Mali with its legendary city of Timbuktu and Concert of the Desert has been on my wish list. I tried to arrange a trip to Mali last year without success. I am glad to finally set foot in this marvellous country. Unfortunately, as the north including Timbuktu and the Dogon country is not safe, I have hardly seen much of the real Mali. In brief, our truck covered some 1000km in Mali and I spent a day in Segou, two days in Bamako, the capital and four days on a 25-km trail in the Mandingue country which was the birthplace of the Mali Empire.
Background
West Africa has witnessed three major empires in its history. They include the Empire of Ghana (around AD300 to the late 11th century), the Empire of Mali (from middle of the 13th century to 15th century) and the Empire of Songhai (from about 14th century to late 16th century).
Rock paintings and carvings have shown that northern Mali has been inhabited since 10,000 BC. By the 6th century AD, the Trans – Sahara trade in gold, salt and slaves had begun. From the 8th century to the 16th century, Mali formed the centerpiece of the great empires, most notably the Empires of Ghana, Mali and Songhai.
Mandigue country
Sundiata Keita founded the Empire of Mali with its capital in Niani in 1240. King Abubakari II sent an expedition across the Atlantic in an attempt to discover America almost two centuries before Christopher Columbus. His successor, King Kankan Musa (the grand-nephew of Sundiata Keita), a devout Muslim made his pilgrimage to Mecca accompanied by some 60,000 people. 500 slaves carried the gold which he gave away as gifts all the way. During this period, the trans-Sahara trade reached its peak and Mali’s main cities became centres of finance and culture.
The arrival of the European ships along the West African coast from the 15th century broke the monopoly of the powers of the Sahel kingdoms. The French expanded east from Senegal to Mali during the mid-19 century. By the end of the century, Mali was part of the French West Africa. France main interest in Mali was to develop it as a source of cheap cash crops for export.
Mali has been beset by problems and disasters since its independence in 1960. It was federated with Senegal for a few months. Under Mali’s first president, Modibo Keita, newly formed state corporations controlled the economy which wilted. Keita was overthrown by the army led by Moussa Traore in 1968. Five more coups took place from 1970 to 1990. The droughts of 1968-74 and 1980 to 85 made things worse and food shortages were constant.
Then Tuareg started to rebel in 1990 followed by calls for democratic development in Bamako. Peaceful demonstrations later turned into riots and the army led by General Amadou Toumani Toure seized control. Toure formed an interim government and resigned a year later. Alpha Oumar Konare, a scientist and writer, was elected president in June 1992 and his party, the Alliance for Democracy in Mali won a large majority in the national assembly. In 2002, Konare stood down as dictated by the new constitution. Amadou Toure was elected as president in April 2002. On many fronts, Mali has been regarded a model West African democracy. Unfortunately, its stability has been under the shadow of the Tuareg rebellions.
There are several major ethnic groups in Mali. The largest ethnic group is the Bambara in the centre and the south (33% of the population). Together with Malinke and Soninke, these three groups make up 50% of the population. Fulani who are pastoralists make up 17%, Senoufo 12%, the Dogon 7% living around the Banandiagara Escarpment and the Tuareg 6%. The Tuareg are traditionally nomadic pastoralists and traders living at the fringe of the Sahara. The majority of the population is Muslim.
Mali is one of the world’s ten poorest countries with a GDP (nominal) at US$9 billion and a GDP per capita of US$691 (2010 est.). But Mali is world famous for its sculptural, mask and music traditions which have remain strong as a result of the presence of a hereditary caste of musicians who are named griots.
The country has tremendous tourism assets given its history, people, culture, arts, music and landscape. It boosts four World Heritage Sites, namely the old town of Djenne, Timbuktu, cliff of Bandiagare (land of Dogons) and the tomb of Askia. Though tourism is the third largest export contributing some 2.5% of GDP, its development has been severely hampered by problems with the Tuareg and instability in the Dogon region.
Day 50 (Thursday, February 23): Djibasso, Burkina Faso –Djibasso, Mali – Segou, Mali(200km; 8hrs)
We set off at 7:30am and left Burkina Faso at 9:45am. But it took us over an hour and a half to go through the immigration check point on the Mali side. As a result, we did not arrive in Segou till 5pm.
Segou with a population of over 100,000 was once the capital of a Bambara kingdom till the early 19th century. We met Grand-pere, our 37-year old guide in Mali at Motel Savane. I was interested to see the town by night as we would not have time to visit the city the following day. Christian was the only one interested. So we set off on foot after dinner. As we did not have a map and the streets are fairly dark, we asked for directions many times. I find the place tidy and safe with a number of street food stalls. Finally we went to Soleil de Minute for a drink where three local musicians were playing kora.
Day 51: Segou – Bamako (250km; 5 hrs)
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In the morning, we took a pirogue to Kalabougou where pottery is made mainly by women. The pottery is fired in the main square at weekends. The scenery along the Niger River is interesting and pleasant with lots of birds and villagers working in their fields along the river. We walked around the village looking at how pottery is made before heading back to Segou.
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We had a sandwich at Soleil de Minute before setting off for Bamako around 1pm. It is a pity that we could not travel to Djenne and the Banandiagara Escarpment as a result of the travel warning. We also did not have time to visit the historic village of Segou Koro.
We arrived at Hotel Bamako Plage before 6pm. The hotel has a nice garden with a swimming pool and a beautiful view of the river. Mary and I took a suite with a fan for CFA30000.
At 10pm, the group went to Le Diplomate, which is said to be the best venue in Bamako with a classy crowd, sophisticated set-up and great music. The music did not start till 1130 and Bary, Mary, Nicole and I left at 1230am. The others did not leave till the end and went on to another night club. They told me I had missed Toumani Diabahte, a Grammy Award-winning kora player, one of the best Malian musicians who played with a band after we left. What a pity!
Day 52: Bamako
Bamako is as dry and hot as an oven. I had no motivation to do much. Nicole, Barry and I took a taxi to the National Museum. We paid an entrance fee of CFA 2500 and another CFA500 for a guided tour. The only English speaking guide was with another group and we were told he would join once he was available. No guide ever turned up but the ticket office refused to give a refund. If the so-called guided service is non-existent, I think the museum should simply provide audio-guide.
The museum has three sections with permanent collections of textiles, masks and statues and archaeological artifacts. My French, though poor, has enabled me to follow the explanations. The display on textiles is outstanding and the masks and statues are superb and remarkable. I wish I could visit the Dogon countries where a lot of the masks have come from.
We hanged around at the museum until almost 3pm. We paid another CFA2000 for a short ride to the Grand Mosque (A walk would take 10-15 minutes) which is close to the Grand Market, a fetish market and an artisan market. As a non-Muslim, I am not allowed to enter the compound of the mosque. I soon decided to walk on my own as I could not stand the strong smell from dead animals in the fetish stalls. Nicole had a hard bargain and got a head of hornbill for CFA2000 (down from CFA15000).
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The artisan market comprises of many workshops where goods are made and sold. There are plenty of shops selling jewelry, gold and silverwares, leather sandals, bags, wood carving etc. There were thousands of people and hundreds of cars, minivans all conjured up in a small area. At times, I had to walk on the road as the pedestrian path was impassable. The alleys in the old town are narrow. I soon got tired of the heat, the noise and the crowd and took a taxi to return to the hotel.
I asked the taxi driver how much he earned and how much his family of four needs to spend on food a day. He said life is fine but expensive in Bamako. His salary is about CFA35000 and his family has to spend around CFA2500 a day on food alone. Life is not easy but he seems content!
It was Naomi’s last night with the group and Lisa would have her birthday the following day. Grand-pere arranged a group of musicians to perform in the lawn at sunset. It’s atmospheric with the setting sun and the river behind the musicians.
We had a dinner together at the hotel. I ordered fish and was surprised to see two big grilled fish on the plate. Both the fish and spaghetti were delicious. Though we were keen to sample the famous night life in Bamako, no one seemed to have the energy to drag oneself out for another late night out. We all went to bed early!
Days 53- 56: 4-day trek in the Mandingue country (about 25km)
I got up before 7am and said goodbye to Naomi just before she jumped into a taxi.We set off at 10am and drove some 45km to Siby. As it was too hot for trekking, we stayed in the café where we had a nice couscous lunch till 3pm. Ant dropped us off where we began our hike.
We saw a large group of villagers fishing catfish in a muddy pond. They all had a net in hand and during the rainy season, they can have a good catch.
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We walked for less than an hour and arrived at Konkani where we camped. Children gathered around us. We watched a teenager girl plaiting her younger sister’s hair. Jess and Nicole decided to have their hair plaited. As Nicole has long and very fine hair, it took two ladies to do her hair for over an hour! Anne-Marie, Lisa and Barb played with the children before and after dinner. The kids had a great time.
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During the trek, we had Naifi as the cook. This makes life simple as we do not need to shop, plan a menu and above all cook. Naifi is a very good cook and we had delicious mutton with plenty of vegetables.
Though the country is dry and hot, I am glad that there is plenty of underground water. Hence, the villages are well-served with wells. I did not feel too guilty to ask for a small bucket of water for a wash. During the trek, I shared a tent with Nicole. She had a bad cold and I worried that I might catch it as well. (I did catch a cold which lasted for two weeks)
On the second day, we had a tour of the village for an hour before starting our hike. A few men were busy building a hut and a lady was decorating her hut with her mud hand-print. We also met a proud young mom with her twin babies.
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Around 10:15am we arrived in Dogoro, a village with about 500 inhabitants. We took another walk to the hillside to visit the remains of some old Dogon houses from where the Dogon people originate before they left the Mandigue area.
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I found the heat unbearable. Grand-pere laid out a few mattresses under the mango tress for us to lie down and rest till 3pm. We walked for an hour and a half and reached Djoulafondo with some 1,000 inhabitants. We had a vegetarian meal as the beef did not arrive in time for cooking. Grand-pere lit a fire and arranged the locals to play music. The village came to life with a hundred children and women dancing to the magical rhythms by the fire.
We had a leisure day on Day 3 in Djoulafondo and did not start trekking till 3pm. In the morning, I had a nice walk around the village watching the women in the field. While Lisa, Barb and Anne-Maria joined an English class, I talked to some girls who hanged outside the classroom as they had no class. They took me to see brick-making and I showed them how to use my Nikon single-lens reflex camera to take pictures. They were thrilled as they had never set their hands on such a camera. I took several pictures for them and promised to send them the pictures one day.
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When it was a bit cooler, we set off for the Arch of Kamadjam where we bush camped. We took about an hour and a half to reach our destination. The scenery is fantastic – a bit like the wild west of the States! Grand-pere invited his friend to come and play music and we sat by the fire till 10pm.
The night was very hot and even the wind was not cool. The air was stuffy and did not cool down till 3 or 4am in the morning. I hardly had any sleep. Nicole’s cold got worse and she was coughing the whole night.
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We got up early and had a hike to the arch. Part of the slope is steep and I moved cautiously while Mike, Jesse, Mary and Barb climbed effortlessly. Then we walked to the main road where Ant met us with the truck at 12 noon.
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We were back in the Bamako Plage in the early afternoon. I found the heat unbearable. This time, Mary and I got a room with air-conditioning by paying CFA34000. The money is worth spending. That evening, I started coughing and could not sleep well. I knew I would be in trouble.
Day 57: Drive from Bamako – Sandre (bush camping) (400 km; 10 hrs)
We had a long driving day and bush camped en route to Diboli. I did not feel well: my bones were aching and I had a temperature. I got up several times during the night and had little sleep!
Day 58 (Friday, March 2): Sandre – Kayes –Diboli, Mali – Kidira, Senegal (300km; 5hrs)
We were back on the road before 6:30am and drove some 150km to Kayes, the principal settlement in western Mali with a population of over 133,000. We headed straight to the Fort de Medine which was the first fort built by the French in Mali along the Senegal River.
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The fort looks small and soft as its colour scheme is white and pink with grey iron windows built in French style. Though it is much smaller that the Cape Coast Castle and the Elmina Castle, it is compact, tranquil overlooking the Senegal River with a railway station. As usual, there is a slave market and a‘Door of No Return’ which is less imposing than those at the other two castles.
We set off after lunch around 1pm. It took us another two hours before reaching Diboli. The people look darker and I noticed plenty of trucks on the road to both Senegal and Mauritania. Things were slow at the border at Diboli though we had no problem. It just took time and finally we left the Malian soil before 4pm.
Remarks
Mali has been top of my list for a long time. I attempted to arrange a visit last year by contacting some local agents for the Festival of the Desert. I got no response and dropped the idea when the situation seemed unstable. I went to Ethiopia instead.
I am pleased to finally set foot on Mali. The landscape I have seen is not as impressive as I have thought. But the people I met on the 4-day village trek are nice and friendly. Life in the village is simple and harsh. But they look happy and have not asked for money (as I have experienced in Ethiopia). I am pleased to take photos for them and hope to send some of the pictures to them one day.
But I have yet to see Mali at its best. I am nowhere near Timbuktu, Djenne and the Dogon countries. The Festival of the Desert remains a mystery. As few tourists had been kidnapped or killed, I can understand Dragoman’s decision to avoid these areas. Anyway, I have to find another occasion to come back to visit the Dogon country, Djenne, Timbuktu and Gao in the north and the east, and to see the Festival in the Desert at Essakane and the Festival Sur le Niger.