Ougadougou

Early March brought my first trip outside Benin's borders... to Ougadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso. The city hosts the Pan-African film festival FESPACO every two years - an opportunity for African filmakers to show their work to a global audience. While there were a few insightful films, they proved most interesting for their reflections of the people and countries who produced them. The sights of Ougadougou proved just as intriguing as the festival itself.

Like many large African cities, Ougadougou offers an interesting juxtaposition of traditional culture and modern "development".

one-stop shopping, if you're looking for millet, nails, and cowry shells.

the films were screened in a half dozen theaters throughout the city, including this open air marvel about 6k from downtown.

open sewers - a distinct improvement over no sewers

I took the previous photo of the busy market from atop this work in progress. Yes, there I go climbing on shaky structures again... better luck this time.