Places to visit in Angola

The Fortress of Sao Miguel- Also, known as Saint Michael Fortress is a Portuguese fortress built in the city of Luanda. Built in 1576, this fortress served as the administrative centre of Portuguese Armed Force in Angola until 1975. It has thick walls which makes this fortress into an independent town protected by cannons. This fortress was also the point used for slave trade where slaves were being shipped of to Brazil. Today it is the Museum of Armed Forces.

The young travellers can learn a lot from visiting this country. This country being a European colony can offer some insights into the plights of societies which were colonized. The slave trade is another historic shame which was quite prevalent at one point of time. Not only historically, Angola can enrich young minds with its abundant natural heritage and its beauty. Its national parks have some of the rare species of flora and fauna.

Most of the populations of Angola are the followers of Christianity. Among these the majorities is Catholic and rest the Protestants. Although there is a considerable population of Muslims, but the government of Angola does not recognize this religion and does not allow any mosques to be built in this country. Any organization pertaining to Islam is often shut down.

The Cathedral of the Holy Saviour of Luanda is a Roman Catholic Cathedral which one of the premier institution in respect of religion in this country. Built in 1628, this is the seat of Archbishop of Luanda in Angola.

National Museum of Slavery - Angola has been one of the largest slaves providing country of Africa. So, this museum this dedicated to this inhuman practice and its grief which the people of this country had to bear for so many years. Founded in 1997, this museum stands on the erstwhile property of Alvaro de Carvalho Matoso, who was the largest slave trader of his time. His family for generations did this till it was banned in 1836. Now, this museum houses various items which were used in the slave trade and depicts the history of slavery of this erstwhile Portuguese colony.

Since this country has a rich natural heritage, it has a number of national parks dedicated to preserve its biodiversity. Kissama National Park or also known as Parque Nacional da Quicama is one among them. Situated just 70 kms from the capital city Luanda, this is one of the most well preserved national park which has a very good population of animals. This is Angola’s one of the most popular national park which can be accessed very easily. This wildlife reserve also faces the burnt of civil war, but under Operation Noah’s Ark its former glory is slowly being restored. Under this project, several animals like elephants, zebras, ostriches and giraffes were air lifted from South Africa and Botswana and shifted to this park. This replenished this national park’s heritage.

These falls are situated on the Lucala River in Kalandula. In terms of the volume of water, these waterfalls are one of the largest in Africa.

The River Kwanza is an amazing river which is very important to this country. In fact, the currency is also named after it. This river which flows through the Kissama National Park offers some spectacular sights to those who are interested in birds. You can come across various varieties of vultures, herons, kingfishers and eagles which can be found only in this region.

Since it was a Portuguese colony, much of its culture is influenced by the Portuguese culture. The official language is also Portuguese. Apart from this many African languages are also being spoken by Angolan people like Umbundu, Bantu, Kimbundu, etc.

The Iona National Park is Angola’s oldest as well as the largest national park. Situated at around 200 kms from the city of Namibe, this national park spans over 5850 sq. miles. Once immensely rich Natural Park now is on its way to recovery after years of destruction and illegal poaching of its wild animals. It is famous for its amazing rock formations.