Dubbed the “Holy City,” Touba is the sacred center of the Mouride Sufi brotherhood. Curious to discover what it is all about, some of us students took the hot, sweaty, four-hour ride into rural Senegal.

My Catholic host family was apprehensive about my going, certain that I would convert to Islam. My dad wouldn’t let his own children go because he said people there try to covert visitors at every opportunity. He even warned me not to eat or drink anything there, because “something” in the food and water makes people want to stay in Touba and become a devoted Muslim.

And the thing is, they weren’t just kidding around. The belief is widely held in Senegal — even one of our family’s Muslim friends was telling me the same thing. People even refer to Touba to explain Senegal’s notorious shortage of change, saying that it all flows from devout followers to the brotherhood in Touba.

But behind the popular mythology, Touba is an important place of worship for thousands. It boasts an enormous mosque to which 10,000 people come every Friday to pray. The mosque, which dominates the small town, is almost always in some phase of construction, constantly being enlarged, improved and refined. The grounds around the mosque are paved with white marble specifically chosen because it stays cool even in weather where the temperature reaches over 100 degrees. The mosque also contains a Quranic library housing the complete works of Cheikh Amadou Bamba, the founder of the Mouride brotherhood.

In this part of Senegal, women are always veiled, wearing long sleeves and long skirts (never pants). Decked out in the traditional garb, our appearance was quite entertaining, and people around town laughed, calling us silly Toubaabs in traditional dress.

This past weekend was Grand Magal, a pilgrimage celebrating the long-awaited 1967 return of Seex Aamadu Bàmba Mbàkke’s, the town’s founder. He was banished for 20 years by French authorities. Attracting upwards of 2 million followers, Magal has become a massive event proving that the influence of Bamba and his teachings keeps growing.