Our schedule also included a security presentation to the Service Centre Management Council, meeting with the Mission President and his wife (one of only two North American Senior Missionaries in the city of 7 million), and an interview with a security officer at the U.S. Embassy.
This was a view of the Congo River from our 11th floor hotel room. The small dark dots on the water are boats containing 1-3 fisherman. One evening we were invited to dinner at the apartment of our Service Centre host. He baked capitan, a fresh water fish from the Congo River similar to cod. In roadside stands we observed people selling whole salted fish or carrying small bags (similar to brown paper lunch sacks) in baskets on their heads with wrapped salted fish.
Our travel to the individual meetinghouses each took 15-45 minutes over unmaintained paved and dirt roads. From each paved driveway I took photos of people curious about our presence and life on the streets around us.
Kinshasa has excellent, delicious breads baked fresh daily and sold along the streets. People carrying baskets of golden loaves and rolls were seen everywhere we went.
Notice the woman selling waffles from the blue tub. Other similar stands sell fruits, vegetables and a wide range of household goods. A striking feature on all the streets are women attired in beautiful Congolese print skirts and intricately designed dresses sewn by expert seamstresses.
Many children attend school in the mornings and sell items (packets of tissues and soaps, snacks) along the streets in the afternoons. With a 60+ percent unemployment rate, many people spend each day attempting to provide food for their families.
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