that is heavier in milk and meat. Diets there also have a large component of rice, which is obtained through trade.

Since many Somalis are nomads, back home they often ate a popular type of jerky called otka - preferably camel meat that is dried and then fried in butter and spices. Its preparation allowed the meat to be preserved for a long time, which made it ideal to take on long trips.

The overriding characteristic of the Somali diet is that it consists of halal foods (Arabic for "allowable" as opposed to haram: "prohibited"). Somalis are Sunni Muslims and under Islamic Law (or Shar'1ah), they are prohibited from eating pork, drinking alcohol, or smoking cigarettes (Although in practice, there is unlikely a serious aversion to tobacco smoking in Somalia).

Other common foods include a type of homemade bread called anjara (it looks like a large, spongy pancake); black tea sweetened with milk and sugar; and sambusas, which are deep-fried triangular-shaped dumplings usually filled with meat or vegetables.

Drink

Black and brown teas (largely imported from China) and a coffee drink that is made from the covering of the coffee beans rather than from the beans themselves.

Somalia is an muslim country, so there is no Alcohol available. and if you find some, dont show it or drink it in Public! some local people may anger at you and you can be sure its not good.

Sleep

The Sahafi Hotel is one of the best hotels in Mogadishu. The compound is reasonably secure, the Manager very helpful, the staff is attentive, and the food is good.

The Ambassador Hotel Hargeisa Somalia is a 4 star hotel. Recommended.

Learn

Work

Stay safe

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, the easiest method for staying safe in Somalia is not to go in the first place. Kidnappings and warlordism are all common in this country. Additionally, sailing down its coast involves a risk of piracy.

Natural hazards include recurring droughts, frequent dust storms over eastern plains in the summer, and floods during the rainy season.

Stay healthy

Famine and the use of contaminated water contributes to human health problems.

Respect

Contact

The public telecommunications system was almost completely destroyed or dismantled by the civil war factions. Local cellular telephone systems have been established in Mogadishu and in several other population centers. International connections are available from Mogadishu by satellite.

Get out

This article is an outline and needs more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. Please plunge forward and help it grow!