Weekend Escapades

 

On Friday afternoon, I took a bus to Bobo-Dioulasso along with my house-mate, Rebecca.  Bobo, as the city is affectionately called, is Burkina Faso's second largest city.  Our bus seemed fairly new, but we were disappointed to find that it looked much better on the outside than within.  It was almost a 6 hour ride to our destination however, and since the bus was air-conditioned, we didn't complain.  

Our bus

Bobo, with its tree-lined streets, seemed much greener than Ouaga. We stayed overnight with a friend of Rebecca's, another teacher displaced from Mali, who was temporarily living in the city.  We arranged to meet her at a very nice hotel, the Hotel Auberge, and had a meal there at some tables overlooking the hotel's inviting swimming pool.

Rebecca and her friend Renee, both teachers

We did some sight-seeing the next day, and I visited the old quarter along with the grand mosque, the later dating from the 19th century.

We appreciated the shade-lined streets of Bobo

Grand Mosque

This is the oldest building in the old quarter and dates from the 11th century according to the plaque

The train station taken from afar as it is not supposed to be photographed

The following day we continued our bus ride on to Banfora, about an hour's drive away.  Banfora is even greener than Bobo, and is known as the breadbasket of Burkina Faso, because of the many crops grown and harvested there. This included sizable amounts of land devoted to rice, corn and sugar cane.  

Although we arrived in the evening when it was already dark, we got up early the next morning to visit the Lake Tangrela where we watched some hippopotomus from afar.

If you use your imagination you can see the hippos in the distance

That same afternoon, we had a guide take us to the Cascades of Karfiguela, a series of waterfalls, where a crowd of people were bathing in what is known as the "little pool" and a handful of braver souls jumping into the so-called "big pool."  Rebecca is quite athletic and tried the later, but as I didn't bring a swimsuit, I had a ready excuse.

Enjoying the cool spray from the falls

In the late afternoon, after a passing cloud brought a cooling sprinkle of rain, we enjoyed climbing the the Dômes of Fabédougou.  These natural land formations are the result of centuries upon centuries of wind and water erosion.

The Dômes of Fabédougou--I am actually fairly high up

We also very much enjoyed the lovely Cascades Palace Hotel, and its restaurant, in Banfora.  Actually, we didn't use the formal dining room at the hotel at all, but had all of our meal al fresco, overlooking the pool.

View of the pool at the Cascades Palace Hotel