Bamako and other Mali Things to Do Tips

Bamako is the capital of Mali and is thought to have been founded in the 16th century. It was initially named Bamba Kong after its founder, later to be shortened to Bamako, meaning the 'posterity of Bamba'.

Bamako is a typical African city, which suffers greatly from overcorwding with a population of over one million.

As elsewhere there is traffic jams, pollution, noise, dust and of course the heat, making this a place you may not wish to linger.

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Segou, Mali's second city, is one of the country's richest areas and a good introduction to 'the bush'.

Sights worth seeing include the River Niger, an Arts and Crafts Emporium, historic villages, some picturesque architecture and a very colourful market.

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Djenne has two claims to fame its incredibly colourful and famous Monday market and being home to the largest mud-brick building in the world: Djenne Mosque.

Its origin dates back to the 13th cenetury but it fell into ruins in the beginning of the 19th century. The present day mosque dates from 1907 and is regularly repaired and updated after the rains by up to 4000 people working on the structure, using the wooden sticks - or torons - as scaffolding.

The three 10m high minarets are topped with an ostrich egg. The huge interior (not accessible to non-Muslims) complete with 90 pillars, holds 5000 people. The small holes in the roof which allow light to enter the inside are covered up with ceramic lids in the rainy season.

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Before exploring the archeological site of Djenne Djeno, it is highly recommended to visit the nearby museum. This will give you some grounding of how the area once looked, as there is really very little to see at the site itself.

Foundations of mud-brick houses and a city wall have been uncovered here and the ground is completely covered in pottery shards. I found this most peturbing - walking on all this important heritage! Dating from 250BC, it is the oldest known city in West Africa.

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Endemic to Africa, the baobab tree gets its name from the Arabic word 'bu hibab' which means 'fruit with many seeds'. Affectionatel known as the upside down tree - its short branches look more like roots - the baobab tree is usually 40-50ft high with a very thick truck. \the sour fruits are dible, although I have never tried one.

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The Bandiagara Escarpment is 20km long and the home to hundeds of Dogon villages and settlements.

Bandiagara is the largest town on the plateau and usually the starting point for treks into the area.

The scenery is stunning with steep cliff faces and changing colours according to the time of day.

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There are 350,000 Dogon people living in this area, but it is hard to generalise about their architecture, beliefs and dances. This whole area is full of surprises and traditions, and you should never enter a Dogon village without introducing yourself to the chief first.

By hiring a local Dogon guide, much of the tradition and taboos will be explained to you. Some days prior to our visit to a village, some individual travellers had trampled all over a sacred site in the village sqaue. This had terribly upset the entire community, and it was by only gentle persuation and with a great many reassurances, that we were allowed to enter.

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Directions: From above the village blends very well with the rocks, looking merely like an extention of a gerat heap of stone. It isn't until you get down to the level of the plain, that you realise that a whole community live here.

The Dogon survive by farming small plots of land on the plateau or the plain, in fact wherever there is water. The main crops are millet, sorghum and onions. Grain is stored in square granaries with a conical thatched roof.

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Although a great number of Dogon have converted to Islam, most are still animists, worshipping not a living god, but objects and phonomena. Their society is still ruled by complex symbolism and cosmology where everything is infused with meaning and significance.

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With some of the best examples of Tellem architecture, Ireli is one of the most photogenic of all the cliff villages.

Houses, grain stores and burial tombs are created in almost inaccibly high positions on the cliff side. Legend has it that the Tellem, who built most of these villages, had magical powers and could turn themselves into giants and reach their homes in one large step.

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