Happy Birthday to Panama!

Women in traditional attire. *Photo from Wikipedia December 1 is Restoration of Independence Day, celebrates the end of the Philippine Dynasty. The revolution of 1640 ended the 60-year rule of Portugal by the Spanish Habsburgs. Portugal as a country was established in the aftermath of the Christian Reconquista against the Muslim Moors who had invaded the Iberian Peninsula in 711 AD. In the 15th and 16th centuries, Portugal established the first global empire, becoming one of the world’s major economic, political and military powers. During this period, today referred to as the Age of Discovery, Portuguese explorers pioneered maritime exploration,

Kenyan women. *Photo from Wikipedia December 12 is Jamhuri Day, celebrates the independence of Kenya from Britain in 1963. Throughout the centuries, the Kenyan Coast has played host to many merchants and explorers. In 1414, the Chinese trader and explorer Zheng He (鄭和) representing the Ming Dynasty visited the East African coast. Also Malindi (important Swahili settlement since the 14th century) authorities welcomed the Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama in 1498. The colonial history of Kenya dates from the establishment of a German protectorate over the Sultan of Zanzibar’s coastal possessions in 1885, followed by the arrival of the Imperial British

School children in the classroom. *Photo from Wikipedia August 15 is Independence Day, celebrates the independence of the Republic of the Congo from France in 1960. The region was dominated by Bantu-speaking tribes, who built trade links leading into the Congo River basin. Congo-Brazzaville was formerly part of the French colony of Equatorial Africa. Following the revision of the French constitution that established the Fifth Republic in 1958, the AEF (French Equatorial Africa) dissolved into its constituent parts, each of which became an autonomous colony within the French Community. During these reforms, Middle Congo (French Congo) became known as the