| Ganvié | ||
 | ||
| State | Benin | |
|---|---|---|
| Territory | Southern Benin | |
| Inhabitants | 30.000 | |
| Prefix tel | 229 | |
| Time zone | UTC 1 | |
Position
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Ganvié is a lakeside village of Southern Benin, located on the lake Nokoué North of Cotonou.
To know
Nicknamed "there Venice of Africa ", groups a few thousand wooden houses, erected on poles driven into the ground. Its inhabitants live mainly from fishing, but, increasingly, also from tourism.
It is the most important lakeside city ofWest Africa.
When to go
Villages are flooded during the rainy season and the level can therefore rise. In these cases, the livestock must be moved and share the level where the inhabitants stand. Storms sometimes destroy hundreds of homes.
Background
The origin of the city dates back to the 18th century by the Tofinu people, at the time of the slave raids, which pushed the populations of the region to take refuge in the swamps of the lake in order to escape a sad fate.
This lakeside city has been registered since 1996 on the indicative list ofUNESCO (it is therefore not yet classified among the World Heritage Sites in Benin, contrary to what some tourist guides say).
How to orient yourself
Ganvié: full screen map._(2).jpg/220px-20131005-DSC_2915_(10282059623)_(2).jpg)
How to get
How to get around
What see
Events and parties
What to do
Shopping
How to have fun
Where to eat
Where stay
Average prices
- 1 Germain hotels (Ganvié Holiday Resort) (Directly on the lake), ☎ 229 95 57 33 20. Relatively inexpensive middle-class accommodation, partly built on stilts in the lake. With restaurant.
Safety
How to keep in touch
Around
Useful information
The water of the lake is not drinkable as it is brackish (the lake communicates with the sea), the supply of drinking water is ensured by two fountains, where the inhabitants go, with their pirogues to fill the bins. The waste water and the excrements of the livestock (raised on special islands) are directly discharged into the lake. Fortunately, the lake is shallow (about 2 meters) and the strong solar radiation ensures effective disinfestation thanks to ultraviolet rays.
Another problem is the absence of electricity, which someone makes up for using generators, which increase noise and air pollution.
