"My family arrived in Tangier in June 1947 and thanks to your blog, seven years worth of memories have come flooding back. Until we were able to get a space heater, the humidity and/or rain caused everything to mold–leatherbound books, shoes, even some cake flour sent by a relative in the U.S. We lived with erratic electric service and water turned … Read more TALIMblog – The Kindness of Readers
Banjo, oud, gimbri, mandolin, guitar, tambourines, and… chopsticks. Though the combination was unlikely, the result was anything but cacophony. The fusion was complete. "Bluegrass Maghribi" is the name of a pickup band of Americans and Moroccans, brought together by the cultural diplomats at the American Embassy in Rabat, and sponsored here by the American Language … Read more Appalachian Andalusian Berber Bluegrass – Fusion in Tangier
The setting is magnificent: the Palais des Institutions Italiennes, home to several Italian cultural institutes and NGOs (Elisa Chimenti, COSPE). A.k.a. the Moulay Hafidh palace, the venue is one of Tangier's most prestigious, and the arcades around an Islamic garden make for a perfect setting to browse the bookstalls. This year, for the first time … Read more Tangier’s Salon du Livre – Much More Than a Book Fair
The author on a research trip near Al-Hoceima in the Rif Mountains Caitlyn Olson, writing the guest post below, tells of her 2010 Fulbright fellowhip in Tetouan (near Tangier), and meeting a young Spanish artist also working in the city. “I requested some feedback on the project abstract I’d translated to Spanish. It provided background … Read more Moroccans On Both Sides In Spain’s Civil War
This post has no purpose other than showing pretty pictures. The first, thanks to a visit to the Legation garden by Europa Nostra. Europa Nostra is a Netherlands – based group dedicated to the preservation of historic buildings. As you can see in the background, we have plenty of restoration work to do at our … Read more Cherry Blossoms and Clivia, Washington and Tangier
Have I become accustomed to living in historic landmarks? En route to a week in Washington for meetings, I have decided to set up shop at DACOR Bacon House, one of Foggy Bottom's few remaining historic homes, now the home of DACOR, which organizes a lively calendar of activities for foreign affairs professionals. I've stayed … Read more Open for Business, In Tangier and Washington
People often ask "what is a legation?" So I provide the above photo of a page from a dictionary that was published when countries still had legations. And ministers, the people (well, at the time, the men) who headed them. Wikipedia has a limited or stub page on legations. In Tangier, the American Legation and … Read more Le-ga’tion, Defined
Okay, folks, I think we have solved the mystery of the American flag carpet, or at least placed it in time. First, the link to our plea to readers for photo interpretation of this picture: Now, analysis provided by Mark Smith, architect and former Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco (and former resident of the American … Read more History Detected, Flag Restored
Engineer and Commercial Director of the Moroccan government chartered company SAPT Hassan Mzerma opened Day Two of the 2011 April Seminar, with the focus on the SAPT project of the conversion of Tangier's city port. We thank SAPT chief Abdelouafi Laftit and Mr. Mzerma, probably two of the busiest people in Morocco, for their valuable … Read more Tangier’s New Port: Let the Water Flow
Note: Marking its 10th edition in 2011, TALIM’s April Seminars have attracted audiences from Tangier, the rest of Morocco, and beyond. This year, with the theme of Tangier’s Ports: Circles of Impact, we piggybacked on the US Trade Mission which participated in the Med-Log (logistics, with a focus on foreign investment) Conference. – – – … Read more Live Blogging The 2011 TALIM April Seminar
