Eight things that I didn’t know about the capital of Angola a week ago: (1) It is one of the most expensive cities in the world; I assume, the most expensive in Africa. US$10 for an iceberg lettuce, for example. And I’m assured that eating out in London seems modestly priced by comparison. (2) The US dollar is, effectively, a second currency, thanks, in no small part, to the booming oil industry here. (3) Along the coast, the most oft-sighted bird is the common egret; a curiously spectacular bird to be apparent in such numbers. Not a seagull in sight. (4) There is, effectively, no tourist industry; not even a scruffy photocopied handout at the Luanda Fort where nothing is labelled, and street-sellers simply sell goods targeted at the general population rather than hassling the (non-existent)
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