The villages around Gaoua are where you see Lobi traditional life as it has been lived for centuries. The Lobi build fortified earthen compounds — soukala — that look like miniature castles, with thick mud walls, a single low entrance, ladders made from notched tree trunks, and flat clay roofs used for sleeping in hot weather. Each compound houses an extended family of dozens of people, with separate granaries, kitchens, ancestor shrines, and chicken yards inside the walls.
Hire a guide in Gaoua — the Musée de Poni can recommend one, and a local interpreter is essential because the Lobi do not generally speak French. Approach respectfully: ask permission, offer kola nuts or a small gift, and never photograph people or shrines without asking. The villages of Tilipédié, Loropéni, and the area around Gongombiro are the most often visited, but any direction out of Gaoua takes you into Lobi country.