Domestic flights in the DRC
What flying in the Democratic republic of Congo can be like
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Kinshasa botanical garden
I went to check out the botanical gardens of Kinshasa (Jardin Botanique de Kinshasa) (Google Maps link) today. It is one of the only remaining green spaces in Kinshasa. Some parts were well maintained but others seemed in need of care and a thorough clean-up. I’m guessing the place, run by the ICCN or government…
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A short summary of my family’s history in Congo
Everyone calls me Emilio but my full name is Khalid Emilio. It’s Khalid because I’m of Indian descent and also Nicaraguan on my mother’s side. My father, Karim, is an Ismaili and his father (my grandfather), Sultan, came to the Belgian Congo in the 1950s with his brothers Badhur and Sadru. They were among the…
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Childhood memories in Congo
Here are some childhood memories from the 90s I still remember that I’m sure many others can relate to and that I hope I’ll never forget.
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A real commute in Kinshasa
Maybe you wake up at 6am, have a shower, a coffee, a quick toast and a banana, then you get in your car for 10 to 20 minutes to get to the office. Your commute can arguably be considered as “pleasant” and “straightforward”.
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A quiet Saturday
There are a lot fewer cars today somehow. I don’t hear the mad traffic, the loud honking or the “wewas” zipping around.
“Wewas” are motorcycle taxis. The word is in Tshiluba which is a language spoken in the Kasai ex-provinces of the DRC.
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Things to do around Kinshasa
So you’re in Kinshasa. What can you do outside the city? Here are a few.
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A day in Johannesburg and Pretoria
I drove around on a Monday to three popular sites: Zoo lake in Rosebank, the Union buildings and the Voortrekker monument in Pretoria. All of them were eerily quiet. I took these pictures.
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Home affairs in Randburg
Going to home affairs in Randburg in South Africa in 2022 for a lost ID
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The Democratic Republic of Gombe
As you may well know, the upmarket borough of Gombe is not like the rest of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Locals cheekily call it the Democratic Republic of Gombe
It is only in this tiny part of a country the size of Europe that you can think it is a “normal” city or country
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Internet providers in the DRC
Here are 12 internet providers in the DRC. There may be others.
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Home
Welcome! This is another blog! There are ideas and stories of my life in the DRC and elsewhere. There is no particular objective. Just to share and express myself on the World Wide Web in a space that I call my own – photography, music, travel, ideas, experiences, information and anything else. I’m a Canadian,…
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A list of NGOs and other organisations in the Democratic Republic of Congo
There are thousands of non-profits, for-profits, non-governmental organizations, foreign and national programs to help the DRC out of poverty, to end wars, to stop malnutrition or to end corruption (among many other projects). Here is a non-exhaustive list of various NGOs and for-profit projects that are or have done significant work in the country (alphabetically).
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Is it normal?
Is it normal to… Sit in traffic for hours everyday? Get asked for bribes or “coffee” or “fuel” by cops? Be nervous and anxious every time you drive to work or around the city in case you get stopped by cops? Having to wave or greet every single person you cross on the street? Being…
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Christmas in Congo
How can you wish someone a merry Christmas when they are living on the street? How can you send someone a WhatsApp « best wishes » when their town got bombed on Christmas Day (Beni CNN article)? But we live in a bipolar world, where we can go eat a nice warm French croissant while…
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Emilio in Congo (DRC) 