Living in the Congo: Those were the days

One of the oddities of Kinshasa is that in spite of being on the shore of one of the world’s greatest rivers there are no restaurants or bars on the banks. Brazzaville, by contrast, has a very nice promenade.

About six months ago word spread that there was a new bar and restaurant: on a boat! We decided to give it a go for sundowners, then someone suggested trying the restaurant below that was run by a young Belgian couple. It was a very nice change from the normal scene. They say that the boat was one of Mobutu’s playthings, and it certainly feels that it was built with style. Three decks, probably about 60 metres long.

The boat’s moorings look permanent, and it is surrounded by similarly neglected-looking boats. So we were VERY surprised when they announced that they were going to start day-trips up the river. Booze cruises with a difference. So, hang the expense, we joined up, and last week-end we were off. The river flows at such a rate, I would think about six or seven knots, that sailing up stream was slow. There’s not much traffic on the river: a few dug-out canoes, and the occasional freighter, typically very low-slung barges, chugging very slowly up stream. We had unlimited supplies of beer and a huge buffet lunch to keep us happy, so time went fast. In the afternoon we saw more boats, this time zooming downstream thanks to the current. We turned round a few kilometres past the airport near a disconcerting log transfer station. They claim that all logging in the Congo is “sustainable”, and each log has a code painted on it which is supposed to designate the location and name of the logger. But one can’t help worrying – knowing the Congo’s reputation for corruption – that these trees are symptoms of the depressing story of destruction of the virgin rain forests.

There has been such a decline in river traffic in the last 20 years that we wondered whether there were still people who could manage a vessel of this size, and moor it efficiently. So when we finally docked, we, quite full of beer, so not worrying too much, were truly impressed by the aplomb with which the boat was steered into her slot. That was the first trip, but it seems that it has caught on and they will now do it most week-ends so other people can enjoy it too.