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 | Ouidah, memorial in honour of the slaves.   |  | |
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 |  on April 8, 2004 |
At the end of the Route of the Slaves stands an impressive memorial in honour of the departed slaves. The beach here is a symbolic and historical site as central and final departure point of the slaves, boarding the boats to the Americas. Near this ''point of no return'' are some giftshops and a restaurant. |
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| Ouidah, portuegese fort | | |
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| on April 8, 2004 |
In Ouidah were at least six slave forts. The old portuegese fort, Fortaleza Sao Joao Batisita, built in 1721, is still there and can be visited. In the buildings of this fort you can find the historical museum or Voodoo Museum, but also workshops, giftshops and toilets. You can walk in the garden and climb the fortifications. From here you have a nice view at a part of the centre of Ouidah. |
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| Ouidah, Route des Esclave | | |
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| on April 4, 2004 |
From the towncentre of Ouidah leads the 4 KM long Route of the Slaves to the coast, the road of no return. This is the route the slaves took to the coast to board the ships to the Americas. Along the road you can find many monumental statues of traditional African symbols. Also nowadays this road has its significance for the people of Ouidah because of the supernatural and historical legends about this road. You can still find here a lot of fetishes along the road. |
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| To Ganvie from Abomey-Calavi | | |
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| on April 6, 2004 |
For visiting Ganvie in the Lake Nokoue you can take a boat from Abomey-Calavi. At the launching point there it was very lively with a lot of pirogues with local people. I really enjoyed to look at this. For the 8 KM ride to Ganvie you can choose to take a roofed motorboat or a piroque. With 5 persons we took the motorboat, paying 4000 CFA each, without guide. |
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| Ouidah, catholic cathedral | | |
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| on April 4, 2004 |
In the centre of Ouidah, opposite the Sacred Python Temple, is the catholic cathedral. The grey cathedral is an important landmark in the towncentre. In many towns you find churches or cathedrals of the same architecture. The fence has some nice decorations. |
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| Ouidah, Sacred Python Temple. | | |
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| on April 8, 2004 |
In the centre of Ouidah, opposite the catholic cathedral, you find the ''Temple des Serpents'', one of the most famous voodoo sites in town. Snakes are important in the voodoo culture, because traditionally they were fetishes and a principal object of worship. Normally you can visit the temple and see the snakes and get some explanation about the temple and voodoo traditions. During my visit the temple was closed, so I didn't see the sleeping snakes, but I saw a lot of bats hanging in the trees around the temple. For me these peculiar animals looked very much like voodoo fetishes. |
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| Ouidah, Voodoo Museum | | |
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| on April 8, 2004 |
The Musee d'Histoire d'Ouidah is also known as the Voodoo Museum. So, in this former Portuguese Fort, there are also all kind of mystical artefacts of the voodoo culture. I saw a lot of skins, skulls and other not always well recognisable materials of animals and plants. Also nowadays the practice of voodoo remains strong in Benin and Ouidah, and also in Brasil and the Caribbean, brought there by the Dahomeyan slaves. Since 1992 a second museum about voodoo culture is established in Ouidah, in the former Casa do Brasil ( 1 KM more west). |
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| Ouidah, Musee d'Histoire d'Ouidah | | |
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| on April 8, 2004 |
The museum of Ouidah is located in one of the former forts of Ouidah, just south of the Grand Marche. Ouidah was one of the most important centres of slavetrading in West Africa, so the exhibitions in the museum concern for a major part the slave trade and the connections of Benin with Brazil and the Caribbean. Entrance fee is 1000 CFA, including a friendly guide. First I couldn't enter the museum, because there was not enough change. |
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| Ganvie, fishbreeding community | | |
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| on April 6, 2004 |
The people of Ganvie live mainly of fishbreeding and fishing. The fishermen plant branches in the muddy bottom of the Lake Nokoue. When the leaves start to decompose, the fish come here to feed themselves. At that moment the men and boys of the village come to catch the fish in their nets. |
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| Ganvie, living on the water | | |
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| on April 6, 2004 |
The village Ganvie is established in the 18th century by the Tofino people. They tried to escape from the Fon people and the Dahomey kingdoms, coming from the north. Because of local customs the Fon people were not allowed to attack people in the water. So the Tofino decided to build their villages in the swampy lake. They constructed their houses about 2 meter above the water level. |
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More Benin Tips
| Overview | General Tips Tips: 22 - Photos: 13 |
| Restaurants Tips: 22 - Photos: 16 | Hotels and Accommodations Tips: 21 - Photos: 18 |
| Things To Do Tips: 68 - Photos: 80 | Nightlife Tips: 10 - Photos: 3 |
| Off the Beaten Path Tips: 8 - Photos: 6 | Tourist Traps Tips: 3 - Photos: 2 |
| Warnings or Dangers Tips: 11 - Photos: 6 | Transportation Tips: 27 - Photos: 19 |
| Local Customs Tips: 19 - Photos: 20 | Packing Lists Tips: 9 - Photos: 6 |
| Shopping Tips: 6 - Photos: 7 | Sports Travel Tips: 1 - Photos: 1 |
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