AFRICA CONNECTION TOURS

DAKAR -
SENEGAL


 
 
 
 

TRADITIONAL MEDECINE ‘’ON THE PATHS OF THE MEDECINE MEN’’

DAY 1 : DAKAR
Arrival in Dakar, welcome and transfer to hotel Teranga or similar. Welcome drink and overnight
.

DAY 2 : DAKAR
Breakfast in hotel. From 9 :00 to 10 :00am. A conference will be given by a Senegalese Professor famous for his researches in the field of traditional medicine and for his numerous investigations he conducted in various parts of Senegal and West Africa.
From 10 :00 am to 13 : 00 pm visit the markets of Dakar where the traditional herbalists will help for an initiation to the knowledge of the different plants and their uses. Lunch will be taken in a typical restaurant of Dakar. In the afternoon visit of Goree Island loaded with 300 years of slave-trading history. Dinner in a Senegalese restaurant and overnight hotel Teranga or similar

DAY 3 : DAKAR / KAOLACK
Breakfast and departure for the village of Keur Massar. Here under the crook of Mrs Yvette Pares biologist at the University Cheick Anta Diop of Dakar are gathered many ‘’tradipractitioners’’ (Medicinemen) and herbalists working in different units according to their own specialty. They practice their art for benefit of the populations all around. After Keur Massar, proceed to Rufisque where you will pay a visit to a Lady who practices ‘’Ndep’’ ritual dances to cure mental patients. The patients dance at the sound of the drums after a long mystical preparation until he gets into a libratory trance. The ceremony will be repeated several times in order to get a total recovery. Lunch at Saly Portudal resort and afternoon proceed to Kaolack via Fatick where you will meet one of the most famous healers of Senegal. You will meet the
chief of the village, the notables and the healers : a great moment of interaction. End of the afternoon, arrival in Kaolack. Dinner and overnight at hotel Le Paris


DAY 4 : KAOLACK / BANJUL / ZIGUINCHOR

Breakfast and departure from Kaolack for Ziguinchor, capital town of Casamance . You will pass by Toubacouta along the Saloum Delta, rich of its sumptuous vegetation and its birds sanctuaries. After having crossed the Gambia river ferry boat, you will visit the town of Banjul, capital of the Gambia, meet some tradipractitioners and have lunch in a typical restaurant of Banjul. Afternoon continuation to Ziguinchor and on the way, visit of the typical villages of Badiana, Bailla, Diouloulou. Dinner and overnight at hotel Kadiandoumagne in Ziguinchor or similar .


DAY 5 : ZIGUINCHOR

Breakfast at the hotel, departure for a tour of Ziguinchor. It will take you about 1 hour to visit Saint-Maur, market ( the main one of Ziguinchor) with its numerous medicine plants, socialize and interact with the herbalists. Continuation of the visit, going to the handicraft market with its features, statues, fabrics, traditional jewels in gold and silver. Also visit fish market and have lunch in a traditional restaurant of the town in order to enjoy the delicious food of Casamance. Afternoon visit of Mawa where you will meet the ‘’Marabout’’ ( spiritual Leader and medicine man). Here are applied principes of traditional psycho-therapy. Mental sickness is analized as a rupture of social environment. Curing the mental patient means therefore re-establishing those broken links and explains the practice of the so said ‘’Group Therapy’’ whose origins are deeply African. Visit the beautiful forest of Mbissine. Dinner and overnight at hotel Kadiandoumagne or similar

DAY 6 : ZIGUINCHOR / CAP SKIRRING / ZIGUINCHOR
Fullday visit to the animist villages (animism, still dominating the Casamance region is the traditional African religion before the penetration of Islam and Christianity). You will meet with traditional chiefs and notables, visit ‘’totems, holy woods … etc’’. Lunch at the Cap Skirring with its beautiful beach and relax before returning to Ziguinchor for dinner and overnight at Kadiandoumagne or similar.


DAY 7 : ZIGHINCHOR / FOUNDIOUGNE

Breakfast and departure from Ziguinchor for Foundiougne. You will visit Mandingo villages on the way, cross the Gambia river once again, have lunch in Toubacouta.
Afternoon visit of the fishermen village of Missirah where you will meet the ‘’medicine woman’’ dedicated to protect, from the ‘’bad spirits’’ the fishermen going for the whole night on the river for good catches. Proceed to Foundiougne. Dinner and overnight at hotel ‘’Piroguiers’’.


DAY 8 : FOUNDIOUGNE / DAKAR
Breakfast in hotel and departure for Dakar. On the way visit of the Malango clinic Center in Fatick. Well known for its efficiency in healing sick persons. The center gathers the most outstanding traditioners of the Sine region called ‘’Saltigués’’, and modern medicine doctors. The Saltigués very knowledgeable people beyond their capacity of healers are also predictionist. They can predict on what would be happening in the future. After Fatick, departure for the “Small Coast”. Visit of Joal Fadiouth. Arrival in Dakar for lunch time. Lunch in a typical restaurant. Transfer to the airport.

 
 
Photograph : Laurent GERRER

32, rue Elhadji Mass Diokhané (ex Denain) - Tél : (221) 33 849 52 00 - Fax (221) 33 821 83 26 - Email : act@sentoo.sn