Notre Dame de Miséricorde is the Catholic cathedral of Cotonou, and one of the most architecturally distinctive buildings in the city. The facade is tiled in alternating burgundy and white horizontal stripes — an arresting pattern that looks simultaneously colonial and vaguely Moorish, unlike almost anything else in West Africa. The interior is cooler than the street outside and worth a few minutes even for secular visitors.
The cathedral stands near the Ancien Pont, the old bridge over the lagoon that divides central Cotonou from the eastern districts. The surrounding neighbourhood has a different pace to the centre — quieter, more residential, with vendors selling cold drinks and roasted corn along the waterfront. The bridge itself, though narrow and now supplemented by newer crossings, still carries a constant stream of zems and pedestrians and is worth walking across for the views of the lagoon at dusk.