Lifestyle

Grand-Popo

06°17′N 001°50′E · Mono

A quiet beach town on Benin's southwest coast where a branch of the Mono River meets the Gulf of Guinea.

Grand-Popo lies in Mono Department on a strip of coast between the Atlantic Ocean and a branch of the Mono River, near the Togo border. It grew as a trading and slave-trade port from the 17th century, though coastal erosion from the late 1950s onward has washed away much of its colonial-era architecture. Today it is known for its beaches, fishing community and Vodun traditions, and for the Bouche du Roi, the shifting mouth where the Mono River opens to the sea. The town is also home to Villa Karo, a Finnish-African cultural centre.

Sources: [1] · [2]

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