Impressions of Angola

Impressions of Angola

It wasn’t so long ago that civil war was tearing Angola apart.  The Portuguese withdrew in 1975 after 500 years of rule leaving a vacuum and power struggle between the rival Angolan political factions. A brutal civil war ensued for the next 27 years which ended in 2002.

The country has been difficult to visit and it is only recently that Angola has simplified its entry visa requirements to encourage tourism.  And so here we are – touring Angola.

We have seen the odd tank wreck line the roads and we are told that land mines are still a danger in some areas. But other than that, the war is not so evident.  It is a very rich country in terms of oil wealth and mineral resources, but this wealth has clearly not found its way to the majority of the population living in the rudimentary villages we pass through. Nonetheless, the people are very friendly and always help us with directions.

Its greener here than in Namibia; the fruit is starting to look very fresh and is very affordable. Mango and pawpaw trees are everywhere (Francine’s favourites) and are just coming into season.

Rubbish is a problem here.  The approach road to every significant township is characterised with open cast rubbish dumps and plastic adorning every bush or tree. Hopefully this will get better over time with education. Nearly every other truck on the road belches a vast cloud of black smoke.  It makes us realise how lucky we are to be from a developed country.

Angola is not geared up for our kind of visit at all (or tourism in general).  There are very few established campsites and so we find ourselves wild camping much of the time, and because of the huge population density, we normally camp close to villages.  The villagers are inquisitive but not at all hostile.

Getting In

Leaving Namibia, and entering Angola, we needed to switch our driving side the road – Angola drives on the right whereas Namibia drives on the left. We asked Vincent, a ‘fixer’, to help us through the border – the first and last time we have done this. And then we change some US dollars for Kwanza – a stressful exercise with the money changers!

Tundavala

Our first significant stop was Tundavala, just outside Lubango.  It is a very deep canyon cut into the side of a cliff face with an amazing view to the north. Beautiful as it was, we are also aware that many hundreds of people were made to walk over the edge here (or be shot) during the war.

Lubango

On the way from Tundavala, we explored Lubango a little, walking and catching a local bus, much to the surprise of our fellow passengers, and visited the Christ the King Statue overlooking the town.

Serra da Leba

To get from Lubango, located on the ‘plano alto’ (high plateau), to the coastal town of Namibe, one must drive the famous Serra da Leba pass which drops 1,845m in just 10km. The upper part of the pass comprises a magnificent set of tight hairpin bends that hug the cliff face.  Suffice to say Big Bertha delivered us safely to the bottom with the help our engine retarder and air brakes. Beyond the tight harpins are concrete retaining walls that have been adorned with colourful murals.

Namibe

Namibe is the nicest Angolan town we have visited to date. It has many art deco buildings and a wonderful corniche. We spent a couple of days here and got the laundry done. Angola is an oil rich country, but there is no evidence this wealth is being spread across the country. I take a photo of the ‘haves’ and the ‘has not’.

Lake Arco

On our way south to Lake Arco, we visited a lodge on the ocean, a large diversion down a dried out river bed to the coast. We saw many ancient Welwitschia plants and we briefly got stuck in the sand on the way back. Lake Arco is an inland lake surrounded with some interesting rock formations.  The lake was empty for our visit, but it must be magnificent when full. On our return we stopped to look at old Cuban military training camp.

Lobito

We then retraced our route back through Namibe, up the Serra da Leba to Lubango where we turn north for a long drive to Benguela. We met some men on the road with fresh meat. They looked very serious! At Benguela we tried to extend our visas but ended up wasting nearly a whole day and with no success. We next briefly visited Catumbela and then Lobito – a dusty, noisy, dirty town with one redeeming feature – it has a 3 km long spit with nice housing and cool bars.  We met Nelson, who stopped to ask if we needed any help. He is Portuguese, had worked in Aberdeen and now lives in Angola. We spend a day here and then headed further up the coast. We are tempted to buy a sack of charcoal from one of the many vendors on the roadside. There are many, many, traditional villages on this road.

Kumbira Forest Reserve

This was a beautiful circular drive inland from Sumbe to the Kumbira Forest Reserve. The reserve is on a high plateau and the cooler climate was a relief from the coastal humidity. The scenery was amazing and the people were so friendly. We stopped to watch children pounding maze and look at the old bridge which had been blown up in the war.

North and then East to Kalandula Falls

Re-joining the coast we continue our run north towards the capital Luanda. We pass many fishing villages and we stop at one to look at the fish drying on the racks and visit the beach fish market. Just before Luanda, we turn east towards Kalandula and, on the way, made a short tour to visit Muxima, a small town on the bank of the river Cuanza.