An Afternoon in Saint-Louis, Senegal

A few years ago, I visited the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art to see a Senegalese exhibit, Good as Gold. One of the exhibits was a video presentation of The Fanal, an end of year parade in Saint-Louis, Senegal. I was so drawn by the rich culture and knew that if I ever made it to Senegal, a stop in Saint-Louis was a must.

So when I finally made it to Senegal a few months ago, Saint-Louis was the first city outside of Dakar that I visited.

 Saint-Louis is the oldest colonial city on the Western African coast. It is made up of three parts, Mainland, Island/Old City Colonial, and Fisherman Village/Guet Ndar.

Saint-Louis also known by its Wolof name, Ndar is 4 hours away from Dakar. We only planned to spend the day in Saint-Louis, so we set off bright and early.

We got to Saint-Louis at about noon, and started our adventure with a horse carriage tour.

 

We started our adventure in Old City Colonial and could immediately see the glaring traces of the colonial past.

The Portuguese-style buildings are typically two/three floors

The colonial French homes are generally bungalows

The colors of Saint-Louis...so beautiful!

We also spent some time in the Fisherman Village, the fishing community of Saint-Louis. The main occupation is fishing and this passed on from generation within the family structure.

However, fishing activities in this area has declined in recent times due to overfishing (mostly illegal)by European countries and

foreign industrial fishing companies. 

According to a study by European Journalism Centre , Saint-Louis, ministry data shows an 81% drop in fish caught since 2016!!

The western world really does get away with anything when it comes to Africa 🙄. Still, this is a vibrant community of people who work hard in their colorful pirogues to provide for their families.

These little boys came up to me and asked me to take their photo. These ended up being my favorite photos from the entire trip

How beautiful are they! That rich melanin against the blue skies is everything!

Louis Faidherbe Bridge is Saint-Louis most notable landmark. The bridge goes over Senegal river and connects the Mainland to the Island/Old City Colonial.

L'Agneau Carnivore is a bookstore that has an extensive collection of African books and art.

The entire store was a vibe.

How beautiful are these gorgeously dressed women!

 

Saint- Louis was an entire vibe, and I hope y'all enjoyed seeing this West African gem with me.

Happy Thursday!

Nike Art Gallery: Lagos, Nigeria

Hiiiiiii everyone! It has been a minute since I have been in this space. *Hides face in shame*. Hope you are all vaxed and blessed! I am fully vaccinated, and I am definitely looking forward to Summer 2021.

Anyway, now that things are opening back up, and people are beginning to travel again, I thought I'd highlight one of my favorite spots in my hometown of Lagos, Nigeria. Nike Art Gallery is the largest art collection I have come across in Nigeria. It boasts of five floors and is chock full of over 25,000 pieces of art work by Nigerian artists. Textiles, sculptures, print, paintings, beads are just some of  the things you can find at Nike Art Gallery. If you are an art lover looking to cop some pieces, you will be spoilt for choice!

Now more than ever, I have started appreciating art and I find myself constantly going back to view these pictures from my last visit. I cannot wait to go back and actually cop some pieces for myself. If you are ever in this corner of the world, you should definitely stop by.

Enjoy the photos and leave me your thoughts in the comment section!

Met up with my friend, and we were coincidentally wearing the same t-shirt! How cool is that. #girlpower

I absolutely fell in love with this metal sculpture

This was also one of my favorites. You can't tell from this picture, but the palm oil in the painting looked so real! Nigerians are a talented bunch I tell ya

Loved this too.

We also got to meet the owner, Nike Okundaye. She loved our t-shirts, and we had a very brief conversation about feminism.

Have a great weekend guys!

Cienfuegos, Cuba: A tricycle ride, carnival vibes, and waterfalls

 I was passing through Cienfuegos en route to other parts of Cuba, and what ensued was a two-night stay, a tricycle ride, a carnival, and waterfalls adventure in this beautiful south coast city.

                 

Since this was a very short stay, I decided against any organized tour. I just walked around town, talked to the locals, and generally got a sense of the everyday Cuban life.

My first stop was Jose Marti Parque which is a memorial park with impressive colonial buildings along the corners of the park.

Museo de las Artes Palacio Ferrer

Catedral de la Purísima Concepción. I didn't go inside, but it was pretty impressive from the outside.

Met this amazing artiste while perusing through art galleries close to Parque Jose Martí. We spoke for almost an hour and he dropped lots of jewels about Cuba. He is a talented artist, and he painted the paintings behind us in the photo.

August is the hottest month in Cuba, and here you see locals buying cold drinks on a hot day.

 

I made a new friend. His name is Rielle, and he is a host at a restaurant on Paseo del Prado, the main street in Cienfuegos. He is learning to speak English so he can become a tour guide.

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Vibrant cars and buildings are always a sight to behold

The weather was ridiculously hot, so I retreated to my Air BnB, and came back out when the heat had subsided for a stroll along the Malecon.

Malecón de Cienfuegos

After a stint along the Malecon and enjoying the ocean's breeze, I hopped on a tricycle taxi to take me to Punta Gorda. Punta Gorda is a historical neighborhoods that houses grand hotels, restaurants, and fancy homes.

The tricycle taxi driver was kind enough to make stops at certain historical sights.

 Palacio de Valle was one of the first stops. It is a historical building with Moorish architecture. It  has a restaurant and terrace bar that is said to have an amazing panoramic view of the bay. I did not know it was free to enter, so I missed all the amazing interior it had to offer. 

It was carnival week in Cienfuegos, so I got to catch some of the carnival vibes. This was nostalgic as it reminded me of the West Indies carnival that I participatedin back home (Nigeria) when I was younger.

The sunsets in Cuba are unmatched!

I wrapped up the day with a beautiful sunset, a seaside view, and a caprissima drink.

The next morning, I was off to Trinidad De Cuba. However, I opted to stop at El Nicho waterfalls on my way to Trinidad. El Nicho is a series of waterfalls, and I was very excited to visit as I had never been to a waterfall before.

Enjoying a dip in one of the waterfall streams.

The water was deliciously cold! Just what I needed in the August heat.

I took colectivo taxi from Cienfuego to Trinidad De Cuba with these lovely ladies from Spain. We did the waterfall and hike together, and of course, we had to take a selfie...snap!

Finally made it to the top of the mountains.

Isn't it wild to think that just last year we were traveling without any cares, and we were out and about without masks?! Here is hoping 2021 is a better year with new adventures.

Happy New Year, guys!