A feel of Togo, through Lomé
Day 38 of ± 189
Lomé → the calm, yet bustling and colourful centre of Togo. We crouch in the back of a taxi and take the ride into town, the large and famous voodoo market yet another mostly disappointing tourist trap, vaguely based in the locals’ realities. Moving further in, we find ourselves suddenly submerged in the majority’s daily routine — a beautifully busy market street, its edges lined with overflowing abundace in every healthy colour. Clothes, electronics and ‘nicknacks’ too, but always, in strong tones of light. African streets are often in colour, be it the people’s dress, the infrastructure or the food, or all at the same time. It makes a difference; lifting the mood and heightening the senses to infuse subconscious feelings of happiness, in an otherwise, potentially taxing, social, financial and/or political environment.
Scouting for food was spoilt by choice, particularly the abundant piles of fruits and vegetables. And, there they were, among many variations, the biggest and most beautiful mangos I’d seen so far. Pure perfection in colour, taste and texture. Indescribably good. The extremely generous and large mamma matched her mangos and took pleasure in our exaggerated enjoyment of a very normal product of her daily work, giving us a second, equally perfect, red, green and golden-yellow fruit at zero cost. One of these gigantic perfections came to about 250 CFA — the best 40 euro cents spent in my life, ever. The best mango, ever.
We removed ourselves from the friendly crowds and found a place to sit on sand next to the road, 500 metres or so from the sea itself. The port’s contours penetrating the pale blue sky nearby. The others indulged in French culture — cheese and wine left over by the colonials — and sweet maroon-red bissap juice trickled down my throat.
Sparkling cold Togolese beers (Castel amongst others) sooth parched throats whilst eyelids droop in the salty-dry mid-afternoon heat after a day of explorative wandering. We walk on, gradually closer to our possible destination. Past an open road-side stall run by a friendly mother and son and sporting classic antique boxing gloves and various ball-sport paraphernalia, also, a couple of armchairs. American football was played over road, car and moped to test its buying potential.
Togo’s Independence Monument is encircled in soft sunlight and the regular motion of traffic about its restful roundabout. The early evening’s last walk became comfortably cool and magic within this city’s calm and peaceful properties. It’s inscribed on the manicured monument. Freedom only came on the 27th April 1960. Quiet thought descends on our tired day. Sunset on a friendly, calm city. Feelings of; satisfaction, happiness. A grateful calm for life, worries or negative thoughts ceased to presently exist, just still contentment. At peace with the freedom of our day. The monument seemed to create this space; a reminder to feel the calm within the chaos and the light within the darkness.
Tomorrow → Day 39: 22nd.April.2016 — PORT of LOMÉ
*Check out Jørn and Lukas’ 3 videos created from the first couple of months of footage from the trip down below, before further footage was either lost or stolen:
*
If you enjoyed this, drop it a ♡.
— Thank you for reading! —
♥,
Shani
