Tombouctou (Timbuktu), known as 'The City of Gold', was the capital of the Malinese Empire under Mansa Musa, and was a great center of education, learning, and Islam. Through the centuries the city also served as a great trading center for caravans and local merchants. The people depend on what little tourism comes their way for money and subsistence living (farming where possible) and meat from their different herds of cattle or goats.Timbuktu draws its holiness from a big number of Patron Saints surrounding the city and constituting, for believers, a rampart of protection. It exists there 333 Saints whose tombs are places of meditation. ---------------------------------------------------- Bobwilliams [url=http://www.treatmentcenters.org/vermont]Vermont Treatment Centers[url]