Oh the places you’ll go - Dr. Seuss

28 June 2019, Soyo outskirts to Soyo, 17.61km
Hotel Bravo 10,000Kz (R445)

It was a short ride into Soyo proper, but we were glad not to have done it the day before as the road was narrow, potholed and busy.
Just as we stopped for a soft drink, the police pulled up to inspect our documents and request a copy of our passports, one of which we had left and available.
Shortly thereafter we were accosted by the emigration police (SME). The official, who spoke English, wanted a copy of the passports and of our Angolan entry stamp and the extension granted us in Benguela. He accompanied us to a copy shop where we decided to make several copies in case asked for them again in this clearly more neurotic environment, we assume given the proximity to an international border. We were thrilled and amazed when the official paid not only for the copy requested by him, but for the spares, and warmed considerably to him then.
He asked where we were planning to stay, and when we said we had not yet decided, insisted on accompanying us to the Hotel Bravo and installing us here. He also wanted to know where we had stayed last night, and I was pleased to be able to show him a photo as I could not remember the name. While we were saying our goodbyes, he received a call from a colleague who clearly had Blanca in tow. Off he went, and soon Blanca too had been corralled and (reluctantly) installed in the expensive Hotel Bravo (hotels charge by the room, so accommodation costs are much higher effectively for single occupants).
The SME officer then took us all to Kimbumba port to arrange for us and our bikes to go to Cabinda by local boat, wood boats open to the skies. We had been told this might not be possible, so were thrilled by how easy it all seemed. Blanca arranged with a boat captain to meet him the following morning - at the dreadful hour of 04:00 for a sailing at 06:00 - and we with the same captain for the following Monday.
It was en route the Bravo with the SME officer that we had our first sighting of a tributary of the Congo river, wide and brown. We lunched near the river, not on it as the restaurants there were closed at midday. And negotiated with the Bravo a cheap price for Blanca to share our room for the few hours she would have before departing for the port …

For today's route see below photos
For overview route, click on ROUTE tab above…