Things to see and do Lomé And The Maritime Region

You have to go there early in the morning. The fishermen arrive with their pirogues and sell directly the product of fishing to the mothers who then resell on the markets. Typical and colorful. It is advisable to go there by car or cab because the access is not easy and the neighborhoods crossed are not the safest. Dugouts unloading on the quay, nets being made and unmade, baskets filled with fish... the place is alive with exchanges between fishermen, buyers, visitors and food stalls.

Built in 1910 in honour of the Holy Martyrs of Uganda, it houses the reproduction of the canoe on which the Virgin Mary appeared in 1973 on Lake Togo. Beautiful frescoes depicting birth until Jesus'resurrection, share the Building with paintings of black saints. In front of Our Lady of Lake Togo, we discover the gallery where Pope John Paul II celebrated an open mass mass during his visit of 1985.

Belonging to an English merchant and slave trader by the name of Wood, this house was built in 1835, shortly after a fraction of the Adjigo clan, driven out of Aného and led by Chief Assiakoley, settled in Agbodrafo. The slave trade on Togo's coasts lasted from the last quarter of the ^17th century to the ^19th century. It officially ended on January 27, 1852, when an emissary from the Crown of England visited the king bearing a message and a cane symbolizing the end of slavery: "Sent by the Queen of England as a symbol of the abolition of the slave trade to the chief of Porto Seguro". Rediscovered, the Maison des Esclaves received Unesco support for its renovation, and has been on Togo's list of World Heritage Sites since 2002. The Afro-Brazilian-style building has remained virtually untouched since that time, and is now falling into disuse. Here you can discover the underground labyrinth through which slaves used to enter the house. In the central room of the house, the trapdoor provides access to the basement where the prisoners were crammed. You have to go down under the dilapidated floor to realize the inhuman treatment inflicted on the slaves. In this damp cellar, they were unable to stand up, and had to sit or lie down. Some period furniture still decorates the living room. A place full of history. The visit may disappoint some, but it's all in the symbolism.

Called Sacred Heart, or German cathedral, the cathedral of Lomé was built in 1905. Its architecture is of Gothic style with an ogival shape. It has a basilica plan, consisting of a nave of seven bays covered with a groin vault. It has undergone numerous restorations over the years. It stands in the center of the city with its elaborate spires, its façade pierced by a rose window and its beautifully painted interior. Its carved wooden benches and its frescoes make it an element of the colonial heritage of Togo. It adjoins the Grand Marché.

It is essentially a tourist market with small stores selling local handicrafts such as jewelry, paintings, ebony, carved wood and batiks. The merchants call out to visitors and negotiation is part of the buying process. Handicrafts and replicas of antiques are of high quality, especially if you cross the "rue des arts", which is located in the street of the Hotel du Golf. This is where you will find your gifts to make and other souvenirs to bring back. To be discovered without hesitation!

Between the coast and the lake is a series of buildings from the colonial era, including the town hall, the police station, the post office and the old hospital. There are also some beautiful merchants' houses and several churches and presbyteries. In the Zébé district, there are buildings dating from that time, which are now the prefecture of the Lakes, the ethnographic museum, the hospital and the civil prison. There is no guided tour, you have to stroll through the streets. The Aného-Glidji agglomeration is a Unesco World Heritage Site.

It is the original place where the fetish priests met. The two cheese trees, one representing the male principle and the other the female principle, are surrounded by white cloths that make the place sacred. It is here that ceremonies are held to celebrate the birth of several children from the same birth. This ritual takes place on the eighth day of birth. And the belief says that any pregnant woman passing near this place can give birth to twins!

One should not expect a sumptuous palace, it is a simple residence in the heart of the Galapè district. When the king is present, it is possible to meet him. Otherwise, his descendants organize a short guided tour during which they tell the story of King Mlapa III, who signed the treaty annexing Togo to Germany with the explorer Nachtigal. The house houses the royal throne on which the king's descendant still administers justice every Saturday morning. In the courtyard are the remains of a German cannon.

The Apoto craft complex is a training and production center for works of art. It is essentially made up of young artisans gathered in a cooperative since 1996. In the exhibition gallery, you can see the most beautiful objects made in the traditional way. Various items are made from batik, sculpture, dyeing, wrought iron, leatherwork, basketry, and many other art making techniques. If you have a crush, be firm in your negotiations!

Located in the background of the Palais des Congrès, this museum features a small collection of ethnographic and historical items reflecting Togolese culture as a whole. A few tools, statues and jewelry are displayed in the first room, while the second room below traces the history of the colonies, the battle for its borders and the country's independence. The museum was created in 1950 from documents and exhibits from the Kponton Museum, and inaugurated much later, in the 1970s. In need of renovation. Fascinating guide.

The former International Museum of the Gulf of Guinea was taken over by collector Ching Heng Cheng, who supplemented the collection with other African works. It houses several masterpieces of African art in three exhibition halls: royal thrones, statuettes and masks from the Ivory Coast, Congo, Gabon, Benin, Nigeria, including a 2,000-year-old Nok statue, and rare pieces of Ashanti jewelry from Ghana. Professional guides.

Long abandoned, the former Governors' Palace has been transformed into a cultural complex showcasing the best of African creativity. A pioneer in West Africa, this art and culture center offers a rich program of exhibitions, live shows (dance, storytelling, theater, concerts...), master classes and literary cafés. It also houses two restaurants, one of which is gourmet, a souvenir store and a bookstore.

The palace is surrounded by a magnificent botanical garden of 11 hectares, home to about 50,000 plants and 40 species of birds. It offers a pleasant journey through the diverse landscapes of Togo, punctuated by beautiful contemporary sculptures. There are also two beehives, containing two types of bees: Apis mellifera adansonii and melipona.

The old Governor's Palace was built from 1898 to 1905 under the technical direction of the German engineer Furtkamp, following the decision of Governor August Kohler - the one who established Lomé as the capital of Togo - to build a fairly representative palace that would be recognizable from a distance of a thousand kilometers in order to impress the ships. Used as the seat of the state until 1970, the palace was transformed into the "Palace of Distinguished Guests" from 1976 to 1991, then as the seat of the primacy in September 1991. It suffered damage as a result of the socio-political unrest of 1990-1991. The building is on the list of monuments proposed to the World Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

The district of Xétsiavi has two very beautiful fetishes. The female fetish is located on the convent square. Its mission is to watch over the protection of children. Just in front of it is a sacred stone that has the power to stop the rain. To do this, the inhabitants must make offerings and pour gin, red oil and a mixture of water and corn on the stone. A little further on is the male fetish, which heals and makes the rain fall. In the Galapé neighborhood, the fetish of the neighborhood can be seen, to which sacrifices are offered.

Right by the lake is the village square where voodoo ceremonies are held in September. According to tradition, in order to chase away the evil spirits from their homes, the inhabitants swept their houses and placed the rubbish in a corn leaf, which was then thrown out of the town. The square is also used for traditional judgements. It is said to be charged with such a mystical force that it would annihilate all powers. It was in this square that slaves were gathered to be sold and sent to the colonial empires.

Paul Ahyi (1930-2010) is a pioneering visual artist in Togo. He is the creator of the Togolese flag and of the country's Independence monument. He is known for his monumental works, many of which can be seen on the streets of the capital. Today, a museum pays tribute to him in the house that he himself had imagined. The portal sets the tone with its two imposing faces of a couple. Inside, a permanent exhibition takes us into the world of Paul Ahyi. This place is also a center of artistic awakening for the youngest.

For a unique, life-size experience in the shaping and decoration of traditional pottery, using ancestral know-how. The women go deep into the bush, digging deep holes to extract quality clay. They then make the pottery entirely by hand, before using a snail shell for the finishing touches. There's also the folklore of carrying the pottery on their heads to market in Tsévié.

Near the border of Benin, the Mono valley offers a very beautiful biodiversity. You can see many hippos, especially in the big pit near Tokpli. Many villages are nestled on the banks of the river, among palm plantations, fields of cassava, rice and corn. It is possible to take a nice pirogue ride from Avevé (about 30 km north of Aného) down to Adamé. You will have to negotiate with the smugglers at the Togo/Benin border.

In Togo, natural mangroves are located along the Gbaga Channel in the extreme southeast of the country and in places along the Mono River. The Gbaga Channel is a natural communication between the Mono River to the east and the lagoon system consisting of the Aného lagoons and Lake Togo to the west. The traveler arriving from Lomé to Aného in front of the offices of the Lakes prefecture goes to the Togolese mangroves by turning right towards Aklakou. The mangrove forest is a paradise for living beings. Its pools are full of important populations of hippos, Nile crocodiles, ducks, anhingas, different species of herons, kingfishers and a myriad of fish that can be easily observed. We also meet a rare species of turtle. The mangrove presents by its diversity of ecosystem a multitude of landscapes: the ponds with water lilies, water lettuce, water hyacinths which, when they are in flower, expose a multitude of white, beige, pink, yellow, purple corollas... forming an impressive multicolored layer on the surface of the water. The ponds with cattails, the articulated stumps, the meadows and the savannahs are as many landscapes to admire. Also the mangrove forests with thousands of stilt roots offer a picturesque view. Artificial mangrove plantations, some of which are accessible only by dugout canoe, are spectacular in their extent and complete this lush natural vegetation of mangroves.

To get to the Well of the Chained Ones (Gatovoudo), one passes in front of the cemetery, following a dirt road. The well dates from the 1800s and is enclosed by a low wall. In the middle of the tomato fields, a plaque indicates the visit of the Director General of UNESCO in 2007. It is more a symbolic place than a place to visit, the interest being very limited and the place not maintained. It is here that slaves used to wash for the last time in order to remove their "impurities" before being loaded onto ships bound for the colonies.

Installed in an old colonial building, this small museum of ethnography is worth a visit to learn more about the history of Togo. Inside, several objects related to the traditional chieftaincies, the voodoo cult and the German colonial period are exhibited. One can discover old photos, copies of signed treaties, musical instruments and various royal attributes. Barthélemy, curator of the museum since 2015, will be happy to give you the necessary explanations to understand this museum.