Luanda, Angola 2018

50h in Luanda 2018

• I spent two full days in Luanda and I took the best of it 
• Angola experience Independence War from 1961 and Civil War from 1975 till 2002
• As a result, the city is chaotic; the social differences are huge and it might not be the safest city but still there are quite a few nice spots to visit
• As a curiosity, Luanda is one of the most expensive cities in the world for expats, but reality for locals is a different story 
• There is a cheap public transport called "candongueiro" which consists of a blue and white van. The driver shouts the destination to pedestrian and for less than 1 dolar you can have a ride to short distances, a but more expensive but still cheap for long distances
• However, outisde downtown I moved around with a local driver because I had little time, tourism is not developed yet, car rentals are very pricy, policy is quite corrupted and safety is still an issue

Main places visited:

• a) Downtown (Luanda Bay, Cathedral, Sao Miguel Fortress, Ilha do Cabo) 
• b) Miradouro da Lua (Moon Viewpoint)
• c) Mussulo Island
• d) Cemiterio dos Navios (Ship's Cemetery)
  

a) Downtown (Luanda Bay, Cathedral, Sao Miguel Fortress, Ilha do Cabo):

• As said before, the city is a mess. Poverty, favelas, litter are mixed with skyscrapers and luxury
  
  
  
  
• Luanda Bay is popular for locals and expats for walks, jogging and other sports
  
• Some public buildings are completely renovated, a clear example of the inequality of the country
  
  
• San Salvador Cathedral, from easrly 17th century, was restored during late 19th century
  
• Out of 3 fortresses, Sao Miguel Fortress, from 1576, is the only one well preserved. Within its walls there is a collection of statues, weapons, even war aircrafts
  
  
  
  
  
  
   
• Besides, views of the city from the top is nice
  
  
  
  

• Ilha de Cabo, known as Ilha de Luanda but connected with the mainland just a few kilometres far, is a fancier part of the city with a nice city and apparently good and expensive nightlife but on monday we did not expect to see anything open. I could explore a bit of its beach which is good enough but not as nice as Mussulo
  

b) Miradouro da Lua (Moon Viewpoint):

• With five colleagues we hired a driver to go to this beauiful spot
• Apart from a nice view there is not much to do here, and even if it is a bit dirty, is still worth it
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

c) Mussulo Island:

• One of the highlights of the trip was the visit to this island
• From Capossoka port you can take a small boat which takes you to the island for a small price, but as a tourist they will try to take from you as much as possible  
• You reach a nice resort beach
  
   
• However, crossing to the other side of the island there are no hotels and the beach is more impressive
  
• Something lovely about this island is that there are no roads as such, but some sand trails
  
• Also the amount of kids in this island is impressive and they are very friendly
  
  
  
  
• Coming back to the "busy" part, we found a few restaurants by the Eastern side of the island called barracas, which offered fresh fish
  
  
  
  
•  From here the views of Luanda Bay are nice
  
• While having luchh we met a sweet kid who could not talk and was hungry, we have him some food, we could see him very happy, he accompanied us for some time and we have great memories with him
  
  
  
  
• Just before leaving the island we saw a social meeting for learning kizomba, the popular dance original from Angola which is now quite popular in lot of countries
  

d) Cemiterio dos Navios (Ship's Cemetery):

• An impressive beach full of ships which were left abandoned during the Independence War with Portugal from 1961-1975 
• After lot of travelling, I found this place unique, I liked it a lot and I am sure one day it will be exploited by the country
• I would recommend 4x4 to reach there as the sandy road during the last few km is very bad, espcially after rainy days
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• The area just behind the beach is rich in salt and we could see some locals collecting it (even if the photo is not very clear)
  
  
• I am so glad I could visit Luanda with my work 
• After listening by some people that there is nothing to do there, I hope this post makes you change your mind :)

Hong Kong & Macau (short layovers) 2018

Several 24h layovers in Hong Kong & Macau

• During 2018 I had the opportunity to visit Hong Kong a few times, once of which I visited Macau
• I would enjoy a proper holiday to explore Hong Kong more in detail but still I managed to visit a few areas

a) Main places visited in Hong Kong: 

• a) Lion Rock
• b) Tsim Sha Tsui
• c) Central Hong Kong - Hong Kong Park
• d) Lamma Island
  

a) Lion Rock:

•  Despite the popularity of Victoria Peak (the only advantage I see in Victoria Peak is that it can be visited at night), I would recommend a trek to Lion Rock instead because it is not crowded, you can do some exercise, be surrounded by nature, and it is completely free (the path is very easy to follow)
  
  
• There are several buses that drop you nearby and in 2h you can be back
• Views of Hong Kong from Lion Rock are amazing!
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

b) Tsim Sha Tsui:

• Commercial area by the bay of Hong Kong
  
• The Avenue of Stars is located in this area, including the popular statue of Bruce Lee and many others
  
  
  
  
  

c) Central Hong Kong:

• One of the busiest areas of the city, full of people, restaurants, shops, huge buildings, etc
• Within the city itself there is the longest outdoor escalator systemin the world

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• On sundays it gets packed with philipino expats on their day off (these people get very bad conditions but still they go work abroad trying to give a future to their families) playing cards, sharing food, listening to music, enjoying massages, or simply relaxing
  

• Just 2km East there is Hong Kong Park where it is possible to get some relaxing time away from the noisy and busy city
  
  
  
  
• Not too far I explored Quarry Bay and the popular Montane Mansion, a low/middle class ancient building that is popular among tourists
  

d) Lamma Island:

• From Central you can take ferry to both ports in Lamma Island
• I went to Sok Kwu Wan Pier (East, less daily frequencies) and came back from Yung Shue Wan Pier (West)
  
• The island is not supposed to have cars but even if I saw a few, is much more relaxed than the city
• From one side of the island to the other you have to walk for 1 hours, but there are some trekkings available as well so you can spend as much time as you want
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• There are also a few nice beaches but I did not have a good weather
  
  
  
  
• For people thinking of staying any day in Lamma, there are a few guesthouses
• On the negative side, I saw a few parts of the island not well taken care, or even abandoned, but still I believe Lamma Island has a huge potential from a touristic perspective

b) Main places visited in Macau:

• Ruins of St Paul´s - Monte do Forte
• Macau Tower
• Casinos in Taipa
  
• By mid 2018 Hong Kong and Macau are connected by road in just half an hour
• From Hong Kong airport I took a 5 minute bus to to Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities(
• After passport formalities I took a bus to Macau (€8),  near Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal. The road was completely empty apart from a few buses, and the construction though the ocean is impressice 
  
• Main attraction in Macau, apart from most casinos in the south, was the Ruins of St Paul´s and the streets nearby
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• From there I walked up to Monte do Forte where I enjoyed the views of the north of Macau
  
  
  
  
• Before crossing to Taipa, the south part of Macau, I observed the Macau Tower
  

• Taipa offers a huge variety of casinos. I visited Galaxy, the Venetian and the Parisien
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
• They can keep your luggage for a minimum fee
• A crazy world for Chinese population as gambling is forbidden in China
• After half a day in Macau I came back to Hong Kong by ferry from Macau Taipa Ferry Terminal to Sheung Wan Terminal near Central Hong Kong (€20)
• I was curious about visiting Macau after a few days in Hong Kong
• I was not very impressed but it was nice to visit "Las Vegas" of China

• I am looking forward to exploring much more in Hong Kong :)