I travelled to the historic town of Grand-Bassam which is a resort town near the city of Abidjan, in Cote d’Ivoire, West Africa. It is known for its busy, palm-backed beach stretching along the Atlantic coastline. The old French colonial town centre, once the nation’s capital, is filled with decaying 19th century and 20th century houses. Along with being a beach town, Grand Bassam is also a city of some historical significance. The former governor’s residence has become the National Museum with a scanty display of masks, costumes and traditional outfits. Sadly, not much has been done to restore the building to its former glory. There are a few colonial houses of interest but they are all in a shabby condition. Grand Bassam was the most important port, economic and judicial centre of Cote d’Ivoire. As a vibrant centre of the territory of French trading posts in the Gulf of Guinea, it attracted populations from all parts of Africa, Europe and the Mediterranean. Today, it attracts some tourists curious about this World Heritage site and the beach of course! What is noticeable is that the architectural integrity of the buildings is under threat in many cases because of lack of maintenance. I left Grand Bassam with mixed feelings……happy that I got to walk the streets of this historical town and peep through rusty fencing but, with a sense of having visited a ghost town! Kind Regards
Fazila Dahall
