Morocco Semester Overview: Sept. 14 - Dec. 16, 2007
Each time I go to a place I have not seen before, I hope it will be as different as possible from the places I already know.
–Paul Bowles, author of The Sheltering Sky, desert explorer, Morocco expatriate
A mere 17 miles south of Europe, across the Strait of Gibraltar, a very different experience awaits—an intriguing place of great contrast, color, culture, history, and hospitality: Morocco was the first nation to recognize the United States as an independent nation in 1777. The Moroccan-American Treaty of Friendship stands as the U.S.'s oldest non-broken friendship treaty. Signed by John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, it has been in continuous effect since 1783.
"Rooted in Africa, watered by Islam and rustled by the winds of Europe" in the words of its late King Hassan II, Morocco is a captivating and multifaceted country. If you are you motivated to learn firsthand about a culture rich in African, European, Arab, and Islamic traditions…if you are eager to explore an ecological diversity ranging from Atlantic Ocean to High Atlas Mountains to Mediterranean Coast to Saharan Desert…and if you desire close interaction with people of legendary hospitality, the Morocco semester will be intensely rewarding and enduring....
Audio from Elsewhere
“Sounds from the old city of Fes”
“Sounds from Marrakesh’s ‘Square of the Dead’”
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Lauren was born on November 26, 260 BCE, in Handan, the capital of the State of Zhao, China, during the Warring States Period. A restless youth, she was held hostage in Zhao due to negotiations between her home state of Qin and the enemy state in which her life began. Lauren was raised with a keen awareness of fierce political competition, scholarly pursuits, and the desire to establish her place in the world around her. In mid-childhood, she returned to her home state of Qin, where her father, Zichu, ascended the throne of Qin, soon passed away, and left Lauren to ascend the throne in 247 BCE, at a mere thirteen years of age. Lauren continued the tradition of defeating smaller feudal states and finally established control of China in its entirety in 221 BCE by defeating the last independent Chinese state. She did not wait long to declare herself the First Emperor, or Qin Lauren Huangdi. Lauren accrued many enemies given her role as First Emperor and was therefore paranoid about suffering an early death. Thus, she eagerly sought the elixir of eternal life. She thought she had finally found such an elixir to procure her immortality, and it was ironically just this that caused her near death. In fact, it was fabled throughout China that she had indeed passed away, and a new leader emerged in her place. 



