Travel Guide Luanda

The Bitter capital of Angola enjoys an exceptional situation, facing the splendid natural bay of Luanda and the Ilha do Cabo. Luanda reflects more than four centuries of Portuguese colonial history.Since 2002, oil companies, banks, insurance, etc. have built huge modern buildings, symbols of their power, which are multiplying in the heart of Cidade Baixa and beyond. The city is a huge site. Newly enlarged on the sea, the Marginal, large boulevard which runs along the bay of the Fortaleza S. Miguel from the th century to the port, surprises by its dimensions and the high quality of its facilities and plantations. Very quickly, however, and from the first streets perpendicular to Marginal, the visitor finds broken roads with crowded and chaotic traffic. Some Luandais say they travel one kilometre per hour! The inhabitants of outlying neighbourhoods spend as much time on transport as they do in the office. The rainy season can forbid them for a few hours or a few days. Here everything is contrasting: skyscrapers and muddy streets, 4 x 4 tropicana and street children, futuristic constructions and dilapidated historic buildings, giant cranes and dark streets outside the main areas, slums and new ultra-modern neighbourhoods, glaring inequalities. And this bay that is so beautiful!