Angola: Luanda – Fortaleza de Sao Miguel
The Sao Miguel Fortress is without a doubt the main attraction in Luanda as is attested by its UNESCO World Heritage status. The fortress is one of the largest fortresses in Africa and the world ever built by the Portuguese in 1576. For many years, it was a totally self-contained town with impenetrable high walls on all sides and guns sticking out in all directions. Luanda and the fortress served as a major originating point for the slave trade to Brazil and North America (the largest according to the Angolan sources). During the civil war, this was the headquarters of the military and nowadays it’s a military museum. Statues of Portuguese explorers and kings occupy a small place in the inner courtyard, but a much larger real estate is given to the Soviet weaponry that MPLA fought with – it’s nice to see GAZ and UAZ trucks and guns in their full USSR glory. The fortress occupies the highest point in the hilly city of Luanda and views are panoramic in all directions – inland and sea – including the slums right beneath it that are being slowly demolished.
