About Me

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Troy Nahumko is an award-winning author based in Caceres, Spain. His recent work focuses on travels around the Mediterranean, from Tangier to Istanbul. As a writer and photographer he has contributed to newspapers and media such as Lonely Planet, The Globe and Mail, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Toronto Star, Couterpunch,The Irish World, The Straits Times, The Calgary Herald, Khaleej Times, DW-World, Rabble and El Pais. He also writes a bi-weekly op-ed column 'Camino a Ítaca' for the Spanish newspaper HOY. His book, Stories Left in Stone, Trails and Traces in Cáceres, Spain is published by the University of Alberta Press. As an ESL materials writer he has worked with publishers such as Macmillan and CUP.

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

The Southern Pilar...Ceuta and the Maranid Wall


Gaze across the blue Mediterranean at Europe while feeling the vast African continent breathing down your neck, and then remember, you're in Spain. Confused? You wouldn't be the first. Hidden behind the southernmost of the two pillars Hercules dropped at the entrance to this civilization-cradling sea lies this tiny Spanish enclave you never learned about in geography class. Homer wrote about Ceuta. Ibn Battutah set off from it. The Moroccan government sometimes complains about it (just as the Spanish government complains about Gibraltar), and if you're on your way to or from Morocco, you'll probably pass right through it. But rather than dash for the hideous border crossing, take a break, relax, and remember that the ferries leave every hour. After all, it's not everyday you can say you've been in Europe in Africa.

#beach #architecture #europe #mountains #coast #view #ruins #africa #spain #mythology #mediterranean #islam #offthebeatenpath #morocco #gibraltar #offbeat #spit #point #panoramic #odyssey #continent #hercules #geography # #ibnbattutah #confused

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