Waza, the lion's kingdom
The beautiful tarred road linking Maroua to Kousseru crosses a vaste plain with sparse vegetation, mostly shrubs and gress that have wiltedunder the heat of the dry season. Here and there emerge some hillocks with bare slopes with large rocks polished and chiseled by inclement weather. The houses with conical roofs replaced just before the onslaught of the rainy season help to enhance the beauty of the region. In the veranda you can watch a house wife pounding millet for the mid-day meal.
After walking about three hours in "nature's wonder" where monotony is unknown, you suddenly come upon an important village. This is Waza, the district headquarter, famous for its National Park.
The best reputed and the most visited in Cameroon, and may be the whole of French-Seaking Africa, the Waza National Park was created in 1934 and covers 170,000 hectares. It has two separate areas: to the west there is a forest zone covered with acacia forests and, to the east, vast savannah plains - the "yaeres" area has all-season water points.
Waza has all animal species in Africa: elephants, lions, griraffes, Buffon's kobs, hartebeest, waterbucks, cheetahs, warthogs, gazelles. You also find larg flocks of birds of all species: ostriches, herons, pelicans, maraboustorks, jabirus, crested, cranes, ibis, geese, sand-pipers, woodstorks, egrets, vultures, bustards, stilt- plovers, etc.
It is preferable to visit the park between November and June (for the forest zone) and between March and June (for the yaeres). At these times the tourist will meet a fascinating variety of animals.
Hire a vehicle and discover the delights of Waza.Hardly two kilometers inside the park you see a long-necked giraffe, all six feet of it grazing on acacia leaves.As you come closer, it stops and and willingly poses for photographs.Then as you put away your camera,the animal turns its back to you, takes one,two,three steps, turns round, atches you getting into the vehicle and then breaks into a gallop moving away with admirable elegance and grace.
Here, the gazelle frolics in the grass, there you can perceive a herd of elephants.Watch them from a distance and do not get out of the vehicle.The elephant will doyou no harm if you do not scare it with the click of your camera or your noise. The grey-skinned elephantis either browsing or caressing moves in herds of as many as 80.
The sorcerer and his crab
Rhumsiki, 50km from Mokolo, is well known for its pictures quekapsiki landscape which some think looks like the lunar landscape and others think "the most fascinating landscape in the world". However, Rhumsiki has one inhabitant whose fame attracts tourists to the area. He is Tije Kidi, the sorcerer (and his crab). The whole day long he receives numerous tourists anxious to known their fortune.
It is always exciting to watch Tije kidi at work.When the tourist asks his question, the sorcerer gets his crab - which feeds on three grains of millet a day - puts it in to a small pot and starts his incantations. After some time Tije Kidi removes the lid from the pot. If the crab is stirring a lot then the oracle is good; if it is quite still it means the tourist's stars are bad.
Whether this is true or not, several tourists take Tije Kidi's predictions
Oudjila, chief mozogo's harem
When you get to Mora from Maroua an arrow pointing to the left indicates the direction to Outjila, another tourist attraction in Cameroon. Follow that direction. It is a steep, tortuous mountainous road bordered by large blocks of granite. You have round hut with conical roofs secured with rings of baked clay scattered all over the rugged, rocky country. Each hamlet is surrounded by a wall made of stones neatly piled one on top of the other. The terraced fields with furrows give the area an undulated aspect. The palace of the chief of this Kirdi village is built at the hilltop. The compound is divided into two sections; there is an inner court with a dance floor and a harem surrounded by an ancient stone wall which is said to be 350 year old. The tourist is recommended to firs visit the harem, a real labyrinth, where Chief Mozogo's 45 women and 88 children live. The first room is for the chief's customary court. The second and third rooms, which are a real sanctuary, habour the chief's father's tomb and the prayer room with nine large earthenware pots. In a nearby corner lies the sacred Bull that will be eaten by the villagers during the festival when they will also consume the corn beer held in the nine pots. The millet barn is built a few steps below. Then you get to the harm where Mozogo's wives live. Each has a hut comprising one sleeping room, two barns and two hearths. The chief has two rooms: one on the ground floor where he welcomes his wives and another, upstairs, a strangely decorated room where you have, side by side, portraits of presidents Nixon, Pompidou, Ahidjo and Vice President Agnew.
The chief's two outstanding characteristics are his open mindedness and simplicity. He readily poses with visitors and he lets them visit his palace and organizes traditional dances.