Definitely not a zoo

On our very first night in Malabo, we inquired about the mysterious parcel of land next to the Hilton, planted with neat rows of trees, a decorative wall, and scatterings of rooftops.  Was it a zoo, a park, a nursery?  All signs pointed to a zoo.  This was both an exciting and saddening idea, heavier on the sad since the area didn’t seem large enough for any large animal exhibits.  We’ve watched as the land developed, and became more zoo like.  Walking paths were cemented, a ticket/toll booth erected at the entrance, and a crazy neon lit bridge appeared.  The local staff at the Embassy had heard it was not a zoo, our expat friends remained convinced that must be a zoo.

A coworker found the sketch below online, which only presented more questions.  There’s water in there? Are those little islands animal habitats? Where are the neon lights?  Can you raft down those rapids? Whose statue is that?

 

So on Labor Day, when it was “too cold” to go to the beach (our skin has gotten so thin…), we decide to peek inside and see for ourselves what was behind the still unopened walls that have taunted us for so long.  We now know, for certain, that it is definitely. not. a. zoo.  It is a fantastic park with many other exciting features! None of which will result in sad lions, tigers, or bears.

Parque Natural de Malabo

Whoever designed this park did a really great job!  Cormac and I were amazed at how large it is.  You can’t see very of it much from the road.  A huge pond/lake is in the middle, with little islands and inlets carved out.  I would guess that at a leisurely strolling pace, it will take an hour to walk all the paths.  

I spy a paddle boat!

The mysterious neon lit bridge that has piqued our curiosity for so long

It looked like there are a lot of picnic areas, places to sit and read, and maybe a cafe or two in the park.  From the road outside the park you can spy basketball and tennis courts, too.

A beautiful shady walk with benches

I’m really excited for the park to officially open.  I don’t think it will be too far off from the “despues” sketch my coworker found.  Perhaps the ribbon cutting will be an Independence Day event?  If so, only a month to go!

The park will have a fantastic view of Pico on a clear day. I can’t wait!

Sao Tome; the rest of our trip

After we moved hotels, we went scuba diving. Or rather, we tried to go scuba diving. We were out on the boat, checking out diving location with the dive master. He cautioned us that it would be a waste of time and money to get in the water, so we took his word and headed back in. The water was just too murky. He did take us to a place where we went snorkeling. It was nice to get in the water, but he was right. The visibility was just awful. It was still a nice little boat trip, because we got to see a lot of the island.

On the way out to the dive site.

After we got back in to town, we spent the afternoon just wandering around the city. It was a wonderful afternoon, and we found a really delicious gelato place (right next to the market, for those planning on visiting).

I really like this picture

The next day, we rented a car and drove down the coast. We had planned on catching the bus down to a ferry to get to a hotel on a small island just off the southern coast, but we didn’t register in time. In hind sight, driving along the coast was much more pleasant. It gave us the freedom to stop and take pictures, and explore a little more.

Lauren walks along a Portuguese colonial road

Harley Davidson has nothing on these wooden bikes

There are many seaside villages along the coast. This ones at the most southern tip of Sao Tome.

Fishing nets out to dry

Driving to the southern tip of the island and back to Sao Tome took pretty all day. We got back with enough time to catch the sunset.

Sunset in Sao Tome city

We decided to keep the car for the next morning, and drive north-wards and see how far we could get before having to turn around to catch our flight back to Malabo. The day before it was all rainforest in very rugged terrain, so it was striking to see rolling hills that appeared pretty dry. Moreover, in the south, the road kept along the coast and the people seemed to be mostly fisherman.  The road in the north ventured inland and there seemed to be more agricultural. Anyways, we were able to make it back to the place where we tried to go scuba diving, and could tell that the water was much clearer. So we stopped to do some snorkeling and take a few pictures. After that we turned around for the airport.

There was some nice coral, but also tiny jelly fish that were stinging us. They were not terribly harmful, but just enough to make you feel uncomfortable; like a pin prick.

 

The Blue Lagoon, apparently the best diving on the island (or should I say, off the island?)

Sao Tome, Day One

Cormac and I were in need of a break from Bioko island a few weeks back, so we decided to hop down south to Sao Tome for a long weekend.  It was a fantastic trip that we would highly recommend to anyone residing in the near vicinity with easy flights to the country.  Although Sao Tome is also a tropical island like Bioko, it has a much different feel to it and a lot of varying landscapes.

The neighborhood (Bioko Island is the one in the top right of they bay)

We flew on Ceiba Airlines (national airline of Equatorial Guinea) through Libreville.  The flight time was about two hours, plus an hour on the ground in Gabon.  We landed with enough day light left to find our way to the guest house a friend had recommended.

A long, loud ride. But it got the job done!

Two of the maybe 15 workers at the airport in Sao Tome

The only other planes at the airport

Our taxi driver gave us a quick tour of downtown on our way through the city and made some recommendations about what to do and see.  We ended up running into the same guy three or four more times during our stay, and he stopped each time to ask us how our trip was going.  Small town hospitality at its finest!  He spoke Portuguese and French, which was a bit too large of a language obstacle for us to overcome, otherwise we would have hired him as our guide for the whole trip.

We found the guest house in the exact place and condition our friend had described it.  A small place, set back from the road, with very basic rooms including just a bed, sheet, towels, and clean bathrooms.  We dropped off our stuff and then headed to Papa Figo’s for a bite to eat.

The entrance to the guest house– with the Kodak sign we were promised to find

I sampled the local beer, which was comparable to any other unlabeled light beer you may come across, and we each had a veggie pizza.  We probably ate six veggie pizzas from Papa Figo’s during our trip.  Papa Figo’s was a great people watching spot.  There were always a few tables of locals playing an animated card game, international news programs on the TV inciting lively conversation, and kids wandering around trying to sell stuff over the cafe wall.  The waitstaff were kind and patient with our lack of Portuguese language ability, offering up French and German as alternatives, before working through our elementary Spanish ordering.

Great outdoor seating

The first night was far from restful, thanks to a neighborhood watch dog, eager rooster, and the saw mill next door.  I don’t think I slept more than one consecutive hour the whole night.  Since we wanted to return to Malabo somewhat rested from our vacation, we decided to check out of the guest house and move over to the Miramar Hotel after breakfast.

The Miramar was full, so they upgraded us to a suite for free!

The beautiful garden and ocean view outside our suite doors

A bit more comfortable, a lot more fancy

 

More on the Sao Tome trip in the next post…