msafi ri 112 SENEGAL canvassers will come straight to you! For the more expansive- minded, you can even furnish a whole house by choosing from handmade, high- quality leather sofas and hand- crafted, wooden armoires showcased right there on the sidewalks where your taxi drops you off. BAYE FALLS Just as there would be no Jamaica without the rich culture of the Baye Falls. Clad in colourful, patchwork robes, sporting thick dreadlocks and sizeable amulets with photos of various Sufi saints, Baye Falls are hard to miss in any part of the country, city and village alike. Paying homage to Lamp Fall, the servant of the great spiritual leader Cheikh Adamou Bamba, Baye Falls often sing passionate sacred hymns, and carry alms bowls with them to collect money for their marabouts, or spiritual teachers. Money is generally given to build mosques and feed the pilgrims during holy festivals. FOOD Serve it up Senegalese style! Over the last just about every major Western city. Generally these restaurants serve Ethiopian or Eritrean food; however, Senegalese cuisine is now a close competitor, offering a variety of seasoned sauces and rice dishes. Do not think that you have feasted on Senegalese cuisine until you have tried two of its tastiest, national dishes: thiéboudienne and yassa. Thiéboudienne ( pronounced cheb- u- jin) is a tomato paste rice dish served with marinated fi sh and cooked with a variety of vegetables. Yassa, is a tangy lemon- and onion- marinated dish prepared with poultry or fi sh. DRINK A visit to Senegal would be incomplete without the locals. The more commonly consumed tea is green, appropriately called gunpowder tea, as it feels like a shot of something potent and fi erce; in reality, it is just a punch of caffeine loaded with sugar: a perfect remedy for jetlag. Since this is Africa, there are also various herbal teas served in the morning, such as Kinkeliba. Kinkeliba is thought to possess many healing properties, including aiding weight loss, healing colds, and fending off malaria. FOOTBALL Synonym for Senegal: Soccer… Senegal without are synonymous. Senegal made its fi rst World Cup in 2002, creating a huge upset by defeating defending champions France in the tournament's opening game. The Senegalese team is only the second African team to make the quarter fi nals of the World Cup. The team has a few other claims to fame, too, like never experiencing a major defeat in any tournament. This world-renowned league also boasts winning the Amilcar African country. GORÉE ISLAND A top tourist excursion. Situated about two Europeans, who left their historical mark on this tiny island. A World Heritage Site, Gorée is the location of the House of Slaves. While not a common slave port, this site has nonetheless become a universal symbol of the African slave trade. Three historic museums, a romantic castle, and a charming beach make for an experience to remember. TRADITION Senegal's thriving capital metropolis, hip urban scene and chic Euro- African fashions belie its strong, traditional, undercurrent of shamanism, divination and magic. Similar to other countries in Top: Traditional Senegalese cuisine includes a variety of rice and seasoned dishes often including fresh fi sh or seafood Below: Senegalese drinks of delicious green tea Cabral Cup eight times, more than any other West PHILIPPE CROCHET/ PHOTONONSTOP/ PHOTOLIBRARY kilometres out at sea from Dakar, the island of Gorée is easily visited via a short ferry ride. Gorée was one of the fi rst places on the African continent to be settled by ISABELLE ROSENBAUM/ GETTY Rastafarians, so there would be no Senegal without decade African restaurants have begun to spring up in indulging in an afternoon ritual of tea sipping with football is like South Africa without Mandela; the two GOR

msafi ri 113 GORÉE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST PLACES ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT TO BE SETTLED BY EUROPEANS, WHO LEFT THEIR HISTORICAL MARK ON THIS TINY ISLAND Street scene on World Heritage Site Gorée Island off the coast of Senegal, a universal symbol of the African slave trade