Djenne (MLI) : a trading and religious centre

N 13°54.367' W 004°33.263'
A few 100 km up-river, Djenne is famous for its sudanese-style mosque, first contructed in the 13th century. It was thus appropriate that our journey there would include a little adventure. 5 km from Djenne a side-arm of the Boni River must be crossed by ferry. As the water was only knee-deep however, the ferry was grounded and the challenge stood to cross the 20 m of river. By the time we removed some luggage from the bike and had waded the river twice night had fallen. I did then managed to cross ‘la nave’safely to the other side by moonlight – in return the ice-cold beer at Chez Babab tasted all the better. The mosque is spectacular, especially as it had recently received its annual recladding with mud. Besides a short walk in the early morning, the heat (40°C +) had us condemned to our room. In the evenings we shared cold beers and had interesting conversations with Benno and Tecla, a Dutch couple who previously have traveled for many months trough Africa (twice) and South America on an Enfield 350 with trailer!