I never knew two weeks could be filled with such highs and lows.
22.12.2023 - 18:13 / nytimes.com
Situated around 20 miles from Spain on the tip of North Africa, where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Mediterranean Sea, Tangier has been a coveted naval prize for centuries. Phoenicia, the Roman Empire, various Islamic caliphates, Portugal, Spain, England and France all laid claim to this hilly port town. After World War II, the city was an international zone — administered by several countries — until Morocco achieved independence in 1956 and regained full control of it. It was this colorful heritage and these scenic surroundings that helped to entice a steady stream of writers, artists and eccentrics in the mid-20th century, the city’s bohemian heyday.
Today, Tangier’s Tanger-Med port is the largest in Africa, serving as a nexus of international trade. The city has some 1.3 million inhabitants, and the streets hum with a blend of Arabic, French, Spanish and English, many locals flitting easily among them all. Not surprisingly, given this rich history, the architecture is an invigorating mix of styles, from the whitewashed townhouses of the Kasbah (a citadel dating back to the 1600s) to the faded Art Deco hotels and cinemas of the Ville Nouvelle (new town), erected in the first half of the 20th century. But the most compelling new developments in the city are being spearheaded not by expats but by locals. A five-minute walk from the Gran Café de Paris — made famous by the American writer and composer Paul Bowles and the American writer and artist William Burroughs, who frequented it in the 1940s and ’50s — leads to the Rue Khalid Ibn El Oualid (a.k.a. Calle Velázquez), a street in the heart of the old Spanish quarter, where young Tanjawis are slowly reviving the neighborhood. Here, you’ll find Le Kiosk, a bookstore and print shop run by Hicham Bouzid, a founder of the cultural organization Think Tanger, as well as contemporary galleries such as Zawia, opened by Najoua Elhitmi, who last year launched a cultural space called Factory that hosts occasional jazz concerts, speakers and exhibitions. Below, four insiders — including both expats who’ve made Tangier their home for decades and Moroccan-born entrepreneurs and designers — share their favorite spots.
A Tangier native, the fashion designer is the founder of New Tangier, a handbag and clothing brand that updates traditional Moroccan garments and accessories.
The garden designer is based in Marrakesh, Tangier and New York.
The photographer was born in Essaouira, Morocco, and in 2020 moved to Tangier, where he runs the restaurant Alma Kitchen + Coffee with his wife, the jewelry designer Lamiae Skalli.
The Italian novelist divides his time between Milan and Rohuna, a village on the Atlantic coast southwest of Tangier.
“The ultimate rental is Sarah
I never knew two weeks could be filled with such highs and lows.
On Tuesday, travel metasearch engine Skyscanner unveiled Everywhere Agency, what it calls a “virtual pop-up travel consultancy.”
One day last July, I was dropping off a rental car at Budget’s location at Boston Logan International Airport when I misplaced my iPhone. As best as I can recall, I left it in the car while I went to throw away some trash, but neither my wife nor I nor the employee who was helping us could find it. After my flight home, I began tracking the phone using Apple’s Find My application, and after a trip through western Massachusetts and New Hampshire, the phone began traveling back and forth from an apartment building in Lynn, Mass., to the Budget office at Logan. I reported this to both Budget and the airport police, but the police told me that they could take action only if Budget gave them the name of any employees who lived at that address, and Budget would not help. I want Budget to return my phone or pay for a replacement. Can you help?
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The next time you’re on a plane, if the person next to you doesn’t seem to own anything that isn’t bright red, it might be Celia Paerels. Kindle case, sweater, sunglasses, headphones, charging cord, everything in shocking scarlet: It’s how she avoids leaving anything behind in the seat or the seat pocket.
In 2020, after reading too many restaurant obituaries, I set out to write annual restaurant love letters instead. Now that the food world is roaring back, getting stronger—and more creative—than ever, it has become even easier to fall in love. And so, I have a new round of love letters.
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