Description Île de Gorée
The shadow of colonial rule and the brutality of the slave trade casts a pall over Dakar, in particular its UNESCO-listed island of Gorée. Back in the 18th century, more than 20 slave houses darkened its streets and, while many have been left to ruin (and opened to wanderers), any visit here should begin at La Maison des Esclaves where the sobering story of life in these places is told with real power, as you glimpse through its famous sea-facing doorway – the last sight of home many Africans saw as they were taken to the slave ships.