Djilapao: a sculpted house at the end of a *bolong*

Djilapao is not a destination, it is a stop along the way, and that is exactly why you should make it. You leave Ziguinchor by pirogue, head up the bolongs (tidal creeks) between two walls of mangrove trees, and round a bend in the channel appears a two-storey house in banco (mud brick) whose walls tell the story of Diola life in sculpted, painted reliefs. No ticket office, no shop: a village, a remarkable house and the silence of the mangroves. If you are looking for the Casamance you cannot see from the road, the two-storey house of Djilapao is one way in.

At a glance

Resident or visitor: a half-day that changes how you read Casamance

Live in Senegal? You may know Ziguinchor by road, its quays and its market. Djilapao shows you the other side: the town seen from the water, then the north bank, which most travellers only ever cross by car. Take a weekend morning, set off early with the tide and be back for lunch. On activities booked through QFS, you get the resident rate: up to 30% off, which makes the pirogue trip easy to repeat with friends and family passing through.

Just passing through? Do not expect a museum in the strict sense. You are visiting people, in a living village, and the sculpted house is first and foremost a local curiosity, looked after by those who live in it or keep it. Let the boatman or the guide with you lead the way: they announce your arrival, introduce the house and know what you may photograph. Count the trip as half a day, not a ten-minute stop.

A house that tells the story of Diola country

The two-storey house, the other architecture of Lower Casamance

Lower Casamance is often associated with impluvium houses, the large round homes whose funnel-shaped roofs collect rainwater, as in Énampore or on Éloubaline Island. The two-storey house is the other tradition: a rectangular banco house with an upper level resting on wooden floors. South of the river, the best known are those of Mlomp, near Oussouye, built in the last century. In Djilapao, on the other bank, one two-storey house took a different path: it became a medium for expression.

A village sculptor and his walls

A sculptor from the village covered this house with relief figures and colourful frescoes, and filled it with wooden sculptures. The travellers and guides who have described it speak of scenes of Diola life: the rice field, everyday tasks, rituals. The style is naive, often funny, sometimes enigmatic; everyone leaves with their own reading.

Do not expect an immaculate gallery: this is a work in earth, exposed to the sun and to the rainy season (hivernage), and its condition depends on the upkeep the village can give it. The contribution you leave on site helps.

The village around it

Djilapao is a small Diola village set on the edge of the bolongs, surrounded by rice fields and mangroves. Banco houses, more and more often topped with corrugated iron, rice fields won from the salt water, mangrove trees with oyster-covered roots: here you see, on a small scale, everything that makes Lower Casamance. As everywhere in Diola country, some groves and places are sacred and are not open to visitors.

Key facts & figures

Getting there & official fees

By pirogue from Ziguinchor. This is the usual way to reach Djilapao, and the most beautiful. The pirogue heads up the bolongs of the north bank; the trip is often combined with Île aux Oiseaux and the village of Affiniam. Sailing time depends on the tide and the engine: allow roughly 1 to 1½ hours. Set off in the morning, when the light is soft and the heat on the water bearable.

From Dakar. First get to Ziguinchor: by plane, by the night boat, or by road across the Gambia, which takes a long day.

Fees. There is no official entry charge for the village. A contribution is requested on site to visit the sculpted house, paid in cash and not included in the price of the activity.

What to see

• The sculpted two-storey house. Walk around the façades before going in: the reliefs read like a comic strip in earth. Inside, take time to look at the wooden sculptures one by one.
• The mangroves on the way in. The last quarter of an hour by pirogue is worth the trip in itself: narrow channels, mangrove trees, waterbirds on the banks.
• The village and its rice fields. A short walk, with a guide, is enough to grasp how a Diola village is organised between rice field and tide.

Nearby

• Affiniam, on the same bank, often visited on the same pirogue trip: a rice-growing village in the same commune.
• Ziguinchor, where the pirogues leave from: see our Ziguinchor page.
• South of the river, to compare architectures: the two-storey houses of Mlomp, near Oussouye, and the impluvium houses of Énampore and Éloubaline Island.
• Further west, towards the river mouth: Carabane Island.
• For the region as a whole, our Casamance page.

The right time

The dry season, from November to May, means calm water and dry paths in the village. Go in the morning: there is little shade on the water. At the end of the rainy season, the rice fields are an intense green, but showers can cut the trip short. Either way, the departure time follows the tide: let the boatman decide.

Practical tips

• Greet people first. You are entering an inhabited village: a hello to the elders comes before the visit.
• Photos with consent. Ask before photographing a person, a house or an interior; never photograph altars or fetishes.
• Sacred places. You do not enter a sacred grove unless you are invited.
• Cash in small notes for the contribution and any crafts.
• Protection: hat, sun cream and water, as the pirogue offers little shade; and ask for a life jacket before boarding.
• Safety: travel by day and ask in Ziguinchor about sailing conditions.

Book an activity here with QFS

Pirogue trips on the Casamance River and in the bolongs are run by independent local professionals. See pirogue trips for sailing through the mangroves, guided cultural tours and traditional sites & villages for Diola country, and birdwatching if Île aux Oiseaux appeals.

The price shown is the price of the service. You pay 20% to secure your booking (the booking fee), and the balance is paid on site, on the day, to the professional. There are no additional official fees; the contribution the village asks for the sculpted house is paid on site and is not included in the price. If you live in Senegal, you get the resident rate: up to 30% off (the exact rate is shown on each listing).

Frequently asked questions