Trip Details at-a-Glance
| Cost From: | $5595 |
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| Length: | 15 days |
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| Activity: | Walking, Archaeology, Cultural Adventures |
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| Difficulty: |
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Thriving traditional cultures, renowned art forms, flamboyantly colorful festivals, mask dances, and a dazzling ethnic mosaic are the golden gems of tribal West Africa. Our fantastic cultural odyssey brings us across remote reaches of Ghana, Togo, and Benin to discover lost tribal worlds guided by ancient spirits. All of our journeys witness special festivals—from the Akwasidae, a spectacular homage to the Ashanti king in Kumasi (March 2010 departure), to the Egun mask dances of the Yoruba villages of southern Benin (December 2010 departure). Along the way, we meet unforgettable people including the Taberma, whose fairytale clay castles are spectacular examples of uniquely African architecture. We finish on the coast, the heart of voodoo country, visiting practitioners, watching trance-dances, and learning about the awesome power the voodoo spirits still hold over people.
$5595 (11-15 members)
$5795 (7-10 members)
$5995 (4-6 members)
Single supplement: $950
Prices are for 2010 dates
Mar 17-31, 2010 Noah Katcha
Dec 1-15, 2010
Reading list, click here.
We visit Ghana’s National Museum, with its striking ethnographic collection, then head along the palm-fringed coast to the 15th century Portuguese fortress of St. George de la Mina, entering its evocative slave dungeons and peaking through the “Door of No Return,” where captives were taken to awaiting ships. We also visit Kakum National Park, which protects a fragment of Ghana’s former rainforest.
The Ashanti Kingdom was once one of the most powerful nations in Africa. In Kumasi, the Ashanti “capital,” our explorations include the market as well as the fascinating Ashanti Cultural Center. Our March departure witnesses the festive Akwasidae, an homage to the Ashanti king held outside the Royal Palace, with songs, dances, and royal procession of Ashanti chiefs adorned in golden ornaments.
Traversing a baobab-dotted landscape that was once a caravan route between Ghana’s Gold Coast and the vast Sahara, we visit the tiny villages of the Gondja tribe. Entering northern Benin, we meet the Dagomba people, with their round clay huts with thatched roofs, and the isolated Tamberma and Somba, famous for their spectacular defensive architecture of fortified adobe castles complete with turrets. We also visit an ancient Taneka village inhabited by fetish priests and the encampments of Fulani herders.
As we head south through Benin toward the coast, we visit Abomey, with its eerie Royal Palace of the Dahomey king. Our December departure witnesses an Egun mask dance among the Yoruba and Tom tribes. Near Lomé, Togo’s capital, we meet traditional healers at a “voodoo hospital,” visit a fetish market, and watch a real voodoo ceremony accompanied by hypnotic rhythm of chanting and drums.
The Krobo region near Accra is world famous for its glass beads, long used as trade goods. This morning we visit a bead company to see how these complex multi-colored glass beads are made. Evening departure on homeward-bound flights.
This is the Itinerary-at-a-Glance. For the complete trip description, Download Full Trip Brochure