Douala

Cameroon: A Photographic Tour

Posted on Updated on

Located in West-Central Africa on the Atlantic coast, Cameroon has Nigeria to the north, Chad to the northeast, Central African Republic to the east, and the countries of Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Republic of the Congo to the south. Its location makes it easy to see why many consider it the ‘crossroads of Africa;’ a place where many tribes and cultures meet. A francophone country, with both French and English as the official languages (although French predominates), it has more than 50 tribes, each with its own language.

I had a chance to visit Cameroon in May as part of a Canadian-US media delegation invited to participate in the country’s 38th Unity Day celebration. After the Unity Day parade, my delegation toured Yaoundé and its environs, including a visit to a primate sanctuary, the tourist village of Ebogo, and along the coast, from Batanga Beach in the south to the sprawling port city of Douala (the country’s largest city).

During our tours, we encountered the exotic cuisine, a fusion of France and West Africa, and saw a lot of what the country has to offer in friendly people and magnificent scenery. The visit was all too short, but nonetheless interesting, and I hope one day to return to explore those regions that I didn’t have time for on this short one-week visit.

Following are some of the photos of this memorable journey.

The Unity Memorial in Yaounde
The Unity Memorial in Yaounde
Yaoundé is called 'the city of seven hills,' and in this picture you can see why.
Yaoundé is called ‘the city of seven hills,’ and in this picture you can see why.
A chimpanzee at the primate sanctuary located southeast of Yaoundé.
A chimpanzee at the primate sanctuary located southeast of Yaoundé.
Our guide, who called himself 'the last crocodile,' in front of a tree that's more than 1,000 years old, in the equatorial forest near Ebogo.
Our guide, who called himself ‘the last crocodile,’ in front of a tree that’s more than 1,000 years old, in the equatorial forest near Ebogo.
A hammock on Grand Batanga Beach, south of Douala.
A hammock on Grand Batanga Beach, south of Douala.
Vendors walking along the beach south of Douala.
Vendors walking along the beach south of Douala.
A scene in the grand market in Douala, where vendors from all over the region converge to sell their wares.
A scene in the grand market in Douala, where vendors from all over the region converge to sell their wares.
Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

This entry was posted in Articles and tagged , , , , , , , , , , .