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  Djenné Mud Mosque & Dogon Architecture

mud mosque

From Timbuktu, we flew back to Mopti. From there we got a car and drove to Djenné, one of the oldest towns in West Africa. It was still hot and flat, with perhaps a bit more trees than up north and the occassional grove of mango trees. The architecture was also a bit different, more in the Dogon style. At times it was like being in Taos or Santa Fe, with a sort of Kon-tiki tribal flair.

riverfront in Mopti

Mopti riverfront

 

Dogon granaries

Dogon architecture

 

Dogon granary

 

woman pounding millet

pounding millet

 

bushel grid

bushels and buildings

 

two red windows (up by Timbuktu actually)

building

 

goat in the shade of cart

goat in shade of cart

 

The Ferry Crossing

Before we got to Djenné, we had to cross the Niger. The Niger is the lifeline of Mali. It seems every important town or city in Mali hugs the Niger. Djenné itself is actually on an island of the river.

 

how they roll in Mali

niger ferry

 

approaching Djenné

Djenne donkeys

 

Djenné street scene

Djenne street

 

kid chasing kid

boy chasing goats

 

the 3-story mosque, the largest mud structure in the world

djenne goats

 

inside a typical home

Djenne home

 

pottery

 

rooftops of Djenné

rooftops of Djenne

 

door

djenne door

 

Djenné manuscript library

manuscript library

 

boy carrying water

water boy

 

haughty textile hawker

haughty hawker

 

like something out of a fairy tale

Djenne Mud Mosque

After lunching in Djenné, we went back across the ferry to Mopti, then to Bandiagara in the heart of Dogon country...

 

 

ONWARD TO DOGON COUNTRY

 


 

(c) 2009 Derek White

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