As the creator of the Milton Elementary School Weekly World Trivia contest, I spent significant time researching many forgettable facts about world geography. However, of the many random facts I came across in those years, one stuck with me: Côte d’Ivoire is one of the few countries considered to have two capital cities. The economic capital is Abidjan, with a population of over 6 million people, and the political capital is a city called Yamoussoukro, which sits northwest of Abidjan and only has 400,000 people.

You never know when you might need a random trivia fact to win a sticker in an elementary school trivia contest (or some beer swag at a bar on trivia night). Commit that fact to memory, people.

When Owen was visiting, he wanted to go to Yamoussoukro and asked how to get there by bus. My guesthouse owner (Jean-Marc) told him, “You cannot go there alone. You will never make it back.” According to Jean-Marc, it’s not a dangerous city, but the transportation part of the equation is the challenge. Like many things in Côte d’Ivoire, you cannot use your experience or knowledge to guide your understanding of how to get things to work here.

Owen tried to argue that he was an experienced traveler, but Jean-Marc insisted that Owen have an escort to take the bus to the city and back. Jean-Marc put it this way, “I can either send someone with you now, or I will have to send someone to find you in Yamoussoukro after.” It’s hard to argue with that logic.

Owen did go to Yamoussoukro with a helper, and when he returned, he confirmed that Jean-Marc was correct. I was surprised that he admitted it, only because he is a very savvy traveler and not intimidated by confusing circumstances – plus he is a big white American guy, which gives him many advantages in travel and the world. According to Owen, the bus station was more of a random parking lot, and there was no evidence of anything resembling a schedule or any order to the madness. When I asked him about the city, he said, “It’s hard to describe. It’s better if you see it for yourself.”

As luck would have it, my friend Adi and I were planning a trip to Yamoussoukro to do some teacher training, but thankfully we were taking a car.

To understand Yamoussoukro, Owen was right. It is much better to visit. Here is what I can tell you about the city:

• The first president of the country built it after they declared independence from France in 1960.
• I have heard that it is modeled after Washington, DC’s grid pattern.
• The majority of the city’s buildings were built during the 1970s and early 1980s, and the architecture perfectly reflects that period—and when I say perfectly, I mean PERFECTLY in ALL CAPS.
• It is home to the world’s largest basilica because competition for building size was an integral part of the first president’s administration.
• Although the president built the city nearly 50 years ago, it was built with the future in mind, so the roads are four lanes wide in each direction in and around the city.
• The future has not arrived yet, so these giant roads are big and lonely and give you the sense that you are driving onto a deserted airfield.
• It is a place that is better experienced than described, but if you are a fan of mid-century brutalist architecture, you should put Yamoussoukro on your list of places to visit.

When the future happens, Yamoussoukro will be ready!