Château Viale

A small but unmistakable European-style château perched on a hilltop above the road from Kpalimé to Klouto. The pale stone walls and the crenellated tower look like something dropped in from the Loire, which is broadly what it is: a colonial-era folly built by a French planter who never quite came to terms with where he was.

Public access is limited because the property is held by the state, but the view from the road outside the gate is worth a stop. A short walk up the hill behind brings you onto trails into Klouto forest. Time the visit for late afternoon when the light hits the stone.

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A story
French settler Raoul Viale built a small castle in the Klouto hills in the 1940s, complete with battlements, a chapel, and a courtyard. The story goes that he wanted to impress a fiancée in France; she never came. The château is now an occasional retreat for the Togolese presidency and is usually only visible from the outside.

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