Alfonso Calza created
this video from photographs he took of the streets, desert, ocean, mountains, and ruins of Morocco.
posted by gman
on Aug 28, 2012 -
5 comments
The Anglo-Moroccan connection originates in the quarrels between the two half-sisters Queen Elizabeth i and Queen Mary i. Elizabeth suspected that Mary's husband, Philip ii of Spain, had designs on England, and she was consequently interested in an ally who could join in attacking Spain. On the Moroccan side, there was considerable enthusiasm for expelling the Spanish and Portuguese from the several Moroccan coastal cities they had conquered. The Moroccans also wanted naval support in case of further encroachment by the Ottoman Turks, who were eager to extend their empire west from Algiers into Morocco. It was for this last reason that the Moroccan sultan Ahmad al-Mansur was unwilling to collaborate with the Ottomans despite Ottoman consideration of an invasion of Spain: He preferred instead an alliance with the English.
An 'Extreamly Civile' Diplomacy: a short history of early Anglo-Moroccan relations
via the always wonderful @bintbattuta
posted by timshel
on Jan 13, 2012 -
7 comments
Júzcar is a little Spanish village that voted to stay blue, but their buildings weren't always that hue. In fact, if you view the
Google maps, you'll see the traditional whitewashed walls, as you'd expect for one of the (former)
White Towns of Andalusia. It happened in advance of
Global Smurfs Day, to celebrate the birthday of
Peyo (25 June 1928 – 24 December 1992), the Belgian creator of the Smurfs comics. The town was chosen by Sony as
the site for the international debut of its new Smurfs movie, who offered to pay for the town to become temporarily blue.
The citizens unanimously voted to accept the offer. In September,
the 221 residents voted to keep the town blue, as the media coverage was huge, and tourism was boosted from 300 summer tourists to thousands.
More photos.
[more inside]
posted by filthy light thief
on Jan 12, 2012 -
21 comments
Western Sahara has the dubious distinction of being the subject of probably the most forgotten-about post-colonial conflict in the world. Until 1975, the Spanish government considered Western Sahara a Spanish province, just as much an integral part of its territory as any of its provinces in the Iberian peninsula. However, at the beginning of the 70s, a burgeoning pro-independence movement, and increasing appetites of its Northern and Southern neighbours, Marocco and Mauritania, led to a
UN visiting mission in early 1975, which found that
"there was an overwhelming consensus among Saharans within the Territory in favour of independence and opposing integration with any neighbouring country". This finding was given additional support by an
opinion by the International Court of Justice supporting the Sahrawis right to self-determination against the claims of neighbouring nations.
[more inside]
posted by Skeptic
on Nov 30, 2009 -
35 comments
"She didn't seem to care for the hawker selling goats' heads. But she did stop when a young, well-dressed fellow ambled over to her and said: 'You have captured my liver.'" This and other stories from a very well-detailed article on the
three-day dating festival of the Berbers of Morocco.
posted by XQUZYPHYR
on Sep 12, 2003 -
5 comments
In May 1999, Chris and Erin Ratay quit their jobs, sold their Upper West Side Manhattan apartment, and shipped their motorcycles to Morocco to begin a trip around the world.
Now, four years, 50 countries, and 100,000 miles later, they're back home. They've kept a continuously updated web journal over the past four years, available
here. Ignore the unfortunate font and JavaScript choices and read this couple's incredible story.
posted by grrarrgh00
on Aug 11, 2003 -
7 comments
