After traveling to all 196 countries in the world, TikToker Lexie (@lexie.limitless) has had only one experience in which she truly feared for her life.
She had the opportunity to travel as a photographer for a Norwegian author writing a book about the least-visited countries in the world. She ended up flying from Djibouti, a country in East Africa, to Aden, a city in Yemen.
“It was absolutely heartbreaking to see the level of destruction that so many years of war had brought there,” said Lexie.
“I met so many amazing people and hosts for beautiful meals. I learned so much about the culture. It really made me feel more comfortable than I should have been.”
Around three in the morning, she woke up to the sounds of gunshots outside her window. She rushed to the window, looked down, and saw about 50 men gathered in the parking lot of her hotel.
There were also a bunch of cars with their hazard lights on, blocking the exit. These men were loud and aggressive, and she could see them shoving one another.
It was the first time that she had ever heard an automatic weapon go off. She ducked and frantically looked around for a good place to hide.
She also started hearing footsteps and voices in the hallway, which added to her panic because she knew she was the only person staying in the hotel at that time.
This went on for hours. She tried calling her contact in the country, who was supposed to be on call to take her to a safe house if something bad happened because it was during an active time of war, but he didn’t answer the phone.
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Lexie proceeded to cry herself to sleep. Eventually, all the men left. The next morning, when her guide picked her up from the hotel, she asked him what had happened the night before. He explained that it was just a wedding party.
“Because Yemen is an Islamic country, they do not have alcohol, so one of the main ways that they were celebrating this wedding celebration was by firing their guns,” said Lexie.
“Most terrified I had ever been was when I truly didn’t understand the culture.”
In the comments section, several TikTok users shared their thoughts on Lexie’s story.
“I’m Yemeni, and the moment she started describing the situation, I knew it was a wedding, specifically what we call the zafah,” commented one user.
“This happens in a lot of countries. It also happens in my country, Bosnia. It’s normal for us,” chimed in another.
“This is how I know I have zero survival skills because as a photographer, I would have left my room to see what was going on,” admitted a third.
By Emily Chan
Emily Chan is a writer who covers lifestyle and news content. She graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in... More about Emily Chan
