Not far away from Ouagadougou, maybe a 45-minutes drive, lies the cozy village of Bazoulé.

Bazoulé is home of a holy lake where around 200 holy crocodiles live. Last year, the oldest crocodile in Burkina Faso died there at an age of 110 years! The villagers honored the animal by a day long funeral and sacrificed sheep and goats. It is a perfect half-day excursion from Ouagadougou and guides offer tours around the lake. In the dry season, you can rent a bike and cycle the 8 kilometers through the village and around the lake. In the rainy season, some parts of the path are flooded, so that you simply walk a few hundred meters towards the lake. Apart from the guide-fee, 1500F (2,40 Euro), you can buy a chicken for 1000F (1,40 Euro) and feed it to the crocodiles alive. I just want to underline that we did not do it! With us came two Italian tourists who bought a chicken. The video below might give you an impression of the conditions of the chicken. (just to warn you: The video is likely to cause uncomfortable feelings)

You are going to find enough crocodiles anyways around the lake - even without a chicken as decoy. The guide tells us, that almost all tourist feed those chicken to the crocodiles, this is why they are never hungry and thus never attack human beings. There was only one incident, where a tourist got bit by the animal, according to our guide Ferdinand. (By the way, book a tour with him...You can call him directly: +226 63767647).

It is quite a spectacle to watch them in their natural environment, especially when they are fighting among each other.

After making friends with the crocodiles, we visited the local art store, where the village´s women sell handcrafts and arts. The nearby restaurant alone is by the way worth the trip! Very tasty Alloco (fried sweet banana) and chocolate-crêpe!