A MASKED goblin figure chases two unsuspecting tourists along the busy streets, shrouded in a long multicoloured cloak.
A few feet away, a priest carries a goat, preparing to sacrifice its blood to and share its meat with other believers.
Welcome to the Voodoo capital of the world: Ouidah, in Benin, West .
Here the ‘goblin’ guardians, known as the Zangbeto, roam the streets wielding wooden swords – ready to ward off evil in both the human and spirit world.
Visitors flock to the tiny city, which has a population of 162,000,to and buy artefacts that are believed to bring good fortune, such as the heads of and other animals.
Despite its lack of attention in most mainstream holiday brochures, 337,000 tourists are reported to have visited Benin in 2019 and the numbers are believed to be growing.
These so-called ‘‘ include Brits like Viktor Wynd – owner of London-based tour company Gone With the Wynd, who takes up to three tours a year – and Kieran Brown, an ex-barman turned travel influencer.
Benin, for its part, is happy to welcome intrigued visitors, with priests charging for their guidance and private rituals, and public festivals and Voodoo events charging admission fees.
Kieran, 30, from Sidcup, , visited the country during his tour along Africa’s coastline and recalls his nerve-racking encounters at local landmarks including the Temple of Pythons.
Inside a sealed room at a religious sanctuary, locals worship snakes instead of fearing them, and Kieran encountered dozens of the creatures slithering around.
Snakes are said to represent the Voodoo god Da, who is believed to bring fertility and life to its worshippers.
The priest even put one around Kieran’s neck but insisted the potentially deadly do not hurt humans.
Kieran tells The Sun: “There was a thick door, the guy opened it, and there were around 60 to 70 pythons.
“He put them around our neck and they seemed pretty chilled.
“I didn’t feel any energy and I don’t believe in that but the people in the town are heavy believers.
“That’s the most popular religion in that side of the world, there is more Voodoo than Christianity.”;
‘Land of the dead’
It’s thought 60million people around the world practice Voodoo, which is believed to have originated in Ouidah and where around 60 per cent are said to be followers.
Voodoo – known traditionally as Vodoun, or Vodún – was officially declared a in Benin in 1996, and the annual festival, on January 10, attracts worshippers from all over the globe.
Followers believe spirits control both the human world and the ‘land of the dead’, with different deities relied on to protect everything from villages to trees and rivers.
They not only worship them from small shrines in their homes but they also attend public and private rituals led by community priests, who can be male or female.
Voodoo dolls are sold at markets and sellers even claim the infamous figurines are able to make people fall in love with you.
Snakes are worshipped as gods and animal sacrifice – including that of dogs – is commonplace and is often part of Voodoo initiation ceremonies.
Dark arts
During his visit, Kieran also recalls his encounter with one of the striking Zangbeto.
These oddly dressed, masked figures act as the unofficial on the streets of Ouidah, and are believed to keep residents and the religion’s witches and spirits in line.
Their name itself comes from ‘zan’, meaning night, and ‘gbeto’ that refers to person or people – so translates to ‘people of the night’, although they now appear in daylight hours as well.
Kieran said: “When we were there we were walking around and there was a man dressed up as a Zangbeto and people were trying to get close to him and he chased people.
“We were walking through a street and he saw us. Because we were the only white people we stood out.
“It was a man dressed up like a goblin, he had a thick mask on.
“I can’t explain it but he was dressed like a monster, people were running away when it came close.
“People were trying to annoy it by running towards it and eventually it would snap and start chasing you, it seemed to be like a game, everyone was chanting.”;
Temple of Pythons
Ouidah is home to the religion’s Mecca, The Sacred Forest, where trees are considered holy and capable of granting wishes.
Due to the rituals of spells and sacrifices, parallels have been drawn to witchcraft, which was greatly feared in 13th to 15th century Britain and led to the execution of those accused of practising it.
However, Voodoo is now recognised as a protected religious belief in Britain under the Equality Act 2010.
And expert Viktor explains that Voodoo remains an everyday feature throughout Benin – visible on the streets and with most people’s homes featuring aspects of the religion.
Viktor, who is also a Voodoo artefact collector and runs The Viktor Wynd Museum in Hackney, East London, said: “Wherever you go in Benin, everyone has a Voodoo altar and everyone goes to the Voodoo priests.
“Each person has one main Voodoo spirit that they serve.
“People dressed as Zangbeto do these dances to regulate the spirit world and the world of the living. They’re intermediaries with the other world.
“There’s always something happening so a few weeks before we go we’ll the priests and get all sorts of interesting invitations.
“There’s Voodoo in the and it’s very underground but in Benin it takes centre stage. That’s why people find it so interesting.
“It’s fought back against the dominance of Muslims and Christians, who have marginalised the religion in other parts of the world.”;
While Benin is credited as being the origin of Voodoo, it has spread to neighbouring countries such as , Togo and even the Caribbean.
In Togo, Kieran visited the world’s biggest Voodoo market, where he found skulls of various animals – including dogs.
The traveller spoke to the local Witch Doctor, who said each skull has different properties and are often prescribed to cure illnesses.
Kieran said: “That region of the world in particular, I went to the world’s biggest Voodoo market in Toga, where you can buy every type of animal skull.
“It was a bit creepy, we were walking and there was every skull you can buy.
“We spoke to the Witch Doctor, he explained it’s normal in this culture. When I posted a video people were horrified but they could be horrified with some of the things in Western culture.
“There were Voodoo dolls and spells, he said it is possible to make another person fall in love with you, but I didn’t believe it.”;
Goat slaughter
Every year on January 10 the Vodoun (Voodoo) Festival is celebrated across Benin and especially in the city of Ouidah, where practitioners gather to honour their spirits with sacrifices, dancing and singing.
The festival begins with the slaughter of a goat to honour the religion’s spirits.
The blood is used as an offering to the spirits and the animals – such as chickens, goats, sheep and cows – are then cooked and shared amongst the worshippers.
Despite experiencing the ‘creepiness’ of the voodoo market and rituals, Kieran would recommend Voodoo tourism to Brits who want to explore that part of the world.
Meanwhile, Viktor is keen to share his passion for the area and religion with the world and invites those who are intrigued to his museum and to join his unorthodox holiday tours.
