INFORMATION:
 The
Tanji Village Museum is The Gambia's first privately operated
museum, and was set up in 1997 by Mr. Abdoulie Bayo, a former
curator at the National Museum in Banjul. It is located 32km from
the capital of Banjul, about
2km south of the the fishing village, and lies along the Kombo
Coastal Road. The various structures that hold the ethnographic
exhibits, such as tribal artifacts, a photo gallery of the vegetation
and birds of The Gambia, are inside African style round huts.
 This
is a tourist attraction that has been set up to be more akin to
an African hamlet - a 'living museum' of sorts. The centrepiece
of the various exhibits is a reconstruction of a traditional Mandinka
compound, depicting how
they lived over 100 years ago. It consists of a few round-houses
that hold a carefully chosen selection of artefacts and traditional
furniture, such as wooden beds, stools, spears, hats and horse
hair fly swatters.
The compound's thatched huts are shown divided into a men's and
women's sections, reflecting villagers' traditional roles. There
are also farming implements, a seed store, kitchen, cooking utensils,
such large wooden mortar and pestle, large calabash containers,
and a livestock house. You can view the 'Natural History
Gallery' of bird and fish prints; dyes, nets, horns and maps;
seashells, snakeskins, turtle shells, a circumcision face mask,
and a box of bugs. There is also a fine selection of traditional
musical instruments, including Koras, Djembe drums, Balafon etc.,
and on-site performers show visitors how these are played. They
can often be heard playing in the background during your meal
in the restaurant or Bantaba picnic area.
 A
quiet nature trail, filled with trees, herbs and shrubs tells
you about The Gambia's fauna and flora, as birdsong can be heard
overhead in numerous indigenous trees. A flyer indicates and describes
all the vegetation, explaining their traditional uses, whether
it's for construction materials, food or medicine. Further along
the track you can observe craftsmen, such as woodcarvers making
masks and drums, blacksmiths making tools, knives and African
jewellery, using hand-pumped bellows, and weavers producing lengths
of cotton cloth on hand-looms. You also get the chance to buy
souvenir handicrafts and DVDs from their store.
 The
complex and exhibits are divided into four parts:
• Ethnographic and Natural History Gallery;
• Traditional Crafts - Weaving, Smithery etc.;
• Traditional Gambian Compound;
• Nature Trail & Vegetation.
ACCOMMODATION:
 At
the back of the complex there are several huts, each with one
or two beds, mosquito net over 'traditional' concrete beds, with
a foam mattress, shower room with sink and toilet.
TRAVEL INFORMATION & HOW TO GET THERE:
To get to the Tanji from the Kololi
or Kotu resorts you take one of the taxis
southbound until Brusubi, then turn southwest, past Brufut, Ghana
Town, and onto the bridge which marks the start of the rural settlement.
You then go 2km further south and the complex is on your left-hand
side.
OPENING HOURS:
Monday to Sunday (7 days a week) 9am to 5pm. The entry fee is
about £2.
CONTACT ADDRESS DETAILS:
Tanje Village Museum
Kombo South District
West Coast Region
P.O. Box 1562, Banjul
The Gambia, West Africa
Tel no: +220 9926618
+220 7057045
Email: abdoulie.bayo@yahoo.com
tanjevillagemuseum@yahoo.com
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[Geographical coordinates 13.3500° N, 16.7833° W / Kombo
South, Western Region]
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