At one of the United Nation's designated "World Heritage Sites," accessible only through mountain paths in Nigeria, visitors are cautioned about getting too close to a certain tree, reports Estelle Shirbon for Reuters:
Visitors to Sukur are warned not to approach a certain ancient baobab tree because, villagers say, it turns people into hermaphrodites.It is an atmospheric introduction to this Nigerian World Heritage Site for the trickle of outsiders who come, but villagers who trek up and down from the remote hillside community are ready for an injection of modernity.
A road would be a start.
As the outside world starts to take a greater interest in the hilltop outpost, which earned its World Heritage label from UNESCO in 1999, the people there would also like to see more of the outside world.
"Can you take me to your place?" asked Hadanina Ajesko, 29, joking with a foreign visitor as she bent over to harvest groundnuts from a terraced field, her baby strapped to her back.
A wide gash in the hillside is still visible from where the village men started digging a road before the government of Adamawa state, where Sukur is located, told them to stop.
Read the whole article at the link above. Evidently "modern conveniences" like roads might interfere with the eco-tourism, which amounted to 30 signatures in the guest book this year. Meanwhile, the people have to craft stretchers out of branches to carry anyone needing medical attention down the steep slopes.
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Filed under:
Environment, UN, World
Tags: environment, heritage, poverty, UN
Comments (4)
What a marvelous tourist at... (Below threshold)1. Posted by kim | October 22, 2007 7:31 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
What a marvelous tourist attraction Bamiyan and the Hindu Kush could be.
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1. Posted by kim | October 22, 2007 7:31 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on October 22, 2007 07:31
2. Posted by db | October 22, 2007 9:32 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
The same logic applies to the amazon rain forest where governments use some pseudo cause to keep people in a natural state aka enforced property and the rest of the world celebrates it. These folks are an example for use all. No cars, no electricity no trucks to bring food, they great no carbon foot print. This and the fact that they have mid wives I mean they are right on the cusp of the same maternity treatment as UK.
2. Posted by db | October 22, 2007 9:32 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on October 22, 2007 09:32
3. Posted by kim | October 22, 2007 11:15 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Don't sit under the Baobab tree with Bimi, Brenten.
The stone age thing is all about Rousseau and fantasy. Yes, it is ideal; it is the conditions under which we have evolved. But we ain't goin' back. It's delusionary to believe so, and sad to hope so.
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3. Posted by kim | October 22, 2007 11:15 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on October 22, 2007 11:15
4. Posted by Jeff Blogworthy | October 23, 2007 8:21 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
"Visitors to Sukur are warned not to approach a certain ancient baobab tree because, villagers say, it turns people into hermaphrodites."
You shouldn't be repeating that. The entire Democratic Party is now going Sukur or bust.
4. Posted by Jeff Blogworthy | October 23, 2007 8:21 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on October 23, 2007 08:21