Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
NORTHERN SENEGAL
TOP OF CHAPTER
Saint-Louis
POP 172,000
With its crumbling colonial architecture, horse-drawn carts and peaceful ambience, West
Africa's first French settlement has a unique historical charm - so much so it's been a Un-
esco World Heritage Site since 2000. The old town centre sits on an island in the Senegal
River, but the city sprawls into Sor on the mainland, and onto the Langue de Barbarie,
where you'll find the lively fishing community of Guet N'Dar.
The island is reached via the 500m-long Pont Faidherbe, a feat of 19th-century engineer-
ing.
Sights & Activities
Place Faidherbe
SQUARE
With its statue of the French governor who led the colonial expansion eastwards and initi-
ated many ambitious infrastructural projects, this square sits adjacent to several intact 19th-
Rognât Casernes
OFFLINE MAP
GOOGLE MAP
on its north and south. Next to the governor's
palace, you'll find a lovely 1828
cathedral
(Rue de l'Eglise)
with a neoclassical facade worth ad-
miring. This central space is where Saint-Louis splits into its southern part (Sindoné) and
northern part (Lodo); the former the old Christian town, the latter the original home to the
Muslim population.
