Blogs from Congo, Africa - page 3

Ik had vandaag mijn eerste afspraak bij mijn "werkgever" alhier, ECAir. Dit staat voor Equatorial Congo Air. 9:00 afgesproken en ik werd 45 minuten later opgehaald. In de tussentijd even een foto van mijn hotel gemaakt. Zie hier ergens... We zijn naar het hoofdkantoor van de maatschappij gegaan en heb daar wat belangrijke mensen ontmoet, oa de vice president, een belgische meneer, die daar al zijn hele leven woont. De 2e foto is van de straat waar het hoofdkantoor van de Nationale Luchtvaartmaatschappij zich bevindt. Hij bood mij een ticket naar Pointe Noir aan. Dit is het touristisch meest aantrekkelijke plaats van Congo, aan de kust van de Atlantische Oceaan. Waarschijnlijk ga ik dat maar doen, want Brazzaville is het economische centrum, maar niet echt een aantrekkelijke plaats om te bezoeken. We zijn ook nog naar ... read more

I arrived in Pointe Noire on the 30th April 2012, after a fairly event free flight on Interair, a South African airline. My mission was to do an electrical installation on a ship. The clouds were fantastic as we cruised at 10 000m above Mother Africa. After touching down, going through customs and immigration was fairly easy. I had a LOI (letter of invitation) and was met at the arrivals hall by and agent from GETMA Congo. It was about a 10 minute drive to Hotel Elais , which is a 4 star hotel in the centre of town. It has a pool, and outdoor restaurant, as well as a nice, but expensive bar. The following morning, it was 1st May, Worker's Day, and what better way to spend the day sitting at the pool, with ... read more

22:07 The boat trip was sooooooo exciting! I got a great picture of hippos at the water’s edge. I wasn’t allowed to take full pictures of just the River though because authorities will confiscate any cameras or pictures…luckily I didn’t have my Camera confiscated but it did mean no pictures. (I got away with the Hippos, though, as they are not part of the river!) It’s a lot better in a boat than in the water! Me, and a couple of other tourists and guides set of at 13:30 in an 8 seated canoe. We had a wonderful time looking at animals, plants, special features and the guides were brilliant; telling us everything they knew about everything we passed or saw. I was an amazing experience. The River is wildly twisting and turning so much that ... read more

19:03 I went exploring today!! I had planned to go swimming in the River, and I was close to as well. Just as I was about to jump in, in swimsuit, the patroller told me to beware of the crocodiles…obviously that led to me quickly removing my feet from the water’s edge and pretending to rush of for a forgotten, booked activity! After that I went to a local visitor centre where I found out more about the rainforest along the Congo. The rainforest provides a home for the “forest people”. They live in groups or bands of around 15 – 70 people depending of course on the outside factors. E.g Hunting, Diseases, trading and Forest area. Most of the time they live near villages to ensure they have lots of food, and other things for ... read more

17:41 I landed at the Brazzaville airport at 7 o’clock in the morning. By then I was very tired and went straight to the hotel (Hotel de ville Brazzaville), on the shore of the Congo River, for a quick nap! I was quite worried about the flight because the African Airways are not as safe and secure due to the lack of Political Stability and that flight in 1989 when the plane crashed after stopping at Brazzaville and N’Djamena…my destination and start point…luckily I had my guide, Abdoul, to convince me, with proof, that I wasn’t going to be blown to smithereens during my journey! My Journey was in fact very pleasant. I planned the rest of my Journey and researched some good activities to do in Congo. Tomorrow I am moving out of the ... read more