Ouidah

On Friday, I went with Anna and my parents to the historic city of Ouidah, an hours drive outside Cotonou. We visited the reconstructed Portuguese slaving fort, which was originally one of five forts owned by Europeans in which slaves were processed before being sold and shipped across the Atlantic. They were made to sit in a sun-scorched yard for 15 days with nothing but bread and water to eat; the survivors were accepted as fit enough to begin the 3 month sail across the Atlantic. Those who died were thrown into the moat and eaten by the lions and crocodiles which were kept there. Below, the Portuguese living accommodation:

Below, the town's square which served as the slave market for those who survived their 15 day ordeal in the Fort:

Below, a statue showing how rebellious slaves were trussed as punishment and to stop them escaping:

Below, the only way of escaping their fate was death. Many killed themselves by eating sand or chewing off their own tongues and bleeding to death. This statue, showing "freedom" is at a memorial site on one of the many mass graves in the area:

Below, this "gate of no return", built in the 1990's with UNESCO funding, is a memorial to those West Africans who were captured and slaved through Ouidah. Beyond it is the sea; small canoes crewed by locals would take the slaves through the breaking waves to the larger slaving ships crewed by Europeans or Arabs. Over half of the slaves originally captured died before they reached their new masters in the Caribbean or the Americas.

Although the local Chiefs and their tribes did not start the slaving industry here, they profited very handsomely from it and were involved in the capture and processing of their enemies. How barbaric. It was a very sobering day, and we learnt a lot from the guides in the local museum and around the town. With so much history of tragedy, death, violence and exploitation, I guess it comes as no surprise that Ouidah is a capital of voodoo, which is still practiced today on a large scale.

Lastly, my dad and Anna having a snooze on the way home after an emotionally exhausting day :

Olly