Bè is the oldest continuously inhabited part of Lomé, an Ewe village absorbed into the colonial town in the 1880s but still recognisably distinct from the centre. It runs east of Boulevard Houphouët-Boigny, organised around the sacred lagoon and a busy local market, and it is where you go to see how most of the city actually lives.
The streets are narrow and unpaved in places, the houses are low compound-style buildings rather than the tower blocks of the centre, and you can hear Ewe spoken everywhere. Bè is the religious heart of Lomé — the chief priest of Togo lives here, and the major vodun ceremonies of the year are performed at the lagoon. Walk in mid-morning, with a local guide if you want the religious context, and stop at the market for fresh palm wine and grilled fish. Treat the quarter with respect: it is not a tourist set-piece.