nPostednon June 10, 2016
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n Thisnholiday commemorates the start of the Great Arab Revolt in thenOttoman Empire, in 1916. Here’s a teeny-tiny crash course on thatnrevolt:
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nThensetting: The Ottoman Empire ruled a large swath of what we nownconsider Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Northern Africa forncenturies. The Empire aligned itself with Germany in the early 20thnCentury, joining in World War I. n
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nThentiming: Starting in the 1820s, Arabs living in the Ottoman Empirenbegan to feel that they should be independent of the ruling Turks. BynJune of 1916, Sherif Hussein bin Ali started a revolt, saying that henwanted to create a single unified Arab nation ranging from what isnnow Syria to what is now Yemen. He called Arab Muslims to a “sacrednrebellion” – although other Muslims accused the Sherif ofnbetraying the Muslim Caliphate that was trying to govern the lands.
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nThenresults: The Ottoman Empire ceased to be after World War I, and itsnvarious lands were partitioned off into independent and occupiednlands – occupied by Britain, France, and Italy. Many Arab peoplenconsider Britain, especially, guilty of breaking promises and ofnpartitioning Arabian lands in ways that didn’t suit the populationsnthat lived in them.
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nThe Emirate of Transjordan was established and became a British protectorate.
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nApparentlynthe Royal Jordanian Army, which was formed in 1920, is believed tonhave had its origins in the Hashemite forces that participate in thenGreat Arab Revolt. n
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nItnseems to me that Jordan would be one of the worst of all Arab states,nsince it is small and landlocked and it lacks the rich oil reservesnof other nearby nations. But it is rated as a country with “highnhuman development” and an “upper middle income” economy; it isnconsidered one of the safest Arab countries; it has been hospitablento refugees and peaceful with its own Christian minority and itsnJewish neighbor, Israel. It is a major tourist destination in thenregion and has great medical care and therefore gets “medicalntourists” who are seeking good care. n
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nInnother words, by many measures, Jordan is one of the best rather thannone of the worst!! How do they do it?
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nHere are some of the reasons people go to Jordan:
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- Petranis a famous archeological site that features tombs and temples thatnhave been carved into pink sandstone.
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nInlove this “Tunnel of Light” in Petra!
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- Asnusual, rock plus water is beautiful!!
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- ThenDead Sea is super salty – and that means that it is super easy tonfloat there AND you can see weird salt formations.
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nFornmore about Jordan, check out this earlier post.
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nAlsonon this date:
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Palindrome Dayn
Palindrome Dayn
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nAnniversary of the Millennium Bridge opening
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nAnniversarynof the first University Boat Race
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nAuthor/nillustrator Maurice Sendak’s birthday
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nAbolitionnof Slavery Day in French Guiana
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nPortugalnDay (a.k.a.nCamoes Day)
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nAnniversarynof the invention of the “outlook envelope”
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nTurtlenDays
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nPlannahead:
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nPlannahead:
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Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
Checknout my Pinterest boards for:
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nJunen holidays
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nJunen birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in June
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nJulyn holidays
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nJulyn birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in July
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