o one could have put it better
than the sages when they stated, “There is always a first time for everything,
even the journey of a thousand miles starts with but a single step.” It has
taken eons but I finally had a reunion with the inner echelons of an airplane.
The last time was in 2003 when as an esteemed member of the Aviation Club at my
alma mater Mang’u High School,
we went to Juja Preparatory
Academy for the Aviation Symposium. After presentations of projects
and the public infamy of my ‘co-pilot’ and I presenting an incorrigibly
impractical prototype of a flying vehicle much to the amusement of the
multitude, it was time to be indulged. Our recompense was to fly in Hon. William Gitau Kabogo’s
Chopper from Juja Prep to Thika and back in a 5-minute round trip. The
aforementioned character was then the MP for the expansive Juja Constituency. A decade and
a half later we have a new constitution, new boundaries meaning no giant Juja but in its stead we have
a smaller Juja, Ruiru
and Thika
Constituencies. A less touted development was the aforementioned reunion
between airborne conveyance and I. It’s been long coming and as such it was my
first International flight out of Kenya, quite an enthralling experience
nonetheless. It was to be an airborne odyssey from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Aeroporto International Quatro de
Fevereiro in Luanda, Angola.
Let me move on to the subject
matter of my piece today.Language
Luanda is in many ways similar
to Nairobi. The divergence comes in the medium of communication. Kenya is a
member of the auspicious commonwealth a region referred to as Anglophone in respect not
just of our colonial master the British Crown but also our predilection to use
of the English language as lingua
franca. Ironically; despite homophonal similarities with the prefix
Anglo-, Angola is a Lusophone country
paying homage to their colonial heritage in Portugal. It is a special privilege
in Africa shared with only Mozambique, Guinea Bissau, Cape Verde, Sao Tome e
Principe and starting 2011 Equatorial Guinea. While in Nairobi we have
Kiswahili as the National language and English as the Official tongue, Luanda
it is akin to ‘Lisboa-Preta’
(Black Lisbon). Colonially, the City was named São Paulo da Assunção de Loanda but this
mouthful had to be dispensed with on attainment of self-determination.
Portuguese is both the National and Official medium for communication. For most
part this has been a cohesive factor among the divergent Bantu tribes spread
over the length and breadth of Angola. They have an expansive coastline
straddling the entire Western border where Luanda is located to the North.
Consequently, we are oft bombarded by the famous cool Benguela current breeze
from the Southern Atlantic Ocean that we previously only read about in
Geography books but now we experience it first hand in action, the coastal heat
notwithstanding. Use of Portuguese has forestalled any contests of ethnic
superiority in Angola that still plague my motherland Kenya and as such the
spotlight is on infrastructural development and national unity for universal
development.
Culture Shock
For those not in the loop, the
Portuguese culture as has been inculcated into Angola and their directly
opposite, transatlantic, homolingual counterpart Brazil is quite permissive.
People intermingle freely as a sea of humanity. Here you find globalization at
its best. While in Nairobi palaver is an intimate matter between 2 people or a
specific close-knit group, in Luanda you can enter a hotel or bar in Quifica in
the suburbs and just join in a conversation unprompted. That was quite a
culture shock for me and my Kenyan contingent who in the first place do not
know a single word of Portuguese (PS:
We are having to catch up fast
in token of all the good girls we are missing). Then for their
greetings they have adopted the Europeanized, liberal culture where instead of
shaking hands with a member of opposite gender, you gently rub cheeks with a
light kiss. You can imagine my dilemma when I was introduced to an elegant,
portly, young lady and extending my hand to her she rejected instead pushing
her rosy cheeks towards me and I had no option but reciprocate the gesture
while holding the small of her back. I will discuss in a future post the inner
warmth and sense of fulfillment within that can only be the trigger of a civil
suit for indecent assault by ladies of less pulchritude for similar salutation
in Nairobi. Luanda a vida é
louca! Phew, Thank God I am single! Men too hug depending on the
level of familiarity more often than can be permissible in the streets of
Nairobi even under that convivial smile of the statue of Tom Mboya.
Public Transport
The Public transport culture
in Luanda is equally as vibrant as in Nairobi. With almost similar Chinese
sponsored infrastructural development much transport across the city has been
facilitated. There are traffic jams but less rampant than Nairobi. However,
with fewer vehicles the worst traffic jam could only be like what you see
between Runda & Muthaiga at 9 a.m. Slow but moving. And I am talking about
their busiest street of Morro Bento in the industrial area of the city. The
roads in Luanda have long stretches before you can find a turn as opposed to
the many roundabouts on Uhuru Highway in Nairobi. Back to public transport in
Luanda, their version of Matatu is more decorous and organized than what we
have in Kenya. We have the 14 seaters that carry 13 passengers, the conductor
and driver. They have organized pick up and drop off points not the double
packing and the Too-Fast Too-Furious u-turns you see with matatus on Ronald
Ngala Street or in Railways stage heading to Rongai. The Kenyan innovation
‘Sambaza’ a piece of wood that is used to leverage on sitting space in a Kenyan
matatu that oft leaves you questioning why you pay fare merely to end up with
an injured backside has no place in Luanda public transport. The ‘Blue taxi’
the Luanda equivalent of the matatu carries to its responsible capacity and
that is that. They also have many more of the 60-seater buses that are even
more popular and spacious not to forget ruthlessly efficient with minimal fuss.
For Personal vehicles the most popular brands are Datsun, Mazda, Mahindra and
Hyundai considered backwater rickshaws as far as eclectic Nairobian
sensibilities are concerned. Traffic police here are dignified men and women
who strictly facilitate order on the thoroughfares as opposed to their Kenyan
counterparts who get into shenanigans with motorists over seat belts, driving
with sandals and barbarically grab the back of people’s trouser merely for
pecuniary benefit (bribes)!
Architecture
The Luanda CBD is similar in
architecture to the Nairobi City Centre. As a matter of fact, there is a street
I have passed and thought I was on Kenyatta Avenue with similar infrastructure,
an old post office and constrained parking space that saw our chauffeur drive
around in circles as we executed our brief for the day. In pretty much the same
way we have Times Towers in Haile Selasie Avenue and UAP Towers in Upper Hill
as the tallest buildings in Nairobi, here in Luanda we have the Ocean Towers a
sort of twin-tower complex; an architectural master piece no less, hosting
office space, a shopping complex and residential apartments. Both building soar
to 25 floors a piece and are a resplendent feature visible from the airplane
when you are hovering over the Atlantic trying to find the best landing angle.
They also have the Sonangol Building complex on Largo Rainha Ginga street, a
combination of rectangular and spherical facades whose zenith looks similar to
the KICC in Nairobi. The most prepossessing aspect of Luanda construction is
the interior design. Exquisite may be an understatement when used as an
adjective to describe the finishing, furnishings and structural integrity of
most buildings. Architecture may have greater value in Luanda comparable with
Nairobi. For many homesteads an outside patio sitting area or a veranda for
bungalows and a balcony for flats and duplexes are an archetypal feature of
Luanda residential real estate. Even in the mass market habitation the same
lofty standards prevail.
Nova Vida vs Runda
While in Angola I enjoy the
great pleasure of being hosted within the confines of a leafy, green suburb.
This is the equivalent of Runda in Nairobi, La Estado Nova Vida. Just like the
aforementioned estate, Nyari and Kitsuru in Nairobi this one hosts the newly
rich and mostly young but affluent family units. It is quite a homely
neighbourhood that domiciles high-end schools, a gym, a shopping complex and
residential units. The chirping of birds and the gush of the air conditioning
unit is the most noise I get to experience. Needless to say, I pen this article
from the tranquility of Nova Vida, in hand a tall glass of chilled coke away
from the hustle and bustle of the commercially vibrant Luanda CBD which is of
great solace to my literary muse.
Kilamba vs Buruburu
Middle-class habitation is
also top notch in Luanda. An alluring variant of middle class habitation I have
had the great fortune to visit is Estado Kilamba in downtown Luanda. It is a
block of flats, each unit standing between 12-14 floors, one of the best
organized multi-familial abodes I have seen anywhere. Even Buruburu estate in
Nairobi does not scratch the surface of the pageantry of Kilamba. Unfortunately
the genesis of Kilamba is of a stalled mega-project by Chinese contractors to house
their staff while exploiting business opportunities and the construction boom
in Luanda. Abysmally for them, due to a downturn in the Angolan general economy
precipitated by a crash in Oil prices and a crunch on infrastructural growth
the habitation was abandoned. The Chinese built an entire estate of comely and
well organized flats, served by tarmacked driveways, walkways manned by in-situ
traffic lights right in a Compound with several flats having dedicated rooftop
BTS towers for telecommunication. Kilamba is the estate to live. A basketball
court besides every few blocks of flats is the pick of this picturesque estate.
Haphazardly scattered refuse is definitely not a by-word here, with
well-manicured lawns the standard-bearer in this esteemed estate. Talk about a
decent and dignified middle-class habitation. Incidentally, the slums are just
as miserable as in Kenya if not worse. I have actually seen a mother and
daughter foraging in the dustbins of Kilamba before making the long journey
back to the slum area. In a township called Olympia, life is just as
unbearable, valueless, short and brutish as any slum in Kenya with narrow
streets, rhino-charge themed paths for drive ways (unmotorable by small
vehicles), emasculating tin shacks, sewage on the street, poor infrastructure.
The homologous address in Nairobi is the world-famous Olympic area in Kibera.
Visit to the Local
As home to the effervescent
latino culture in Africa, the most popular music listened to is Kizomba. We
have the local Kuduro and other styles but the preeminent clubbing scene is
serenaded by Kizomba music, a creole mélange between local African and
Portuguese music. Another item copied from Portuguese culture is the festival
called the Carnival. This is an exhibit of cultural freedom and diversity where
humanity mingles and enjoys each other’s company, the sun, culture, music,
dance and many other blessings bestowed upon us by the creator.
Politics
In Luanda and most of Northern
Angola the predominant political party is MPLA (Movimento Popular de Libertação
de Angola). Southern part is majorly anti-MPLA but for most part the atmosphere
is not as heavily politicized as in Kenya. People are more concerned about
their unity and progress as a nation. It was not always this way and growing up
I remember hearing about the rebel insurgency spearheaded by Jonas Savimbi
under the UNITA banner. When Savimbi met his doom in 2002, the remaining rebel
leaders were coerced by circumstances to sign a pact for the cessation of
hostilities with long-time President Jose Eduardo dos Santos. Then aggressive
reconstruction and industrialization ensued to the extent that Angola is one of
the top 10 biggest economies in Africa. The Currency in Angola is the Angolan
Kwanza. Just like the ones we are phasing out in Kenya, they have the most
venerable Presidents Agostinho Neto and his successor on currency notes in
‘Kufuata Nyayo’ fashion while the 10 and 20 Kwanza coins have the legendary
Queen Nzinga of the Mbundu people of Angola.
Economy
The Economy of Angola is
propped up majorly on the export of Petroleum and Diamonds. Timber is also one
export but not on a large scale. On the Import column is almost any item of
foodstuff, electronics, stationery and water. All but the massive water
burrower - the Vlei rats roasted on the streets and cassava have to be
imported. Through no fault of their own, it is too dangerous to till the land
to grow their own food. This is mostly thanks to the landmines set during the
previously discussed civil war. This discomfiture in the balance of trade is a
major factor in making life expensive in Luanda. Tap water is deemed unsafe for
drinking so water has to be imported from adjacent South Africa or far away
diametric opposite Brazil and even half-a-globe away in Portugal. There is a saying
here that water is more valuable than Petroleum which is not a misnomer but a
statement of fact! A litre of water is at a going rate of 600 Kwanza
(approximately 150 Kenya Shillings) per litre while Super Petrol in the most
expensive Gas station is priced at 160 Kwanza (~ 40 KES). I have thus
practically seen a clerical employee arrive at work, forget to switch off his
car engine such that it ran the entire day and come evening he came to his car,
was slightly bemused, got in, reversed and went home without as much as a
whimper. In Nairobi if you had such an unfortunate episode of inadvertence; the
cost of fuel alone can make your blood pressure rise, making you hurl insults
at unseen opponents in at least four local languages while sweating the big stuff!
Dignity of Work
A technocrat leads a dignified
existence in Luanda as he is commensurately remunerated to the level of
professional output he exerts in his field and enterprise. Despite the costs of
living you could make do and have a healthy saving of earned revenue. Crime is
low as integrity is still the way of life in most of Angola a polar opposite of
Nairobi. People in Luanda pay a great premium to exercise and fitness and are
thus quite strong and healthy. It is not strange to find an alluring lady with
well-toned arm and leg muscles rocking her shorts and going about her life
nonchalantly.
Unitel vs Safaricom
The standard in Angola as
probably is in Portugal is 2-way power sockets. I found this disconcerting as I
had to get an adapter converter for my normal three-way charger plug to fulfill
the basic requirement to charge my phone and laptop. An important feature to
note is that almost every building has several Air conditioner units due to the
sweltering coastal temperatures. Our local preeminent mobile phone service is
Unitel. The much smaller competitor is Movicel offering slightly more than a
snivel for competition put in the stark context of Safaricom and Airtel in
Kenya.
Street Vendors
A strange phenomenon in Luanda
is that almost everything is sold on the street by hawkers, anything! Meat is
sold by Joao on one corner of the street from his bag, surgically dissected
proportionately with experiential precision yet on the other side a herbal
concoction to heal marital problems sold by Emilia; the next street Sousa is
selling you an electrical shaver. Barber shops are predominantly an open-air
affair where you have your business taken care of in the ambient of the coastal
sun. An interesting phenomenon is that for most items street vendors are more
expensive than the supermarkets, even the high-end international brands like
Shoprite. For instance, last weekend we met a lady with a good 3Kg bag of
potatoes on the street. They looked attractive so my colleague and I had made a
decision to buy. However, a language barrier prevented us from concluding the
transaction. Piecing a few Portuguese words together coupled with my
trustworthy eyes, I convinced the lady that we would be coming back for the
potatoes after returning from the Supermarket. The lady’s 3 kg went for 2500 Kz
while the supermarket rate was 1995 Kz. Your guess is as good as mine whose
goods the penny-pincher Kenyan in us eventually settled for! Mercifully for the
lady, she found a buyer and closed for the day before our return.
In conclusion, visiting
Luanda is an eye opener for me and I feel if possible Angola should look for
overlapping spheres of interest with Kenya on import and export business and
cooperate as we could have an excellent, symbiotic cross-pollination with each
other’s culture. Kenya stands to benefit by lopping off the useless monster of
tribalism from its national psyche while Angolans will benefit by becoming more
enterprising and diversifying their national economic ventures. |
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