Fun things to do in Mali

Happily Dogon people have managed to preserve many of their traditional ways, including their mud brick houses, the shaggy roofed-granaries, the tiny markets under the wooden and straw roofs and some ceremonial dances. Nowadays the best way to visit the Dogon country is walking from one village (picture 1) to another. Along the way you can admire mud mosques, beautiful landscapes and have a rest in the shade of baobabs. Other particular constructions that we found were a pharmacy where each hole is used to contain a different medecine and a Christian church (!) They like a lot the wooden details (and they are very nice!) that decorate their windows, doors, stairs or pillars .
The baobabs and some cultivated fields between the villages complete the painting.
Good panoramas, nice people and, at night, a fabulous 360-degree celestial view

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Djenné is situated on the shore of Bani River so you need a ferry to reach it. Djenné is probably the most ancient and most impressive city in all West Africa. Placed on a little hill, it's also known as the "Niger's Venice" (keeping the distances, of course :D) because during rainy season it is all surrounded by the water.
Djenné was founded in the XI th century and has always been a very important commercial point between the sabanah and the desert. You can find there a nice blend of different ethnic groups too. All Djenné is built with mud from the Niger River and it's considered "protected city" and World Heritage by Unesco. All Djenné is very interesting: wandering around it is like going back 50years in time! The main spots are its giant Mosque and the big and colorful market (on Monday!) just in front of the mosque.
Djenné was definitely the jewel of my trip to Mali!

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If you walk along the Niger River shore in Segou you never will be bored! It’s like a film of popular traditions and funny street scenes. Apart from the busy port you will be able to see potters and craftsmen, people working on the cultivations and women using the Niger's waters to wash the dishes and the clothes (picture 1). And you won't be alone either because kids as soon as they see a ”tubabu” (white person) will come to you to greet you with their smiles. All of them loved our cameras and were happy to be "models for one day" (picture 2); There was a little boy that went with me during all the walking holding my hand and waiting for me patiently every time I stopped (that means every five minutes :-))) ) to take a picture to hold my hand again; What a cute Cicerone! At the end it was hard to say goodbye to him :-(

Bamako is the capital of Mali and the busiest and richest city in the country. Situated on the shore of Niger River, it was founded in 1650.
If you visit this city you'll find a pleasant blend of colonial buildings and busy African markets. It is the terminal of the train that arrives from Dakar too.
Bamako is full of life! It's nice to visit its markets, the craft center (nice wooden sculptures to buy and lots of souvenirs), the national museum and the "point G", which is the viewpoint of the city. Bamako is interesting for its nightlife and live music too, with lots of pubs and terraces.

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For me Mopti’s harbor is one of the main attractions in Mali. I could compare it to Djennée’s market. Mopti’s harbor is the perfect place to understand something about life in Mali. Always very busy, it is also a perfect place to do some people watching. Always crowded with big pinasses that are loaded and unloaded with any kind of stuff (basically food), from here also leave the small pinasses to the Bozo villages. The port has also developed a spontaneous small market around it (some stalls) where you will be able to buy the merchandise only few minutes after arriving. You will also find two-three restaurants offering good fish.

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I've visited different markets in Morocco, Tunisia, Peru' . . . the big market of Samarkand, the grand bazaar in Istambul . . . but nothing can be compared to Djenné's Market.
The grand marché of Djenné is a real sight of colors, life and activities! It's a good place to see all the different ethnic groups in Mali as well: Peuls, Bozos, Bambaras, Malinkes, Markas, Rimaïbes . . . ,wearing traditional dresses and speaking different languages, that come to the market from different points of the country to sell, buy and exchange their products. It's too crowded, smells are very strong and the temperature is always high so be careful because it's easy to feel sick . . . The market is situated in front and all around the big Mosque. You can take good pictures of it from the roofs of the houses.
Every Monday

Another interesting market in Mali, this colorful indoor market deserves a short visit when you are in Mopti. It has two floors: the ground floor is the real market where locals buy and sell food and on the second floor there are the jewelry stalls and gift stalls basically for tourists. This time I could not immerse myself into this market, it was too closed and crowded for me so I only took some pictures from the external stairs.

Tellem means for Dogon people “the people that were before”. We are talking about a community of small people (maybe pygmies?), basically hunters that, due to unknown reasons, had to leave this land long time ago. Even if there are a lot of legends about this people their origin is unknown. But you still can see their villages (some of them almost inaccessible) built high on the cliffs. They consist in some tiny cave dwellings, grain stores and some sanctuaries where you still can see some rock paintings. Very interesting.