Saturday 1^st December we drove to the bank of the Niger. We went to witness the draught-provoked of cattle herds from the dry Sahel to the greener postures near by Diafarabé. This lies in the delta of the Niger. But it is more than search for postures for cattle, it’s a tradition, an annual festival from the Fulani and the Peul. They celebrate that the young cows come back to their village with the rest of the herd. There the girls wait for their friends, the brides and the grooms. Young women are beautifully dressed in white, with amber beads decorating their hair.

The competition between those men and boys is to show their strength as a herder. You have to show that you can lead your herd, especially at a dangerous draught like this one. 

We were at the bank of the River an stood in the middle of the herders and their cattle and saw the numbers grow. In the river there were pirogues that could hold the cows if they were going to stray off and drown. There hang a atmosphere of patience. There were coming three ministers, that always means waiting.

Unfortunately we weren’t the only tourists. What surprised me the most, was that the people were indifferent to the tourists. On the contrary, they ehaved very friendly, greeted us, looked at us, but didn’t ask for presents. Proud people, busy with their own party and accepted us without expecting something.

The boys who had to do it, prayed together and run around to warm up the mind. And then they chased the cows into the water. The cattle swam and sailed with them, they encouraged the cows. Sometimes a cow got tired and lost contact with the group. Then it strayed off, drowned in the water and washed ashore at the bank. Where the Bamara and Bozo boys stood, ready to hack the cow in pieces. They were proud when they walked home with a head or a paw.