Northern and Central Benin

Welcome to the Republic of Benin, arriving from the Niger River bridge	Parc Regional du W is shared by Benin, Niger and Burkina Faso, named after a W shaped bend in the Niger River	Malanville, Benin's northern border town	Malanville, Benin
Benin lies outside Africa's Islamic belt and liquor available roadside	Buvette La Paix, Malanville, Bénin	Malanville, Bénin market	Thumbs up from a boy in Malanville
Marché Malanville, Bénin	PTT Bénin, Malanville	Résidence du Maire, Malanville, Bénin	Village south of Malanville, Benin
Long rectangular mud huts with tin roofs, Benin	Yams, potato like vegetables, are grown in small mounds making for easily identifiable fields, Benin	Yam field, Benin	Yam field, Northern Benin
BeninDec06 020.jpg	Rich man's villa, Northern Benin	Benin's main north-south highway runs the entire 785 km from the Niger River to Cotonou	Benin's Route Nationale RNIE-2
Roadside northern Benin	Traditionally dressed elder, Benin	We stopped in this village to refill our bathing water at the well	Udo Stark drawing water from the well as villagers watch
Village kids come out in droves as the circus comes to town	Crops growing in the village	The first mechanical milling machine we've seen in a small village	Miller's house, Benin
I love the shirt!	Kids from the village where we got water	A see a bleak future for said goat	Continental Bank - Bénin Agence Parakou
To keep your money in a secure place, just one address - CLCAM-GUINMAN, Parakou	Benin is shaped a bit like a club	Ecole Superieure de Commerce et de Gestion in Parakou, the largest city in Central Benin	Roadside grill, Parakou, Benin
Parakou, Benin	Parakou, Benin	Roadside market, Parakou	Some kind of grain...
Marché Depot de Parakou, Bénin	Roadside market, Parakou, Bénin	Roadside market, Parakou, Bénin	Woman putting a basket of fruit on her head, Parakou
Boy at a roadside market, Parakou, Bénin	Le Parc National de la Pendjari, Bénin advertisement in Parakou	BeninDec06 060.jpg	Boys in the tall grass by a stream, Parakou
Benin's narrow gauge railway	Yams at a roadside market, Tchatchou, Benin	Yams at a roadside market, Tchatchou, Benin	Yams at a roadside market, Tchatchou, Benin
Yams at a roadside market, Tchatchou, Benin	Yams at a roadside market, Benin	Giant yams, Benin	Giant yams, Tchatchou, Benin
Roadside yam market, Tchatchou, Benin	The Tchatchou yam ladies were very pushy	Common West Africa motif	Pretty flowers, Benin
Flower at the campsite	Flowers, Benin	Sunset, Benin	Sunset, Central Benin
The driver and guide had a more difficult time finding a suitable camping spot in central Benin than in Mali or Niger	Campsite between Parakou and Savé	I had really been hoping to spend the night in the relative civilization of Parakou	Rotel breaking camp, Benin
Dragonfly on Tony's back	Mosquée de Gogoro, Bénin	Another small mosque in Central Benin	Palm grove, Central Benin
Coconut palms, Benin	Coconut palm, Benin	School near Savé, Bénin	Kpatchi Kotchoni
Central Benin	Church, near Savé, Bénin	Hills around Savé, Bénin	Coca-Cola watertower, Savé, Bénin
Savé, Bénin	Photo lab, Savé, Bénin	L'Hôtel Idadu, Savé, Bénin	College Catholique St. Joseph de Savé, Bénin
Roadside tin stall with American flag, Benin	Railway Station - Gare de Savé, Bénin	Ouémé River, Savé, Bénin	Glazoue, Benin
Glazoue, Benin	Collines FM radio, Glazoue, Benin	Mural on the side of a school trying to teach kids to use the WC instead of a tree, Glazoue, Benin	Villages gathered around a well, Benin
A small church, EPMB - Église protestante méthodiste du Bénin	Crucifix, Dassa-Zoumé, Benin	The giant Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé, Benin	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé
Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé
The new basilica in Dassa-Zoume looks more like a factory to me...	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé	Basilica from the top of the Grotto	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo
Stations of the Cross, Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo	La Grotte Marial Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé, Benin	La Grotte Marial Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé, Benin	Stations of the Cross, Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo
La Grotte Marial Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé, Benin	La Grotte Marial Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé, Benin	Lizard, Benin	Hopefully when the Basilica is complete it won't look so industrial
Bells to be installed in the new bell tower of the basilica, Dassa-Zoumé	Bell destined for the Basilica tower, Dassa-Zoumé	Interior of the Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé	Basilica of Notre Dame d'Arigbo, Dassa-Zoumé
Gardener, Dassa-Zoumé	Bank of Africa Benin, Agence Dassa-Zoumé	Séverin ADJOVI avec vous - prenons le CAP vrai développement	Change and make Benin prosperous with Severin ADJOVI
Paouignan, Benin (what's this stuff?)	While now deep in Christian Benin, there are still many small mosques like this one in Paouignan	Thatched hut a short distance south of Paouignan, Benin	Cotonou-Parakou Narrow Gauge Railway, Benin
More thatched huts, south-central Benin	Schoolhouse, south-central Benin	A small thatched bar along the main road, Benin	Roadside Benin
Roadside Benin	Roadside Benin	Roadside Benin	Bus arrival chaos, Bohicon, Benin
Market, Bohicon, Benin	Small shops, Bohicon, Benin	Stand selling an assortment of odd vegetables, Bohicon, Benin	Market stall, Bohicon, Benin
Market stall, Bohicon, Benin	Garden of the town hall of Bohicon, Benin - restaurant & cyber cafe	Main Street, Bohicon, Benin	One of those signs is for a Chinese Pharmacy, Bohicon, Benin
Grand Mosque, Bohicon, Benin	Vitalor pure vegetable oil sans cholesterol, Benin	Lycée Technique de Bohicon, Bénin	Cyber La Boutique Bohicon, Bénin