Sight Seeing in the South

Le Lac du Togoville

Example of Catholic influence:

Togoville is the city that Togo was named after (meaning water coast).  Pope John Paul II visisted here and built a bridge from the water to the Catholic Church that is now used like a seminary.  The legend is that a former pagan went out on the lake, saw the spirit of Mary, and rushed back to tell the village of his conversion. 

Slave Trade Memorial

The slave trade memorial we visited was out in the middle of a grass plain near the ocean.  It had a simple brick boarder with a plaque and a well.  The well was used to purify returning slaves and wash them clean of their memories abroad so they would not want to go back or be influenced by other cultures.

Virgin Forest

Example of traditional African belief in voodoos, or mystic gods:

Here, there is a blocked off area of land where people live according to very primitive and traditional African lifestyle.  We did not go into the forest, but walked around the outside village to see how they live, where they keep their voodoos, and observe the food sacrifices they make for their ancestors. 

The two most common religions are Muslim and Christian.  There are mosques and churches everywhere.  The influence of colonial missions can be seen with prevalent catholic churches, however many Christian Africans may still go to see a traditional priest in crisis.