The Dogon villages of the Bandiagara Falaise are undoubtedly one of the great sites of Africa. In Dec 2000 we did a 5 day trek among them and would love to return for a second visit. Even in December it is a very “hot walk” and I almost wonder whether a longer stay in 1 or 2 villages would be preferable to moving every day – the scenery doesn’t change that much and the essence of the place is to be found in the people and their culture. With French as a lingua franca and a local guide it was possible to interact. We learned the Dogon greeting with its extended list of polite questions and formal replies about a vast series of subjects. We saw the divination enclosures where the overnight footprints of desert foxes crossing prepared sand grids are used to foretell the future. We had discussions with locals who seemed prepared to forgive our unwitting social gaffes - eg I was politely asked not to lean on a particular rock – in Dogon animist beliefs “inanimate” objects possess significance which is not obvious to the outsider! We also had a masked dance performance (photo).

We asked ourselves whether our presence was for the better or were we killing what we had come to see. Well probably both. Looking back over almost 50 years of travel I can see that what appears to be permanent is in fact quite impermanent whether it be a natural site, city or culture. Wherever I have been I have met people who have told me “You should have been here n years ago – it was far better”. And that isn’t going to change. But better for whom? The Dogon villages will change – hopefully for the betterment of those living there but hopefully also they will retain enough of what makes them special. I fear however that in years to come the dances will be presented in tourist oriented auditoria rather than being watched, as now, from among the rocks - just look at Bomas of Kenya. Already there are roads down the cliff and trucks running along the bottom – no doubt traffic will increase and locals will (quite rightly) covet and acquire motor scooters – the long greeting as walker passes walker will become a thing of the past. Then gradually the villages will develop with new buildings of concrete and corrugated iron and their original architecture will be “ghettoised”. So GO NOW!