Day 14 - Dassa-Zoume to Djougou
After a night in the hardest bed in the world M woke early to join the climb to a voodoo temple overlooking the town. The story behind the temple was that when the king died the people took his body to the top of the mountain, however once they reached the top it turned into a snake and disappeared into the forest. The climb wasn't difficult and had good views, along the way we saw the signs of old rituals, including blood and animal bones. At the top we met the priest who had just completed his morning ritual, burning palm oil in a small circle of animal bones.
After breakfast we journeyed further north, stopping to see the Dankoli fetish, the most important voodoo shrine in Benin.
It was mounds of chicken feathers, bright orange palm oil and sticks. If you paid to make a wish you were given a pointed stick to hammer into the mound, then you would pour alcohol and palm oil onto it. We were told that the bigger the wish the higher the cost, as you were asking more of the gods so had to compensate them appropriately. More money means bigger wishes, but if you didn't have money you could sacrifice an animal instead.
We then watched a local make a sacrifice involving slitting the throat of a live chicken and pouring its blood on the mound. As we were leaving a group arrived with a goat, but we were told we would need to pay if we wanted see the sacrifice.
We made it to our hotel early that afternoon, so after check in we continued our tour with a visit to the local market, where we were generally welcomed by the locals with a smile and interest.
After the market we visited a village of the Taneka people, where they live in small compounds of mud brick homes, these people consist of multiple ethnicities who had escaped the slave trade to move to this area. We first had to meet the elderly chief, before touring the village.
The women were arriving home from working on the crops and children were arriving home from school, so by the time we left we had gathered a group of very friendly children who insisted on holding our hands and guiding us around.
Our guide showed us different scars on the locals faces and bodies, and it was explained how this shows a person's ethnic group. Many of the scars are made while still a baby, so most people don't have any memory of the initiation process.
We finished the day in the town of Djougou, and for dinner we "enjoyed" a meal of guinea fowl and rice.
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