Djennè town

We decided to stay on the roof at Chez Baba's because it was cheap, warm and would be cool to sleep under the stars. Luckily we were provided with a mattress and a mozzie net, and could store our bags in a locked room while we wandered around during the day. After washing the smells from the horror bus off, we headed for the mud mosque.

Djennè's mosque is made completely from mud and has distinctive wooden planks jutting out from it's towers. These are where the builders climb on and re-apply another layer of mud to the walls after each rainy season washes some of the structure away. Unfortunately, the mosque had some building work being done to it when we were there, including some repairs on a fallen tower. But you could still see how impressive the mosque was - the largest mud structure in the world.

Also unfortunate, was the fact that due to an unsavoury photoshoot with an Italian photographer and some partially naked models, no tourists are allowed inside the mosque, even though it is a fully functioning place of worship. We found this out when the calls of Islamic prayer belted out of the loudspeakers in the early hours of the morning. The market place in front of the mosque is busy on Monday, but as we walked through on Friday we did manage to see everyone come for weekly afternoon prayers.

Hassle in Djennè came thick and fast - probably more noticeable because, apart from a handful of expats in the past month, we had not seen many tourists at all. In Djennè there were tour groups and guides springing from every doorway. It took a bit of getting used to, but we just ignored all the touts and guides and did our own thing (see Senossa, next blog). Another thing was people around the mosque inviting you into their houses for a fee, so that you could get an ariel view of the mosque. Bit of a rip off, but on our second day there me and Dree took a guy up on his offer and got half a view obscured by a tree from a rooftop. On the way down, an elderly man started shouting at the guy and essentially chased him out - the cheeky bugger had just waltzed into someone else's house to make use of the roof and get a quick buck!

Aside from getting inundated with annoying guide offers, we walked around most of Djennè's small streets in peace, with only the shouts of children following us. Some took a particular interest in Kerry's hair, and took a lot of enjoyment in pulling it. One sad thing is that the kids all shout "Donne moi un cadeau/argent" (Give me a present/money), as they see tourists pass.

The streets and mud architecture of Djennè are unique , and as such have been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. There are only one or two roads that have cars go down them, and as such Djennè has a special feel to it. A lot of the streets are barely wide enough for a donkey cart to pass through, and we took a few wrong turns in the labyrinth along the way. The smells are another thing though. As the town progressed and more tourists visited, along came the idea of have a sewage system. In theory this is a good idea, but the small channels that run down each street are full of waste and piles of rubbish are stacked up around the edge of the island town.

We went to see another 'highlight' in the guide book during the afternoon - the Sacred Well of Nana Wangara. Legend has it that it was a gift from a Moroccan ruler to his favourite wife, who resented the other concubines. Oh, and it can see into the future. Trying to find it was a mission, but we wished we hadn't. Taken through a few doorways into a private courtyard, where washing lines hung and cooking pots lay, we were shown a hole in the ground, and then asked to pay over a quid each for the privilege. Not really worth the effort to find it.

Sleeping on the roof made up for any disappointment though. The intense heat from the day was kept in the mud walls and roofs and the lack of lights in the town meant for a clear view of the night sky. Saying that, we were up at dawn because of the cold (as the heat from the day before vanishes during the night), and the sun rises over the mud roofs like a torch in the eyes! A great experience though.