Ghana, Togo & Benin

Day notes

Upon your arrival into Accra’s Kotoka International Airport at 19:55 on flight KL 589, you’ll be given assistance as you complete the immigration formalities and customs procedures you’ll be escorted to your waiting vehicle and driver that will be facilitating your transfer to your overnight accommodation at the Accra City Hotel, in a standard room with air conditioning and a private bathroom.

Ghana is ideal for first time travellers to Africa. Its people are friendly and they are justifiably proud. Formerly the Gold Coast it is built on gold and was once West Africa’s wealthiest and mightiest empire. In 1957 it became the first Sub-Saharan colony to be granted independence.

Day notes

After breakfast, you shall spend the morning exploring Accra on a city tour, visiting the National Museum, one of the first works of independent Ghana. The idea inspiring the Museum is to relate Ghana art to the rest of the continent and to prove the existence of an African history as part of general history of Humanity. After this, you head to the old quarter of Jamestown, inhabited by the autochthonous population known as the Ga. The main activity of the area is smoking the fish. It also has a very attractive view over the fishing harbour.

Finally, you will meet the craftsmen who specialize in building fantasy coffins. These handcrafted-coffins are in shape of fruits, animals, fish, cars, airplanes…. and the only limit to what they can build is the intended occupant’s imagination. This trend, started in Africa, these flamboyant coffin designs are collected worldwide and exposed in museums – a uniquely Ghanaian experience.

After this, you continue by road to the Togo border and into Lome the only African city to have been colonised by the French, British and Germans, for your overnight arrangements at the Sarakawa Hotel on a full board basis. The distance being driven is approximately 210 kilometres and will take roughly 4 hours.

Day notes

This morning you will head into the city of Lome for a tour, including visiting the central market with its famous ‘Nana Benz’ women who control the market of the ‘pagne’ (clothes) coming from Europe and sold all over West Africa. After this you will be visiting the fascinating fetish market, where animal parts are sold for use in traditional medicines. You will then meet with a traditional healer, who will display some of his ‘gris-gris’, homemade medicines designed to help with everyday ailments! You will then return to your vehicle for the journey to Ouidah, crossing the border into Benin for your overnight arrangements at the Casa del Papa. Total driving distance today is approximately 150 kilometres, taking roughly 3 hours.

Day notes

This morning, you will cross the Lake Nokwe in a motorized boat to reach Ganvie, the largest and most beautiful of the African stilt villages. The village is home to approximately 25,000 inhabitants, of the Tofinou ethnic group. The Tofinou build their huts on teak stilts and cover the roofs with a thick layer of leaves. Fishing is their main pastime. The village has been able to preserve its particular customs and environment as despite the long-lasting human presence in a closed environment, the lake is not over fished.

Life begins each day within the canoes that men, women and children manoeuvre with ease using brightly coloured poles. It is with these canoes that men fish, women deliver goods to the market and children go to school and play! After your visit to Ganvie, you travel to Abomey where you shall visit the Royal Palace. The walls of the palace are decorated with bas-reliefs representing symbols of the ancient Dahomey kings. Now a museum listed on the World Heritage by UNESCO, the palace displays the items belonging to the ancient kings: thrones, ancient cult altars, statues, costumes and weapons. Here you can learn about this Kingdom whose economy was for a long time based on the slave trade. A permanent state of war made it possible for the Kings to capture thousands of prisoners that they then sold as slaves. In the middle of the royal courtyard is found a temple built with a mixture of clay and human blood. Your overnight arrangements will be at the Hotel Jeko. The total drive distance today is approximately 250 kilometres, taking roughly 5 hours.

Day notes

Today you head to Sokode and make a stop at the Dankoli fetish, an important place of the Voodoo cult. Here, thousands of little sticks are pushed in to the fetish as witnesses of the countless prayers made to the local god. Once the prayers are answered, people return to sacrifice what they promised to the fetish, be that a goat, a chicken or a cow according to the nature of the prayer. Traces of blood, palm alcohol and palm oil on the fetish prove that a lot of pilgrims had their prayers answered.

In the afternoon, you will discover some of the old Taneka Villages, located on the mountain with the same name. The villages comprise of round houses, covered with a conical roof protected by a terracotta pot at the peak. The upper part of the village is inhabited by the young initiates and by the fetish priests who only cover themselves with a goat skin and always carry a long pipe! The tribe has been living on an archaeological site for centuries. In fact it looks as if the first inhabitants ,moved to the mountain during the 9th century. Since then, other populations have joined the village, thus forming a melting pot of cultures, where, despite each group keeping its own cults and initiation rites, common religious and political institutions have been defined! As you wander along alleys bordered with smooth stones, you may come across many half naked men. The Taneka believe that in order to become a man, it is necessary to combine: time, patience and a lot of blood from sacrificed animals. You will be staying overnight at the Hotel Tata Somba. The total driving distance today is approximately 350 kilometres, taking roughly 6 hours.

Day notes

After breakfast, you will head across the Atakora mountain chain, where you’ll be entering the land of the Tamberma and Somba people, who live in fortified dwellings which look just like small medieval castles and are therefore one of the most beautiful examples of ancient African architecture! Their style impressed Le Corbusier, who talked about ‘sculptural architecture’. In fact, these houses are entirely hand-built, layer by layer, putting round balls of mud shaped following the design of the house. It is a kind of sensual technique mixing strength, delicacy and aestheticism.

Their strong traditional beliefs are proved by the presence of big shrines of a phallic form, at the entrance of their homes. With the permission of the inhabitants you’ll enter one of their houses so you can better the way they live. Actually their houses are a projection of their anthropology and cosmology: the first floor which is normally very dark, represents death: it is the place where the ancestors rest; the second floor, open to the sky, represents life: it is where the grandmother keeps the new-born baby until she has figured out which ancestor has come back to life through the baby.

The whole family, food and animals are kept inside the house so they would all survive in case enemies attacked the castle like structure. For centuries these populations have been seeking refuge in the hard to access Atakora chain of mountains in order to escape from slave trade practiced by Northern Muslim African merchants.

This evening you will get to witness a fantastic fire dance. In the centre of the village a large fire lights up the faces of the participants, who dance to the hypnotic beat of the drums eventually leaping into the glowing embers. They pick up burning coals and pass them over their bodies and even put them in their mouths without injuring themselves or showing any sign of pain. You will be staying overnight at the Hotel Central in Sokode. The total driving distance today is approximately 180 kilometres, taking roughly 4 hours.

Day notes

After breakfast at the Hotel Central, you head south, stopping en route in Atakpame, a typical African town built on a hill where it is possible to find all of the goods that are produced and sold from the nearby forests! Through their skilled work on small weaving looms, the men of the region make the large brightly colours fabric called ‘Kente’.

From Atakpame, you continue to the tropical forests surrounding Kpalime, a town with a rich colonial past which is now an important trading centre. Here you’ll pay a visit to the market and the arts centre.

Tonight, you will be heading out into the forest to discover the mysterious world of the tropical forest with its majestic tropical trees, sound of tam-tams and the echoes of wild animals in the distance! Under the tutelage of a local entomologist you will learn about the endemic butterflies and insects of the forest. Overnight you’ll be staying at the Auberge JP Nectar on a full board basis. The total driving distance today is approximately 290 kilometres, taking around 5 hours.

Day notes

You cross into Ghana today and head towards the Volta region. The Monkey Sanctuary of Tafi Atome was created in 1993 to protect a community of sacred monkeys living in then forest. According to century old traditions, in this village, monkeys and tortoises are considered sacred. Demanding respect and protection – in particular the monkeys and the ‘spokespeople’ of the tortoises! Here you’ll enjoy a walk in the forest with a local guide to encounter the large community of Monas and Colobus monkeys!

After your time in the forest, you continue to the region inhabited by the Krobo people, who are famous for the manufacture of their glass beads. These are produced here and used for the cults and also for aesthetic purposes. You’ll visit one of the factories, watching the entire process that they follow to make these beads.

The craftsmen have been making beads following the same long lasting traditional techniques for centuries. They use scrap glass that is then ground into a find powder. The powder is then meticulously formed into patterns and places into hand-made clay moulds covered in kaolin. The beads are then cooked, decorated, washed and eventually strung. Overnight you’ll be staying at the Afrikoko Resort on a full board basis in your standard room. The total driving distance today will be approximately 200 kilometres, taking around 5 hours.

Day notes

Today, you leave the Afrikoko Resort after breakfast, heading towards Kumasi. This journey will take approximately 5 hours, covering some 250 kilometres. Kumasi is the historical and spiritual capital of the old Ashanti Kingdom. The Ashanti people were one of the most powerful nations in Africa until the end of the 19th century, when the British annexed the Ashanti country to their Gold Coast colony. The homage paid today to the Asantehene (=King) is the best evidence of the past splendor and strength of the Ashanti.

In Kumasi, you can assist in the production of the prescious Adinkra cloth that is used by the Ashanti for their ceremonies, including their funerals. Also on the agenda if time permits is a visit to the Ashanti Cultural Center, which has a rich collection of Ashanti artifacts housed in a wonderful reproduction of an Ashanti house.

In the afternoon, you will attend (if available) a traditional Ashanti funeral attended by mourners wearing beautifully red or black togas. We say “funerals” but in fact we mean a “festive” celebration: the deceased is considered being still present in his family. The relatives and friends gather, socialize and celebrate his memory. The chief arrives surrounded by his court in the shade of large umbrellas as drums give rhythm to the dancers whose intricate moves are highly symbolic.

Your overnight arrangements will be at the Miklin Hotel on a full board basis in your standard room with air-conditioning and private bathroom.

Day notes

After breakfast, you continue your exploration of Kumasi by visiting the Royal Palace Museum, with its unique collection of golden jewellery. After a tour of this museum, you will be greeted by an Ashanti chief, wrapped in his traditional ceremonial fabrics, who will receive you into his court and spend time talking with you about the customs of his people. It will be a very formal atmosphere, like a royal court, but the ice will slowly break and the chief will open up with you more about his great people. From here we drive to Anomabu on the coast for your overnight stay at the Anomabu Beach Resort. The driving distance today is approximately 250 kilometres, taking approximately 4 hours.

Day notes

Today you head to Elmina. Elmina is a name that is linked to the story of Africa as well as to history itself. In 1482 Christopher Columbus and Bartolommeo Diaz arrived here with ten caravels in order to build a castle under Portuguese authority. This place had been chosen following the discovery of gold mines in the area. This is how the story of Elmina started: a castle, a port, a village, all in contact with European populations for more than five centuries. The castle that we visit today is the result of successive extension works made by Portuguese, Dutch, English, and local authorities. Over the centuries, the castle has served as a warehouse for gold, ivory, precious wood and also for slaves. Today, the castle is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

The city of Elmina is a typical fishing port from where hundreds of large colorful pirogues leave every day to brave the Ocean. Wandering in the narrow streets of Elmina, you can breathe the lively and historic atmosphere of this small fishing town. The former Portuguese buildings, today inhabited by the locals, are located just next to the temples of the ‘Asafo Companies’, where the warriors still leave their offerings on great colourful statues.

You will also visit the salt mines, the Catholic Church that overlooks the city and the old Dutch cemetery. Before being driven back to Accra for your overnight arrangements at the Accra City Hotel

Day notes

You have the day at your leisure before you will be driven to the Kotoka International Airport to connect with your onward international arrangements, departing on flight KL 590, departing at 22:05.