Category Archives: TIA

Guide to Madagascar

A guest post by @Wanyama of Africa Knows – see their extensive Images of Madagascar collection.

The Malagasy currency is Ariary with $1 = MGA 2200

Getting There: Air Madagascar has the cheapest direct return flights at around $780. The only catch is that this flight operates on Fridays only. Kenya Airways offers the best options from Nairobi to Antananarivo with three flights weekly at around $900. Travel on other days drastically increases the price of the ticket by over 100% and some of the travel times for the three-hour flight can take 20 hours as you connect through other cities within and outside Africa.

Ivato International Airport in Tana is a small airport with an average of four landings and takeoffs per hour in the middle of the day. The airport has one restaurant and snack bar with a few small duty-free shops stocking souvenirs, chocolate, alcohol, tobacco, luggage, fragrance and clothing for sale.

Entry visas are offered at the airport in an attempt to boost the tourism numbers of Madagascar. The visa is usually free for visitors staying less than 30 days. The process takes between 30 to 45 minutes as there are usually long lines of foreigners entering the country.

Getting Around: As is common in most airports, taxi drivers await passengers to take them to town. An average fare from Ivato International Airport to downtown Antananarivo is around MGA 40,000 or $19.

Most locals take the minibuses or “matatus” in Swahili. Most minivans can either seat 14 or 18 commuters. These mini buses are notorious for overloading passengers and a 14-seater van can at times carry 20 passengers. Minibuses usually cost around 30 times cheaper than a taxi.

For foreigners, taxis are the regular mode of transportation. One needs to negotiate with the driver to determine both the price and if the driver is interested in going in your direction. Unlike most cities where a taxi will deliver a fare to any region of the city, taxi drivers in Tana (short of Antananarivo) will often refuse to take a fare if they feel it is “too far”. It is important to negotiate the fare before boarding a taxi.

Antananarivo is pretty secure although with limited street lighting. Once during the day, I walked downtown taking photos and my friends insisted I be very careful with my camera as sometimes thieves would come about. I never felt threatened though or felt I was in danger of being robbed. Electricity is not that reliable in some areas of the city. Tana also has very few street lights.

Communications: In Madagascar, you either speak French or Malagasy. Since I spoke neither, I concentrated on hanging out with people who spoke English. It was rather embarrassing when I attended meetings and needed a translator or someone who could understand English to get any message across. I have now vowed to learn French as soon as is possible.

In Madagascar, Kenya’s leading network Safaricom doesn’t work. The island doesn’t have any roaming arrangements with Safaricom. There are three main carriers: Telma which is the national carrier, Orange and Bharti Airtel.

I was fortunate to stay at a friend’s place and he had Blueline’s (a cable and internet service provider offering triple play services) home internet. The connection was pretty solid and up at all times. There were a number of cybercafes that I saw in town but didn’t get a chance to visit any. I attended two conferences and both Blueline and Orange had free wi-fi for attendees.

Shopping & Sight-seeing: Most tourists in Antananarivo visit the main market in downtown for their shopping. Spices are a national export and the markets are full of a wide variety of spices. Traders will offer you different spices and provide you with instructions on how to use them correctly. For souvenirs, tourist purchase stuffed imitation lemur dolls and sculptures of baobab trees.

Antananarivo is quite a picturesque city. Built on a hill and with the old-world French charm, the architecture and cobblestoned streets make for a wonderful discovery of a city that keeps offering more to the senses as often as possible. The streets are narrow and if you are on the hillside, every block offers a great view of downtown down below. It is a great city to walk as opposed to driving in.

Rice paddies also lie on the outskirt of the city and as you drive from the airport, you go through miles of these paddies. It is an interesting juxtaposition of the rural and urban settings.

From the air, the most surprising thing is the red rivers filled with topsoil eroded from the many slash-and-burn farms dotting the landscape. This is a land where traditional farming practices greatly affect the environment and the long-term viability of agriculture.

The whole city of Tana is a visual feast. Being an old French colony, the city has an old European feel about it. The city is built on a hill with a sign stating “Antananarivo” overlooking downtown similar to the famous Hollywood sign. Atop the hill sits the Queen’s Palace and a number of hotels and old French palaces that are accessed through narrow cobblestoned streets. Atop the hill is an impressive view of downtown Tana with the national stadium and a manmade lake with a sculpture of an angel in the foreground.

Odd Points: – In Madagascar, they have a drink with small amounts of alcohol that is made specifically for children. This early introduction to “happy hour” is called Fresh (Panache).
– Malagasy people aren’t aggressive in business. You can arrive at a store around closing time and the shopkeeper will rather close the shop than serve that last client. In the same manner, a taxi will let a fare go since “you aren’t going in the direction I am”.
– The International Madagascan Fair (FIM) was full of great-looking and well-dressed women who acted as brand hostesses. The whole fair felt like a competition of who had the most beautiful women as hostesses rather than how can we do business together.

Local legends: Being an island nation, it was interesting to note that Malagasy people believe some families come from mermaids.

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Guide to Luanda

A guest post by @Justdes

Getting There: Flights to Luanda cost between $900 – $1500 for economy seats on Ethiopian, South African (partnering with TAAG Angola), Emirates and Kenya Airways (who have direct flights between Nairobi and Luanda). Note – our application for visas were done through Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and these should be done early as it might take a few weeks, throwing off your scheduled plans.

On Arrival: I was lucky to have someone from our office pick me up from the airport, and I experienced no hassle – although I’m told that people go through hell. My colleague was interrogated for two hours for no reason at all last time she travelled to Luanda. They also ask for your Yellow Fever certificate after your passport has been stamped and as you are on your way to baggage claim which is weird cause if there’s a problem what are they to do?

Getting Around: Matatus (called Candongueiros) and personal cars. Fuel is about Kshs 60 shillings a litre so it’s pretty affordable in comparison to Kenya. The traffic is a nightmare though with only two main highways into the city centre where everyone works. The roads are great though, with three lanes on either side and no signs of potholes.

It is not safe to walk around on the street alone being a foreigner. You’re advised to always drive around or, better yet, be driven around due to traffic, safety and difficulty in parking.

Where to Stay: The business hotel of choice is Trópico in the city centre and goes for $420 dollars a night excluding breakfast. However, I stayed at Talatona hotel, which was closer to the local office and much nicer/more contemporary at $570 a night inclusive of breakfast.

If you’re staying in a good hotel, you’re sure to not have power supply issues. But, the entire city is constantly under electricity cuts, and some residential areas have invested in their own power generators.

Dining: A regular lunch is about $30 while, it’s $70 MINIMUM for a normal dinner, and over $100 for a dinner at a medium-high restaurant. Had a Rancho for lunch which is a huge plate of food, with everything imaginable (& imported?) in it. Quite delicious…too much though – and that plate of food cost Kshs 2000. Also enjoyed an ice cold Cuca, a light local beer in a champagne glass, which tastes a lot like Sierra blonde and costs Kshs 400. I’d say you need over $150 per day to get around.

via http://www.ydamba.com/imagens/pensador.jpg

Communications: I was not able to get Blackberry service so had no access to my email on phone. I bought a local line for $9 and airtime worth $45 which I used during my four day stay there with constant access to data. Wi-Fi was also available at the hotel (Talatona – but was a nuisance to connect to….password after password, that I didn’t even bother) and also available at our local office and was pretty fast.

There is no local English newspaper, and the National language is Portuguese but there are a few local dialects. Portugese is spoken everywhere and you’ll be lucky to find a little English spoken for business. There is lots of influence from immigrants from Portugal, but you can hardly get by in restaurants / other social places without a translator.

Shopping & Sight-Seeing: Common is Luanda Bay, Luanda’s Islands main shopping center, called Belas Shopping Center in Talatona. A typical take home item would be wood carved masks or a wood “Angolan thinking man” carving.

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Guide to Abidjan

Guest post about a visit to the largest city in Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast), but not capital which is called Yamoussoukro.

Getting There: One can fly direct with Kenya Airways from Nairobi on a six hour flight for about $1,800 – $2,000. Alternative fares include flying Ethiopian Air via Addis or Emirates via Dubai for about $1,500 but with the additional stop over and a couple of hours extra.

Since Kenya is not part of the ECOWAS bloc, Kenyans have to to get visa’s before they arrive at Port Bouet Airport (a.k.a the Felix Houphouet Boigny International Airport)

Visas are to be obtained from the embassies of other West African countries since there is no CIV embassy in Kenya, but this is not easy as others like Mali does not issue visa’s in Nairobi. In some cases, and with the right introduction letter, you might be able to get the $50 visa on arrival.

A unique feature here is there are no forms to fill on arrival or departure at the airport, however Yellow fever cards are mandatory for travel, and white coated officials check for the cards on arrival.

Getting Around: The city traffic is very organized and while you might encounter traffic, there are several good highways (with two or four lanes), that encompass many parts of the city with an orderliness that put Kenya’s sole Thika Highway to shame. There are lots of Peugeot and Renault on the road, while Toyota cars are rare. There are no matatus here, but you can find plenty of orange or yellow coloured taxis.

The city is a mix of French and English, but most of Abidjan is Catholic and many people speak English, which they learn in high school so it’s easy to find your way around. Security is ok, with many people walking around at night.

Where to stay: Hotels including Novotel, and another one in Plateau. Many hotels don’t include breakfast in their pricing, but have small kitchenette’s where you can make small breakfasts.

The climate is hot and wet and it remains hot even in thunderstorms and so the air conditioning is always on in many places.

The local currency is the West African CFA and it exchanges for about 450 – 500 to the US$ at hotels or malls.

Communications: Buy a local MTN SIM card

Food: is in plenty and with lot’s of variety. They include alocco (fried plantain), ocean fish (poisson), chicken, cassava, couscous, guinea fowl, mongoose and other more exotic foods like animal skin and leather. Most meals are accompanied a couple of starches and legumes, while fruits like mango’s are huge. Meals cost about 5000 CFA while a breakfast of black tea and a croissant is about1000CFA. There are also some familiar restaurant sights like Steers for those not too adventurous.

Shopping & Sight-Seeing: There are lot’s of skyscrapers in the town, but a sight to see is the St. Paul Cathedral in Abidjan. However this is not to be confused with the world famous Basilica that is located in Yamoussoukro, 200 kilometers away.

What to buy: wood carvings, clothing items

Surprises:

The city infrastructure & buildings are unscathed and intact despite the election turmoil in 2010-11.
Though Abidjan is a large port city, there are few trucks on the highway.
Didier Drogba is not very popular in this city (Note: this visit was before the 2012 Champions League final)
There are few Chinese in the country. More common are Lebanese and Vietnamese nationals and their restaurants.

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Guide to Harare

A guest post

Getting There: One can fly to Zimbabwe from Nairobi with South African Airways (via Jo’burg), Ethiopian Airlines (via Addis Ababa), Emirates (via Dubai) or Kenya Airways (KQ) for approximately $850. KQ flies direct to Harare and sometimes via Lusaka and returns via Lilongwe, Gaborone or Lusaka. Kenyans do not require visas and there was no Yellow Fever certificate requirement. If one plans on extending their stay in Zimbabwe, it’s best to write more days (than required) on the immigration form rather than the exact number in one’s current itinerary.

On arrival, you find that, what used to be Harare International Airport in the 1990’s, is now the Domestic Terminal, while the new Chinese-built airport, is modern, airy and clean. Zimbabwe has four (4) airports around the country, but no domestic flights at the moment, besides charters.

The Immigration and Visa desks at Harare International are labeled in both English and Chinese. Visa prices vary depending on nationality and tourists needing visas can pay up to US$55 for one.

The baggage claim area at the airport is spacious and luggage carts are free. At one end of baggage claim, there are several glass cubicles where Customs officials search people’s suitcases for items bought abroad and sometimes make one pay duty fees.

Getting Around: The taxi/cab minimum fare is US$4 for a distance of about 3KM or transport within the city. Transport outside the city varies, and one must negotiate before entering the cab. They speak English very well and Shona is widely spoken.

Harare is clean and organized with orderly driving. The streets are Western style and organized into blocks. If one has a driving license one can hire and drive any car so long as they have been in the country for less than 6 months and carry their passport at all times.

Harare is a nice city to drive around in. The area around Samora Machel Avenue and First Avenue has a mix of indigenous banks and international banks which have now been localized. Across from these banks is the Federal Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.

Business and Economy: Zimbabwe is a multi-currency state. The economy was dollarized in 2009 and US Dollars, South African Rand and Euros are the most common legal tender, while Botswana Pula is also accepted. Cash is king as many places do not accept cards.

The US$ is the most preferable currency, and while you’ll find the rare $2 bills here, US coins are not in circulation. Obtaining change is a large problem countrywide in shops/supermarkets and with vendors, so cashiers will give out candy, matches, pegs, sugar packets, bottle openers or a pen as change.

Also, US dollar notes are washed in washing machines by individuals & shopkeepers to keep them clean (delicate cycle), then hang out on clothes lines to dry. It’s the easiest way to have “crisp” notes in the absence of fresh new US dollar notes fresh from a mint.

Power blackouts are common and most Hotels and Lodges have generators. Also, while all the city roads had, street lighting, they were never on at night.

Where to Stay:

Rainbow Tourism Group Hotel (Formerly Sheraton Hotel) costs US$110 per night. It is a huge hotel that is gold in color, has free Wi-Fi and is located close to the city center from where one can walk to fast food places such as Steers, Nandos, in 20 Minutes. Food at the hotel is good and ranges between $16 – 25 for the buffet dinner and the breakfast is also good in quantity and quality.
House of Garrison is a lodge in the upmarket suburbs where one can get multiple supermarkets and restaurants. It costs $100 and is a bit of a ride from the city center, but the lodge has a custom breakfast and free Wi-Fi.
Meikles Hotel; a very nice hotel right next to Eastgate Mall, Zimbabwe Parliament and a beautiful public city park, which costs $275 per night for bed & breakfast. The service is great and the staff attention to detail is very impressive. The walls all over the large hotel have lovely photographs from Zimbabwe’s history. The internet here is reliable, with Wi-Fi is US$1 for one hour.

Keeping in Touch: The airport has a “Rent A Phone” shop in the Arrivals area. For mobile communication, its better to use the local carrier services, as roaming is costly. A local SIM card is US$4 and one is required to register it with their passport, and it can take up to 48 hours to activate your number. Phone airtime/credit is sold in units of US$1, 5, and 10. Hotels in Harare have reliable Wi-Fi which is sometimes free, while lodges outside Harare can charge up to US$5 for 30 minutes of internet.

Shopping & Sight-Seeing: To view animals, one can visit Chengata, Pamuzinda and Shumba Lodges which are about 1 ½ hours from Harare and all very close to each other. Pamuzinda has a resident giraffe named Geoffrey, while at Chengata, one can get to pet and feed a small elephant family

Taking photos in or around the airport area or any “government” area is not allowed. Cars that are parked at the drop off area get their car wheels clamped immediately the driver leaves the vehicle, even if it’s for a few minutes.

Food & Bars: Various familiar South African franchise restaurants are found in Harare such as Spur, Nandos, Steers, with meals going for less than US$8. The Steers, Chicken Inn, Debonairs Pizza outlets in town all had the loose change dilemma, and at Chicken Inn, they offered fried eggs, chili sauce tubs or cheese slices equivalent to one’s change!

Food in top Harare restaurants is excellent especially the steaks. We visited an Irish pub, O’Hagan’s, and a restaurant Millers Cafe, both in Harare’s The Village. A beer was US$4 at O’Hagan’s and a ½ kilo steak meal was about US$15 at Millers Cafe. However, a majority of the restaurants are closed on Sundays.

Odd Points:

You may dislike President Mugabe but refrain from political discussions in public, it can get you in trouble.
Police use some Mercedes Benz as police cars, and it is claimed they often ask citizens who call for assistance, for fuel money before they to rush the crime scene.
When driving out of Harare, one gets to see the once “White Farms”, which now have large tracts of long wild grass, with small patches of maize/corn growing.
A can of Coca-Cola soda at the Harare International Airport goes for US$10, but at other shops, a 300ml bottle can cost US$ 0.50.

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Guide to Lilongwe

A guest post by @chiefnyamweya, an Artist, Web-enthusiast, and Comic Creator.

Getting there: You can use Ethiopian Airlines at a cost of Kshs 62,500 (~$735) (and Kenya Aiways too). You have to have a yellow fever certificate. On arrival, you face the risk of losing checked in baggage, and as there is a severe fuel crisis, a taxi into town could cost $50

Getting around: I didn’t pay much attention, as we had access to a private vehicle. But on the flip-side to the fuel crisis, there are no traffic jams!

Speak English, as Swahili is useless there, and you’ll endear yourself if you learned a little Chichewa. The one phrase I picked up (since it was said a lot to me) was “Musojela!!” or “You’ll get Lost!” Take any normal precautions as you’d take in Kenya, and I never once saw an AK-47 wielding cop here.

Hotels: You can get some very decent accommodation at Kshs .4,000 ($47) per night. Electricity is patchy, like Kenya, but a bit worse.

Dining: Excellent fish. They eat Ugali too, and their pineapples are sweet, but without the sting.

Communications: This was problematic. Roaming was expensive, and it was better to call Kenya, than have someone call from Kenya as you’d both be charged – and this was at about Kshs 25 per minute.

Shopping & Sight-Seeing: For shopping, there is Shoprite in both Blantyre and Lilongwe, while the two sights I got to see were Lake Malawi and Mount Mulanji. A local legend I heard about was about (people) disappearing on Mt. Mulanji.

Surprises: – Excellent roads here
– Women kneel in the presence of men when serving food or washing their hands (among other perceived gender inequalities)

EDIT (A second guest post from February 2012)

Getting there: Kenya Airways (KQ) has the most convenient direct flight from Nairobi – outbound in the morning and some days in the evening too. It cost $900+- and a yellow fever certificate is required on arrival, otherwise the immigration process not too much of a hustle.

Hotels: Finally, there is a new hotel in town that’s opened up operated by Chinese.. it’s called the Golden Peacock, with lots of signs in Chinese which I find funny. They still have teething problems and shockingly just serve a Chinese menu… but costs roughly $100 b&b. There is another plush hotel with conference facilities coming up next to the Parliament. This is all great for Lilongwe as before these new hotels, it was a choice between Crossroads which is Indian owned and smelt very Indian and Sun Bird which is a government owned hotel – with the same style, ambience and service as the Block hotels that were government owned in Kenya back in the day.

Dining: They love ‘sima’ which they eat with red kidney beans a lot.. an interesting combination. Also there’s a fish dish called Chambo is meant to be legendary and rice called Kilombero that has superb aroma. This particular rice swells about 3 times its original size so I guess depends on how one likes their rice.

Communications: Both Airtel and Vodacom are accessible though better choice is Airtel as there are no roaming charges. Vodacom via Safaricom too expensive to use in Malawi, and the cost of calls remains high for the country.

Shopping & Sight-Seeing: The Monkey bay area has the most beautiful lake.. very romantic with a number of excellent hotels in the vicinity.

Surprises: – It’s raining and the country is what can be called Maize country. Once you leave the airport, you see maize and you will traverse the country and see tons of maize along the road. These people are lucky to be food secure.
– The fuel crisis still persists thus hoarding of this commodity is rampant, but I still don’t understand it
– These people don’t build palatial homes in the countryside.. They all pretty much live in hut houses which is quite surprising….

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Bankelele

Nairobi writer on Banking, Finance, Technology, and Investments

Category Archives: TIA

Guide to Madagascar

Guide to Luanda

Guide to Abidjan

Guide to Harare

Guide to Lilongwe