Durbar Festival

The week-long Durbar Festival is a highlight of the year for the locals.  The week before the festival started, we noticed a major clean up begin.  This is a traditional holiday which is very complex and surrounds the appeasement and celebration of "The Lesser Gods" - including the sacrifice of a cow in the palace!  It is also to remember the man who sacrificed himself - hoping to abate Cholera that had stricken the area and killed many people a long time ago.  There are scores of athletic contests and sporting events during the week, along with other rituals involving "The Lesser Gods" - like not fishing on one of the days etc.

The Festival ends on Saturday with the processional of chiefs - lead by the Fante Priest.  Onlookers were dressed to the nines while melting in the suffocating heat and humidity!  Not me - I was practical and wore a cool skirt and tennis shoes but I still nearly passed out.

Drums, singing, dancing and this hero-sized deer were part of the Fante Priest entourage.

Each village has a royal family who are the original settlers.  The chief is from the family and when they feel like it's time for a change, they elect a new one from the family.  There were 15-20 chiefs in the processional.  Each were elaborately dressed, adorned with gold and carried on a litter by 4 men (who carried him on their head and danced as they went), another carried the umbrella and several more followed beating the drums.  

The parade ended in Victoria Park (which is like a stadium of concrete).  The chiefs gave their speeches about what they were going to do for their people.  Kind of like a political inauguration/state of the union address.  It was very interesting!