After a night in Luanda to rest up I made my way south again. First I stopped briefly at Miraduoro da Lua and then at a police checkpoint I was picked up by a banker named Gonzalo. He would shout me a sandwich, a couple of beers, and a litre of wine. My CS host here in Lobito is Camil, who is originally from France but living and working here. Lobito comes as a pleasant surprise as there are many art deco buildings. Napier, New Zealand is the world's most notable art deco city but it's far from the only one. Miami, Amsterdam, and Mackay (Australia) are other notable art deco cities. Durban and Casablanca are two notable African art deco cities.
Money is a tricky issue in Angola. Only a very small number of places accept Visa or Mastercard and, by law, only 40,000 kwanza (about US$50) can be withdrawn per day from an ATM. On top of that, most ATMs don't accept foreign cards. Many places accept cards but you must have an Angolan bank account. There is more than one way to skin a cat, so I pulled some strings again. I was completely out of money this morning, so I made a payment to Camil using PayPal and then he withdrew some cash for me. Fortunately, there aren't many places these days where it's truly difficult to access money. Once I'm back in Namibia I can start using my card again regularly. The value of the kwanza has been dropping very fast. When I arrived two weeks ago, it was about 700 kwanza to a dollar but now it's more than 800 kwanza; as a result I've been trying to stretch my money and exchange only what I need.
Lobito could very easily be on the map for the art deco connoisseur.
Out of 71 countries visited, I've never been to a country with such untapped potential, and not just with tourism. Angola has an abundance of potential for minerals, hydroelectricity, and in many other areas. The post office stands out with its art deco facade but unfortunately I couldn't buy stamps since the workers are on strike.
Finding a postcard is still a fruitless mission as well. The scars of the Angolan civil war are all over as many buildings have evidence of damage or have been left to decay.
The food has been underrated highlight in Angola. Today I had a bifana, which is a sandwich with pork and sauteed onions, with a side of chips and salad and a glass of red wine. It set me back only about $2 and is really delicious.
Walking along the restinga, once-elegant mansions are left to decay; perhaps a reminder of the civil war.
After a long day filled with walking and art deco, tonight I'd go out to dinner and hang out with Camil and his housemates as we talked about my journey, drank wine, and listened to music all night. By then I was ready to dream art deco and think of where else to go in Angola.
