Mali: Sikasso
Sikasso is the second largest city in Mali after Bamako. Located in the south near the Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast borders it is a busy trade town full of markets and a lot of dust. The region is very fertile all around. Sikasso however has quite a history – it was a small village until 1855 when Tieba Traore made it the capital of the Kenedpugou Kingdom and surrounded it with walls and fortifications against the attacks of neighboring kingdom. Sikasso soon became the most fortified town in West Africa. Sikasso withstood a 15 month siege, before the French colonial troops finally conquered it. Today, you can see the remains of the city walls in many place and the red-brick palace in the town center.
