Marché aux Fétiches

Lomé has the biggest voodoo market of West Africa, le Marché aux Fétiches, at least according to Joseph, the guy who showed us around. Not to be missed by us of course, so a lazy Sunday afternoon, we went to check it out.



Though it is a real functioning African voodoo market, tourists are welcome... at a price. You have to pay 3.000CFA for a tour of about 20 minutes + 2.000CFA more to take pictures, but at least the price seemed reasonably fixed and we didn't get hassled. On the contrary, were greeted in a very serene and calm manner, no pushing and shoving of wanna-be guides, one elderly dignified gentleman, Joseph who explained the process. There were no other tourists at the time of our visit, but neither did there seem to be any local customers shopping.

It isn't a huge market, in fact, it is a little but quiet and neat square with maybe ten shops, which consist of tables where they exhibit their fetiches. Though herbs and plants are used (according to the complexity of the concoction: 8, 16, 41 or even 141 herbs), on the tables were, basically, dead and dried out animals: bones and heads and feathers and fur. Quite gruesome, and not an easy sight for an animal lover. The animals ranged from every day and common animals, like rats, snakes, lizards, but also less common or even endangered, like cheetahs, elephants, rhino or gorillas. These last however I would hazard are remnants from the past and mostly for show. Also according to our guide, none of these had been hunted specifically for the market and authorities are supposed to be very strict on poachers.

After a consultation with the fetish doctor, who prescribes a a certain mixture, you can buy the ingredients at this market. The "fetisheurs" stands hold all of the components needed to create the "fetish" for various purposes, such as healing and protecting and luck. Examples include porcupine skin, warthog teeth, donkey skull, serpent head, horse hair, parakeet tail, thunderstones and chameleons.

                         

Afterwards, we went in for a consultation with M Thcoumado Firmin, guérisseur traditionnel. Inside, he presented, emphasizing this was white magic and suitable for everyone, even white people (his pun, not mine), six items of power:

1. a little clay statue of Legba, the protector: protects your home by rendering blind anyone who tries to steal something in your house, to recover sight only when you catch him. You need to give him a smoke once a year or three drops of water.
2. a dis-moi-oui wooden stick: supposed to bring you the love and admiration of someone you want to attract. Put three drops of a perfume on the stick, say the name your chosen person three times and then rub the stick (and thus the perfume) over your face and chest. Then, find the person of your choice, make physical contact and ensure s/he smells the perfume, to be forever yours.
3. the nut from an ebony tree: put it under your pillow for sound sleep and stimulates the memory, like for students before an exam.
4. the African Viagra: a wooden stick, a bit of which to be dissolved in your favorite drink for three days, and you can guess the effect...
5. a travel charm: you whisper your hopes and fears for a trip in a little hole, keep them inside with a plug, put it in your bag and will be protected.
6. the grigri: of course, this could not be left out: a little bag with the 41 herbs in a little pouch with two shells. Supposed to protect you from evil sorcery.

The price for each of these items isn't set, they initially explained. After some hesitation, we thought we'd give it a go, even if it was just for the experience. Both of us chose his items, which were put in a tortoise shell. Next, these items were blessed specifically for us and each of us had to go next door, where the feticheur consulted the spirits to set the price by casting a set of four shells three times. The initial price for my six items was well over 40.000CFA, but of course, after some haggling, invoking our volunteer work in Africa, and dropping some items (and now suddenly there seemed to be a standard price after all),I paid 10.000CFA for most of it, promising however to promote the market as much as I could, and most certainly on the internet (they were thrilled to hear about my blog, hence the effort I put into this post, no broken promises or black magic for me).

All in all, an interesting visit and hassle free. It is cleverly presented, and they have their selling technique down to a T to make you buy stuff, but in a very pleasant and non-aggressive way. So I would advise to stay calm and just go with the flow. I read online that some believers actually get protection before coming to the market, to avoid becoming victims of spells if things go south. They also insinuated that the location of the market, right next to a cemetery, is no accident, but that it could be used like a store room for more gruesome ingredients...