Covering Angola In France

Well I am in what I had hoped would be sunny France to see my sister, catch some sun and test my international working strategy.  Apart from some small problems with wireless range it looks like as long as I have a reasonable internet connection and a fairly quiet spot to work in, I can work in any country in the world.  Facebook didn’t like it and I had to verify my account which worried me a bit but worked out.

Angola - Luanda from Fortaleza

I started on the next chapter covering Angola which is fun as I do not speak Portuguese.  Google and Bing’s translation services did help somewhat but let me tell you, this technology is far from perfect – some articles were very difficult to understand.  Before I start on the research travels, I will learn some Spanish and Portuguese, my French is usable but human translators/guides are probably going to be the norm, if I can afford it.

The article is now stewing on my hard disk for a day or so before I review it for release but here are some interesting observations:

1. The number of Portuguese immigrants in Angola has quadrupled over the past several years causing a reversal in migration flows between Portugal and Angola;
2. The term Mestizo originally used for a people of mixed indigenous American and European ancestry is used to describe all mixed race people in Angola despite the colonial Portuguese attempt to further socially separate the community;
3. Despite being only 2% of the population, mixed race individuals are visible as political and economic leaders mirroring the ‘whites’ in Brazil.
4. With the Cuban presence in the 1970s and the recent immigration flows from Portugal, Brazil and China, Angola may be one of the few countries outside Europe without a mixed community that comprises a large proportion of the population where the mixed community will have the opportunity to grow in the next few years.

Keep your eye out for it.

À bientôt!