Having never been to a professional soccer game, let alone a African soccer game, I had no idea what to expect other than craziness. It was a pretty overwhelming experience - similar to American sporting events, but with a specific Senegalese flair. Unlike US games, it was weirdly quiet. No announcements or music to get people excited - not that the fans weren't excited enough - but it was only the sounds of the crowd and the constant presence of drums. It's also interesting for people who don't like sports in particular, because during the game there are many other things to watch: a constant stream of people selling little doughnuts, drinks, popcorn, nuts and bread, fans dancing, a small fire from a flare breaking out and being extinguished in the crowd, and a fan running onto the field and being quickly dragged away by a team of security officials. We're still wondering what happened to him.
Unlike the rest of Dakar, the security at the game was extremely tight. I think that this is due in part to the fact that there are so many people, and a stadium that is not built for crowd control. When the Lions of Senegal won and the game was over, the police that had been stationed around the edge of the field watching the crowd donned full riot gear in preparation for people storming the field. We had already been given instructions about waiting until most of the crowd dispersed to leave and to hold tight to our bags. I think we were all extra-happy that Senegal won this match.
On Sunday, we took a ferry to Ile de Goree, the small island off the coast of Dakar.
It's completely goregous with brightly colored colonial buildings, flowers, and picturesque beaches, but it also has the reputation of being the last stop in Africa for slaves being shipped to the New World. In fact, the tiny island once held 28 different slave houses. Today it's a World Heritage Site, and one such house is preserved as a museum. Here you can see the holding room for the slaves, all marked with small signs designating women, men, young girls, and children. Finally, you can see what is called the Door of No Return - the place where the slaves would be loaded onto ships. It's a really haunting place, especially considering the fact that this is where so many slaves died or were killed in the shark infested waters below.
After leaving the Maison des Esclaves, we toured a couple other museums on the island, had lunch, and then just walked around and explored.
Goree is a popular spot for tourists, so it seemed a little unsettling to see so many foreigners in one place. This also meant that the vendors could speak English as well as French, so the tactic of not understanding French didn't work as well as in downtown Dakar. Finally, we got sometime at the crowded little beach where the water was incredibly warm but not nearly as clean as one would hope. It was still an incredibly relaxing day and good to get away from Dakar for a while.
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