The colonial architecture & a city being reborn!!! and other Luanda, Angola Things to Do Tips

The Portuguese influence is everywhere and it should be after more than five hundred years of colonial rule… This influence is most obvious in the language the Angolans speak and the architecture throughout Luanda. Even the simplest of colonial buildings were cooler than the architecture most modern/developed countries turn out everyday.

Although many of the buildings have been damaged during the civil war and crumbling after years of neglect, you can definitely tell that Luanda used to be a beautiful city and may yet be one again!!! All over the city there is a feeling of rebirth after the 25 plus years of civil war. Squares and roundabouts are being cleaned up and planted with new sod and flowers. Several of the historic colonial buildings are being revitalized and people are moving about the city with a purpose. You can sense Angola’s future is being reborn at this moment…

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About the only “tourist attraction” that resembles any sort of organization by the Angolan government is the 16th century Portuguese fortress.

Although the fortress has largely been left open to looters and in a state of disrepair from decades of neglect, it appears that the Angolan government has begun to make a pseudo military museum out of the old fortress. They even appear to be repairing some of the stonework on the ramparts and upgrading the access infrastructure. The view of the city and the bay from atop the old fortress is unmatched and definitely worth the effort…

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Directions: At the edge of downtown Luanda where the Marginal meets Ilha de Luanda (the island).