Focusing on investment immigration to Bissau, traveling to Guinea, and enjoying the African charm:
Although I refer to it as memories, I have actually been in and out of Guinea frequently. Africa is currently experiencing significant development opportunities, with many projects, so we often come here to explore. This travelogue will be gradually supplemented, as there are many things I have yet to write about, such as activities on the islands. I started coming to Guinea at the end of October 2011, and I have been coming and going ever since. Overall, aside from being dirty and chaotic, this country is quite good (is there anything else? Haha). Firstly, the people are relatively simple and honest; in comparison, Nigeria feels like a nightmare.
Many friends have asked me to write a travelogue, as I have traveled to several countries (although most of my time has been spent in Africa), "You can write about Africa too," my friends urged me. It's not that I don't want to write; it's just that this PhD title doesn't mean I am good at writing. When I start typing, I realize that I am not very suited to writing. There are so many thoughts to organize, and I need a quiet state to sort myself out.
Anyway, I think about how I will want to reminisce when I am old, and in case I become senile and forget, these notes can remind me, so I began to write.
Let's start with Guinea, as I have been to this country the most.
Guinea is a country in West Africa. I have been to three African countries, all in West Africa: Guinea, Liberia, and Nigeria. They are all poor, but the cultural differences are quite significant.
Firstly, Guinea was historically a French colony, and the official language is French. There are also various local languages, such as Susu and Malinke, which are quite interesting.
My first visit to Conakry, the capital of Guinea, was at the end of October 2011. Upon landing, I felt, yes, this is indeed Africa, as the airport is very small and quite rudimentary. Speaking of which, China's infrastructure construction is excellent; the quality of buildings aside, at least they appear very international on the surface. Guinea's airport can only be compared to a small city airport in China; I remember it being as small as the airport in Lijiang.
I saw that the China Development Bank has significant investments here, as there is a VIP channel specifically for its employees at the airport (later I heard that this is all political; having money does not necessarily grant you this channel). At least the company I am working for on this trip is one of the largest mining companies in the world, and they do not have a VIP channel either. The Chinese government is quite adept at creating impressive scenes; anyway, I do not want to discuss politics. From the moment I went through customs, I could feel the first characteristic of this country: corruption. The border control officer asked where I was from while checking my visa and then hinted that I should give him money, delaying the stamp for release. Since our company policy prohibits giving money, I could only play dumb and express in English that I did not understand what he was saying. The border control officer, knowing only the word 'money' in English, had no choice but to let me through when I did not comply.
Then, while collecting my luggage, three women were standing at the exit to check my bags, which was actually just another checkpoint for money; if you pay, they do not check. When I mentioned my company, they let me through without checking or asking for money, as they had been informed.
When I first arrived, I was not nervous at all. I did not see the person who was supposed to pick me up, but I struck up a conversation with a white person who was on the same project, and we walked out of the airport together, found the person waiting for us, and then got into a car heading to the hotel.
The scenery along the way was essentially: many people, poverty, but occasionally showing signs of economic development, such as some slightly better buildings.
This country basically has no factories, so people do not have many job opportunities. The streets are filled with vendors selling fruits and clothes, mainly focusing on daily necessities. Conakry, the capital, is comparable in size to a second-tier city in China, but in terms of infrastructure and overall appearance, it cannot be compared to Chinese cities; it is even worse than a county town in southern China. Moreover, it is very dirty, with a heavy layer of dust.
The hotel I stayed in this time was quite good; it was not a high-rise building but rather small one-story houses, and there was even a swimming pool. However, the hotel prices were indeed expensive, but fortunately, I did not have to pay out of my own pocket. Hehe.
When I went to the site, it was rural; West Africa does not resemble the Africa depicted on television. There are vast grasslands and wild animals everywhere, but I think that can only be found in South Africa. Most of Guinea's wildlife is likely in people's stomachs; there are many NGOs educating locals not to hunt wild animals, including gorillas and monkeys. However, they are too poor; when it is a problem to find food, who will listen to this? To put it bluntly, we must first help them with economic development, and then people's awareness can be raised. Basically, locals eat bush meat, which refers to the meat of these wild animals. Along the way, I also saw many hunters, some even brought hunting dogs with them. I also saw some people selling wild animal meat, which looked like raccoons or porcupines.
The scenery in the wild is still beautiful; October in Guinea is the dry season, and the bush, a type of jungle grass, is already golden yellow. The local government sends people to set fire to this grass, isolating the area into several small sections, especially near villages, to prevent fires from breaking out due to drought, which could threaten human life. However, at the same time, carbon dioxide emissions are quite severe; during this season, I saw fires burning everywhere, sometimes an entire mountain would be burning deep inside, and I worried whether anyone was controlling these fires.
Most locals live in thatched houses, which are round structures. Those who have played "Age of Empires" would find this scene familiar; it resembles the first-level building in the empire: the peasant's house.
The houses are round, made of mud mixed with grass to form walls, and then topped with a thatched roof, which is essentially just grass tied to some wooden sticks. Overall, it looks very African, but in reality, it is a system of poverty. The house is about 8 square meters or less, and there is basically no furniture inside, just a bed, and surprisingly, four to five people can live in it. I keep wondering how they sleep; some might have to sleep on the ground.
Note: This is a relatively good house I saw.
Note: This type is quite common and looks a bit shabby.
This place is a paradise for poultry and livestock, at least while they are alive. The animals are free-range, with no cages or fences restricting their movement. They can basically walk freely to wherever they want. However, this also creates a problem: there is animal waste everywhere, with many flies and a strong smell in the village.
Note: Sheep walking freely.
The local kitchens are very simple; larger families with better economic conditions might build a small house as a kitchen, but most people just set up three stones outside and place a pot on top to cook over a fire. Building a kitchen is just moving those three stones inside the house. This way, heat dissipates quickly, which is not very energy-efficient, and a lot of wood is needed to cook.
Locals are accustomed to transporting things on their heads, unlike Chinese people who mainly use their hands and shoulders. Sometimes I think that Africans have very good physiques; they are all quite tall and upright, and due to their tailbones being elevated, their buttocks are relatively perky, which is quite sexy. This should be related to head transportation, as people need to stand very straight. Haha. Sometimes I see women balancing a vegetable on their heads or a bag of salt; it is quite amusing. Haha.
The local staple foods are bread, rice, and cassava.
This should be sorghum.
They mainly eat bread in the morning, while rice and cassava are eaten in the evening or at noon. In some poorer areas, they only eat one meal a day. When they eat, they pour a little sauce over the rice (or cassava) and eat it with their right hand. This is essentially Africa's version of rice with sauce.
There are many abandoned termite mounds in the wild, quite large. They look like small hills.
