Alexey Lossan
Traveller
Traveller Alexey Lossan who has already visited over 160 countries from the UN list told EcoTourism EXPERT about the nuances of travelling in Africa, in particular, in Equatorial Guinea.
- Is it true that the countries of the Central African region are basically very poor states as the majority of people think?
- It’s true, but to a certain degree. On the one hand, they are really poor: many outside observers believe that all African countries are the same; there are very poor local people in almost every country and they fight in vain for clean drinking water and try to overcome the burden of their colonial legacy. Unfortunately, they do not always succeed in their fight.
- What is a real situation?
- But in fact, there are not only really poor countries in Africa, but also incredibly rich states. However, there is one nuance - the countries are rich, at least, for their rulers. Equatorial Guinea is a striking example of such a country. I would like to mention that in 2021, the country’s GDP per capita based on purchasing power parity amounted to $16 thousand, and before the financial crisis in 2008, it was at the level of $33.26 thousand. These are very high figures even for developed countries, not to mention the Equatorial Guinea’s neighbours on the African continent.
- As far as I understand, such figures are practically comparable with those of the developed countries of the world!
- Yes, you are right! These GDP (PPP) figures are about the same as those in France. For comparison, Russia’s GDP (PPP) in 2008 was $20,000, which is lower by about one third.
And everything would have been fine, but as often happens in authoritarian and totalitarian African regimes, the economic miracle of Equatorial Guinea started to wane as time went on.
- And what were the sources of the Equatorial Guinea’s economic miracle?
- The main source of the Equatorial Guinea’s wealth is oil. By the way, there are still quite a lot of foreign oilfield service companies operating in the country, and expats rather than locals enjoy their time in local pubs and bars in the country.
And by the way, Equatorial Guinea is the only country in Africa where everyone speaks Spanish, which gives it a peculiar post-colonial charm.
- But anyway, the country must have its local flavour!
- And, of course, it has its local flavour and charm! The ‘paradise’ I described is disturbed by the local police’s checkpoints suddenly appearing on the huge highways going from the capital. And I would like to warn the travellers who are going to visit Equatorial Guinea: if they see such a checkpoint on the road in the evening, they’d better turn around immediately and go the other way.
- And what will happen if they cannot turn around?
- Then they have to be prepared to pay for literally anything at all. Frankly speaking, there is simply a monstrous corruption in the country - people have to pay for everything. At the same time, all tourists and locals are required to carry passports with them, otherwise they cannot avoid paying bribes.
- Do they try to control foreigners everywhere?
- Yes, they do, almost everywhere there are unwritten rules that are not always clear. So, a new airport - a giant and beautiful building of glass and marble - has been opened recently. And there is not a single store in all this splendid building or a single stall selling at least water bottles.
And after passport control, all the departing passengers are told to sit in a special row waiting for boarding the plane. When I got up to walk around the terminal, a man in uniform immediately ran after me, “Signor, where are you going to? Please return to the area reserved for your flight’s passengers.” I had to obey.
- What are your impressions of Malabo, the capital of Equatorial Guinea?
- It’s a bright city with very wide streets and spacious squares. There are wide avenues in Malabo, but there are practically no private cars on the roads, only taxi cars operating like shuttles for a fixed fee.
- And what attractions are interesting in this country in general? This destination is quite exotic ...
- First of all, the Equatorial Guinea’s nature is stunning and ecotourism could be developed to the full extent in the country. For example, the Monte Alen National Park is located in this country. It occupies 1,400 square kilometres of tropical forest where travellers can watch gorillas, chimpanzees and hamadryas baboons, as well as antelopes, buffaloes, predatory leopards and elephants. I am sure that watching the frogs, some of which reach the size of a soccer ball, as well as crocodiles and many birds, would be any traveller’s memorable experience. And, of course, large ‘clouds’ of beautiful and huge butterflies are amazing.
By the way, travellers can and should bring souvenirs from this African country, and if they buy any souvenirs, they can be one hundred percent sure that the things are the most authentic ones and not “Made in China”.
- And what can you bring as souvenirs?
- For example, a ritual mask, a spear or kitchen utensils. Although, of course, I have certain doubts that the customs would allow the travellers to bring a spear to Russia. And tourists should definitely taste the local cuisine in Equatorial Guinea!
- Of course, they cannot take the delicious dishes with them ...
- They can take only ‘gastro-experiences,’ and the local specialties are worth tasting! There are, for example, two main soups in the country - ‘pepe’ (fish soup) and ‘okro’ (vegetable soup). Travellers can also enjoy a great variety of fish products that are the freshest ones, so the meal is cooked from the catch-of-the-day fish - just a couple of hours ago it was in the sea. Seafood is usually served with rice, stewed cassava leaves (taste like spinach) or fried sycamore trees.
For those who prefer meat, Equatorial Guinea’s restaurants offer a great choice of fresh meat - from beef and pork familiar to everyone to the meat of crocodiles, porcupines, armadillos, snakes, monkeys, antelopes, turtles, gazelles, bats, and flying squirrels. It is worth tasting huge local ‘kong’ snails. And of course, there is a rich choice of various fruits from familiar papaya, dwarf ananas (Ananas nanus), bananas, and purple mangoes to more exotic guavas.
