Memories from Mali part 2
Trip Start
Sep 22, 2005
1
23
41
Trip End
Dec 19, 2007
Segou,
Mali
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
01 Pinasse Ride on the Niger River
. I set the pot on a rickety homemade table and it soon found its way to the ground... slow motion of course, as I helplessly looked on. We saved what we could and Sayward turned it into something respectable again. Either that or we were really hungry. The night was chilly and we slept outside; though sleeping was something we enjoyed very little, as Fifi ferociously fought off her hordes of suitors throughout the night. It turns out she was in heat. Opting for a late start the next morning we spent most of the day waiting for a car that never came. We guarded against the sun by sitting under the shade of a large tree by the road and enjoyed smoked goat meat and the local millet staple, To (pronounced "toe"). We hopped back on the lousy bikes and rode 17 miles to the nearest junction. Luck changed and we had a car and a bag of mangoes within a snap of the fingers. We reached Segou as dusk and made our way to the quaint Hotel Djoliba owned and operated by a German man. Hotel Djoliba became our safe haven in Segou and it was a wonderful place at that.
The following day we pushed east for Sevare, arrived and spent the night at our Dogon guide, Hassimi's house. Our "trek" through Dogon country was not as I envisioned it. Sure we walked through the villages and hiked a few hours on the second and third days but Hassimi was lazy and he had his own car. So we drove where others hiked and then explored the sights by foot
02 Cliff Dwellings in Dogon Country
. This meant that we were able to see more than by conventional means, plus listen to loud Malian hip-hop music along the way. Day 1 took us to Bandiougou (sp?), Bandiagara, Tele and Ende. The first town was an Islamic Dogon village at the edge of the plateau. Water was a scarce commodity here as seen at two of the fetching points: (1) a narrow fissure in the Earth reached by climbing down a ladder to access a small pool of water, and (2) a small trickling spring that fills hundreds of water jugs a day in an adjacent ravine. The town was unlike anything we've seen in Ghana and it was intriguing to walk through. Most people were at farm but to those natives who were there I was very conscious of the fact that I had slipped into the realm of the tourist - an outsider looking in. Bandiagara is the gateway to Dogon and we merely picked up a few supplies before continuing on into the valley. Our next stop, Tele, was of interest for its accessible cliff dwellings. Unlike historic sites in the States which are often signposted and fenced off in areas for conservation and safety purposes, we were free to roam, climb and stick our heads in as many of the dwellings as we had the desire to. Hassimi provided us with the narrative background and our imagination painted a strange new world. I took a lot of pictures here. Ende - known for their bogolans (mud cloth) - was our stop over. Hassimi directed us to a very nice campement that had cold drinks, good food, and flush toilets!? One good thing about having a hefty tour guide is that he'll always make sure you eat right
03 Inside the cliff dwellings
. We slept up on the terrace that night and it was quite cold. The following morning we toured the bogolan section of town. Hundreds of the hand woven and painted cloths hung like tapestries from the houses. The effect was stunning and yet rendered you unable to decide between one or another - as all were for sale. We finally chose two distinctly colored pieces along with an indigo cloth that entailed a pattern resembling snowflakes - not something they see too much in Mali I guess. Hard bargaining was required. Hassimi then drove us to the next town for lunch and a nap. We hiked with our packs to the top of the escarpment to the animist village of Indelou. Upon arriving there I became sick from dehydration and triggered by the strong smell of ground onions I threw up in a small trash laden area that turned out to be a fetish sacred place. I suppose signposting would have come in handy in a situation like this. From Indelou we hiked to the stunning vista town of Begnimato. The red rocks were beautiful against the light of the setting sun. We fell asleep on the terrace to the sounds of drumming and the cool wind. Too cold that night in fact, and we had to migrate to the warmth of a stone room in order to sleep peacefully.
On our last day in Dogon country we woke early and hiked down the escarpment back into the valley to the lunch stop town of yesterday and the car. We quickly found ourselves out of Pays de Dogon and back in the hustle and bustle of modern Mali
04 Mud Mosque
. But how true is that statement really? Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Dogon is how they have been able to safeguard many of the practices of a traditional lifestyle and adapt others to benefit from the financial gains of tourism. It has a "living through history" sort of feel with the concessions of a cold Coke and a flush toilet at the end of the day. It would be interesting to see how these communities continue to change 5, 10 or even 20 years from now. Our friend Sumit wanted to go up to Tombuctou to ride camels really just to say he'd been there), but just before we left for our vacation to Mali, we heard there was some anti-American sentiment in the area. Peace Corps pulled out the three volunteers they had in that region and no Peace Corps Volunteers were allowed to go there until further notice. So instead of venturing up to the ancient city of Tombuctou, we found an equally renowned town to visit, the town of Djenne. We reached Djenne the same day that we left Dogon and were surprised at how commercialized the place was. Here was a real tourist town, complete with hangers-on, false/would be guides, and over aggressive souvenir sellers, not to mention dozens of scantily-dressed Europeans on holiday. It was overwhelming after the laid back atmosphere of Dogon. We found quiet lodgings, food for a light dinner (fried sweet potatoes, mangoes & fresh vegetables) and walked around the town a bit. To be fair, the preserved and architecturally impressive buildings - made only of mud and stick - were worth the trip alone
05 Rock Formations
. This is the site of the largest mud-built mosque in the world. Plus we bought some great Tuareg silver jewelry here.In the morning the market was being set up and the city teemed with people. Getting out of Djenne and back to Segou was an all day event. That night we dined at the splendid waterfront restaurant, L'Esplanade, enjoying pizza and apple soda for a last dinner together. The next day brought another relaxing day for us in Segou while we hugged Milagros goodbye as she traveled to Bamako for a meeting. Another three days on the road (but not nearly as eventful as the journey to Mali, thank goodness!) made us weary but we were back in our beloved Ghana. And oh were we ever glad to be back!
