Blogs from Angola, Africa

Wherever you look, there you will fly – Thai Proverb. One of my life mottos is that when the student is ready the teacher will appear. In life there are opportunities or learning's that appear only when one is set, not before. These opportunities may have always been there however it’s not until you are personally fit that it will reveal itself. Now once visible, the choice on whether you take this path is yours and yours alone. This was the case with West Africa and me. In various times in my life this special region had beckoned but I was never ready, something got in the way; the path was blocked. For West Africa is not a beginners journey, it takes experience, time, money, patience and passion to make it through in one piece. In ... read more

A voir un peu comment il nous classe le truc ;-) Bizarre quand même ce choix de pays...... read more

The plane was full - 95% middle aged white guys on the flight + long immigration lineup. They have the most frustrating sequence of id and baggage checks on the way out. A few beers with an South African cousin to get the lay of the land. He told me a scary story of the chinese convicts that are working construction in Luanda. Drive up to the Capanda dam, lots of green, baobob trees - hardly any cars, people or villages. Inside the hill resort Pungo-Andongo + a walk up the hill. Roads are so quiet, where is my motorcycle? Goats can sleep, people dry clothes, have fruit markets, and display bush meat on them.... read more

Sunday July 15 We drove along smooth tarmac all the way into town and found the Catholic Mission with ease. Situated opposite a beach, the guys put up their tents and legged it across the road and jumped in. The sand was black which had made the water look dirty from a distance but it was actually quite nice. Denise, Suse and I stayed along the water's edge watching the sun setting over the horizon. It was lovely and peaceful until Justice ran out of the water towards me, intent on hugging me and I ran to Denise who held the cameras. We got a good photo out of it though! It was the perfect night to snuggle under the sleeping bag and I found ear plugs necessary with the wall behind my tent backing onto ... read more

I was born in Luanda, the capital city of Angola. 5 hours Sydney to Perth, 10 hours Sydney to Johannesburg, 3 hours Johannesburg to LuandaWe were greeted at the airport by my Aunty, Uncle and 2 cousins. It was beautiful as I'd not seen my one and only (blood) Aunty since I was 3yrs old. Thankfully though, it was nothing too dramatic and emotional.Both my cousins studiously grabbed our luggage and we headed off. The drive to our hotel was about 45mins from the airport and the entire time I didn’t want to blink.What I saw was completely overwhelming although I’d seen it countless times.It was the exact scene from the movies which depict Africa.A storm of dust in a chaotic fallen city, uneven rubbish laden roads, women carrying goods on their heads with babies securely ... read more