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Burkina Faso
This journey can be the ideal solution to know the black Africa. This trip will
let tourists know the tribal and geographic reality of Togo and Benin without
renouncing to the comforts of the hotels.
DAY 1: LOME
Arrival and transfer from the airport to the hotel. Overnight staying at the
hotel 2 Fevrier ****.
DAY 2: LOME - GRAN POPO
City sight of Lome, capital of Togo. Visit to the central market with the famous
Nana-Benz, visit to the administrative district with the colonial buildings,
visit to the market of the "fetish", where you can buy ingredients for strange
love and magic potions. Crossing of Benin borderline.
Arrival at a small village of fishermen. Zangbeto festival and Fon masks. The
use of the masks is connected to ancient Greece and maybe even to an older time.
The supernatural power of the mask to change the identity of anybody who wears
it, is part of the spiritual culture of many African populations. The festival
with the mask is still today an emotional moment for Fon people: Zangbeto is a
mask covered with red straw. Zangbeto represents non human spirits, the power of
the nature and the night who had lived on the earth before the human beings.
Those who were this mask are part of a secret society and their identity is
unknown: the mask gives an independent identity from the real one. The
exhibition of the mask is the representation of a psychological tragedy where
the characters are the material forms of the archetypes left in the human
unconsciousness.
Overnight staying at hotel Auberge in Gran Popo.
DAY 3: GRAN POPO - BOHICON
Excursion on the motor pirogue on the Nokwe lake to go to Ganviè the biggest
lacustral city of the whole Africa. The word "Ganviè" means "the community of
the people who found peace". The citizens of Ganviè live in houses built on
piles. These people decided to live on the lake to go away from the slavery of
the armies of Dahomey and New Port kings.
Ganviè citizens, Tofinou peole (watermen, in the local language) are living a
life quite similar to the ancestors. The floating market, where people buy thing
pirogue by pirogue, is particularly colourful. Visit to the royal palace with
its multicoloured walls and to the history museum where you can find objects,
jewels and weapons of the old monarchies. It is very interesting to admire the
walls since they were built using mud, gold and human blood. The power of the
ancient empire was based on an army composed by women, the famous Amazons, whom
all the villages were afraid of.
Dinner and overnight staying at the hotle Dako***.
DAY 4: BOHICON - NATITINGOU
Excursion to North along a road where you can find cows liek Zebus, Peul nomads
and other types of cattle. An itinerary out of the official route will lead us
to a fascinating unknown village, Teneka. The highest part of the village is
populated by the old wizards and by the young initiates that, naked or covered
just by a goat leather, are smoking a pipe. This village is located in the
middle of an archaeological site with strange stones left by the ancient people.
Dinner and overnight staying at the hotel Tata Somba ***.
DAY 5: NATITINGOU - KARA
Excursion to the Atakora, a mountain chain that crosses diagonally Togo and
Benin. This mountain represented for Sombas a place to protect themselves from
the enemies and from the close French colony. They have always been considered
warriors but their real purpose was to defend themselves from the attacks and
not the opposite case. The most concrete example of their defence is the special
architecture of their houses. In case of any attack, in the house the family
could live safely for a long time while the village could organise the defence.
Sombas and Tenekas populations were practising their very strict initiation
rites with the purpose to shape men able to mange the responsibility and the
defence of the entire group. The Taberman group lived on the other side of
Atakora along the borderline with Togo. Theuir houses are protected by some
fetish objects with penis shape that represent the spirit of their ancients and
of the animals killed during the hunting. In this culture it is necessary to
preserve the spirit of the dead, both human beings and animals.
Overnight staying at the hotel Kara.
DAY 6: KARA - ATAKPAME
Visit of the Basare villages, pioneers of the iron culture, who live in this
region in houses made by mud with the roof shaped in a conical way. Visit to
Bedjeli and to the old ovens currently working. The craftsmen will introduce the
tourists to the old art of iron shaping. Transfer to the South. During the way
we will see Kabyè villages with their houses called "Sukalas": rouded houses
divided one from each other through a defence wall.
Overnight staying at the hotel Roc.
DAY 7: ATAKPAME - KPALIME
Visit to Atakpame that is a city built on the hills. Visit to the manufacturing
laboratories of Kent weavers: Kent is a very famous fabric manufactured in this
area and selected by the noble men during the important celebrations. After
leaving Atakpame, the trip is directed to a wood region. Several breaks will let
tourists admire the tropical forest and visit the cultivation of cacao and
coffee in the most fruitful territory of Togo which is rich of bananas, ananas
and avocados.
After the arrival at Kpalimè, the tourist will enjoy a typical woo doo
celebration. By an ipnothic rhythm of the "tam-tam" drums and of the songs some
dancers will fall into a deep alienated state: vivid eyes, movements, muscle
tension, resistance to the pain and to the fire. This is a typical example of an
African deep religious community called "Owner of the spirit".
Overnight staying at the hotel Août.
DAY 8: KPALIME - LOME
Visit to Lome. Lunch in the capital and free afternoon with private car for the
last shopping. Transfer to the airport for the flight back.
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