A meaningful life is never about the end result, it is always about the journey - Kristen Hadeed

11-18 June 2019, Luanda
Chez Amelia 13,942Kz (R621)

We spent NINE NIGHTS in Luanda…
More than we needed to, though the embassy runs for visas were hugely time-consuming and largely frustrating. We were denied a visa for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) (also known as Congo Kinshasa) on the grounds that the embassy issues visas in Angola to Angolan citizens only. But we secured visas for both the Republic of Congo (also known as Congo Brazzaville) and Gabon. Luanda is a large city with a population of over eight million. We travelled between our accommodation and the embassies on a combination of local transport: mini-bus share taxis and autocycles.
We also paid a visit to a travel clinic recommended by our travel clinic in Johannesburg, wanting to discuss how best to mitigate the sun-sensitivity caused by our malaria capsules or find a generic alternative. Not only had the clinic moved to an impossible location, making for a two-day search-and-find exercise, but the doctor was of the opinion that we did not need to take precautions against malaria (she is not alone in this view, but we had decided not to risk it), saying she recommended only that pregnant women take pills, and then two only.
We were the only guests in our multi-storey Airbnb, and liked the area in which it was located. We ate out regularly at a range of restaurants within walking distance.
We tried to visit Luanda’s one tourist site, the Mausoleum of António Agostinho Neto*, but it was closed to tourists, at least at the time of our visit!
* “The final resting place of the first president of Angola (and the subject of our October photo), the Mausoleum of António Agostinho Neto rises, obelisk-like, 393 feet from the center of Luanda, the capital of Angola. Despite Neto's having died in 1979, the brutalist-style mausoleum was not completed until 2012. As well as being a politician, Neto was known in his native country as an accomplished poet. According to some, the design of the monument is based on his poem “A Path to the Stars.” During its construction, it was locally nicknamed “Sputnik” due to its spaceship-like shape.” (intltravelnews.com)

WhatsApp messages to friends and family during our stay in Luanda
11 June 2019: Contemplating our first visa setback over rice with beans n meat. DRC have refused to issue a visa on the grounds we are not residents of Angola. Will explore if we can courier passports to DRC embassy in Pretoria, though this unlikely. Otherwise…
One couple was refused a DRC visa by an official who said: “I will be sending you to your death”. Not sure we would have got one via Pretoria without being physically present. C’est la vie.
12 June 2019: OK, Congo Brazzaville will issue visas for two weeks at a whopping $100 each. So, assuming we can get a boat from Soyo, at the mouth of the Congo River, to Cabinda, we can skip DRC. We will also need to apply for our Gabon visas while in Luanda. Took us three hours to find the embassy this morning - Luanda is a tough city to negotiate. Slow progress, but progress…
12 June 2019: The contrasts in Luanda are very much in your face. We walked from our accom to this stunning restaurant on a residential street (too expensive for our budget so just had a drink). To get there we crossed a canal reeking of sewerage. We feel safe walking the streets at night. People are friendly and polite. Lots of vendors. Lots of transport options. But also lots of things that just don't work, mainly related to plumbing and electricity.
15 June 2019: Spotted this wonderful pair from our collective taxi [street traders with bras on their heads - see photo]. At R7 a trip, best value transport in the city, plying their trade between transport hubs named Mutamba, Kinaxixi, Sao Paolo and Maianga. Autocycles cost R25-R50 per trip, but are faster and do not travel set routes so more flexible. You can identify an autocycle taxi by the second helmet the driver carries. This mine always places on my head and fastens beneath my chin.
15 June 2019: Street checkers [see photo]. To update you on our plans. We collect our passports Monday. Have been granted visas for two countries: Congo Brazzaville and Gabon. Depart Luanda Tuesday. Will cycle to Soyo on the mouth of the Congo River - about one week. Then hope to get a boat to the Angolan exclave of Cabinda. From there into Congo and Gabon where we apply for visas for Cameroon and Nigeria…
18 June 2019: We're still in Luanda; depart tomorrow…