Blogs from Mali, Africa - page 3

IMAGES OF MALI...ROCK ON ROCK IN DOGON COUNTRY The top of the falaise was rock, rock and more rock, appeared to be ironstone on sandstone...& we went up and down, by, and along until we rocked into Konsogou-Ley for a cup of tea, and "Welcome, welcome, you are very welcome" from our host as he played his own composition on his dogon guitar...and of course we danced...and hugged as we left...a very special time...and a highlight of the trek. Further rock hopping, climbing, winding, up, down and around...until we arrived at Dourou...a village split in half by a massive crack in the rock...and that is what there was...rock, rock and more rock...1,000 people living there...in a severe landscape... The accomodation was not condusive to pleasant sleeping...all inside, windowless and no free rooves...so we mixed with ... read more

IMAGES OF MALI...DANCING IN DOGON COUNTRY...ENNDE We can hear the drumming as we approach Ennde, a more substantial village at the foot of the cliff...4,000 cfa each OK..."here come and sit here" as we are led to the very front row...and an hour of flashing feathers, rustling raffia, pulsating dancing, masks, stilts, athletic bodies... with a cricket bat rock monolith as backdrop...a photograher's paradise known as the festival of the Danses des Masques... Our own mud campement tonight...showers...heaven for the girls...G & T's with our guides and members of the festival band...it does not get better than this! Buying mud cloth, masks & Dogon jewellery...always room for more...to add to my Dogon walking stick that I am determined to get back to Oz... Yabatalou for lunch, massage and siesta...and the odd first aid...a big dance session ... read more

IMAGES OF MALI.....DJENNE.....MUD TOWN OF DREAMS... On an island in the Bani River, accessed by ferry from the riverbank to the ancient mud town of Djenne (pronounced "Jenny"), we have arrived in my destination from childhood dreams... And a mud town it still is... Each year the Mud Mosque of Djenne, the largest banco or mud building in the world, requires repair...where mud has washed off in rain...and the mud artisans show their amazing skills...and remain in employment... But concrete, some think should change that... Unlike mud (baked in the sun mixed with straw or otherwise), concrete does not degrade or wash away in rain and is stronger...so some believe concrete is better than mud... But fortunately traditions and United Nations Heritage Listing has protected Djenne to remain a traditional and spectacular mud town. Welcome to ... read more

THE MUD MOSQUES OF MALI The Mud Mosque at Djenne captured my imagination from the pictures in books from my childhood...an exotic image that remained with me...but as I have now been there...the images are real and indelibly printed in my psyche... I photograhed as many Mud Mosques as I could as I danced through Mali. Mali is a predominately Muslim nation, so each village has a mosque. There is the occasional Christian mud church. However, as it does not erode in rain, concrete is being used in the construction of some village mosques, sometimes painted pink or light blue. There is pressure to replace mud with concrete...but there is opposition as mud artisans are an ancient traditional craft...and every village can make mud bricks if there is a pool of water nearby...and the expense is ... read more

Goodbye to Mali - last day was 13th February, 2011 We had one day's rest back in Timbuktu after the festival and I spent a fair bit of time cleaning out our packs and trying to get rid of as much of the Sarah sand as possible and having a well earned shower and clean up. We decided to have a fancy dinner on our last night in Timbuktu and we were not disappointed. The special restaurant that we went to also had a very important diner who had a lot of protection and the two streets surrounding the restaurant were very protected by local police and lots of guns........(two Hi-Lux uteswith 50cal machine guns mouted in the back of each ute and plenty of armed soldiers as well),,,,not sure who the important person was but ... read more