Checking out Luanda - the Fort and some great views of the city

These pictures are from our recent visit to the Fort of Sao Miguel.  It sits high on a hill and probably has the best views  of Luanda.  There are also some gorgeous ceramic tiles (that I took tons of pictures of but will only force you to look at a few of them) in one of the buildings there that tell the history of Angola.  It was a great trip!

Lots of cranes...there is a ton of building happening here

My daughter was drawing her pictures of our trip.  She said this one was a zoomed in pic.

posing with the statues

Benfica Market trip

I went to a great local arts/crafts market this weekend.  It is full of handmade items - paintings, sculptures, jewelry, animal skins, ivory, food and more.  

Some of the ivory products available for purchase which is illegal to buy or sell. (new article about it here)

masks

baskets

paintings

prepping the fish 

Grilled octopus, whole fish, and more available for purchase.  Sadly, I ran out of time and didn't  get to sample the food.  But I will be back!

Preparing funge, a local porridge-like side dish

Photos from Luanda (July)

Kind of a lazy post because it's mostly just pictures.  We are pretty much all set up now.  We have pictures hung and boxes are empty/gone. We have a favorite grocery store (although, we are still grocery store-hopping to make sure).  We also have several go-to restaurants near our house that we walk to on the weekends (Lebanese, Chinese, bakery, ice cream). We are hoping to get plates on the car soon so we can explore more soon.  Here are a few pictures I've taken recently (some are a little blurry because they were taken from a moving vehicle).  Enjoy!

Our church

Weeks worth of fruits/veggies after soaking in a bleach solution (very necessary)

Rooftop restaurant 

Amazing steakhouse

crazy banana I found 

roadside fútbol game

seafood at the grocery store

our favorite grocery store (so far).  It's as large as a Super Walmart.

Roadside fruits/veggies (you can find these everywhere here) 

Women here carry crazy amounts of stuff on their heads.  It is amazing to see!

Our home

Luanda, Angola - the first two weeks

I can't believe that we've only been here two weeks!  A lot has happened in that short time.  We've received (and unpacked) our household goods, taken a trip to the beach, toured the city, and settled into a routine.  Not bad, huh?

A few pictures for a glimpse into our new life...

the best part of moving...making a fort!

Our balcony

our awesome pool 

little friend we found on our deck

trip to Ilha do Mussolo

playing frisbee at the beach

making new friends

playground at work

 

enjoying the wildlife