The Bridge of the Spirits (part 3)

From out of this mysterious atmosphere of the jungle, rises like a ghost the enormous dome of the Basilica of Yammasoukro. It is a copy of the Vatican, a colossal place of worship in the middle of the forest. One thousand five hundred men, working day and night, took three years to build it. It was the dream of a devout man, the first President of the Ivory Coast, Felix Ufue-Buañi, who ruled from the time of independence, in 1963, until he died, in 1993.

The holy complex, which includes an exact copy of Saint Peter's Square, including Bernini's colonnade, was completed in 1989 and consecrated by Pope John Paul II in 1990, during his third visit to this country.

Ufue-Buañi squandered a great part of his fortune on this titanic construction, which he then donated to the Vatican, the present owners of this basilica, now maintained by the Curia of Rome.

128 Doric columns 30 metres in height, 7 hectares of marble brought from Italy, France and Spain, and 7,400 square metres of stained glass windows, make up this monumental construction. But it is always empty, because the people of this region have other beliefs, other gods to worship.