So my older brother was on the 'International Construction' slave labor force for a while in the 80s, he was sent to then-Zaire (now Congo) to work on
a 'bethel' construction there. My father and I went to visit him for 4 weeks, I don't remember if this was 86 or 87. I took some pics, and I've
just finished scanning them all and cleaning them up so I could send copies to a couple people. Some of the black and white ones hadn't been printed since
I took them.
I don't remember all that much from the trip, I was (very, very) sick for much of that time.
The actual 'bethel' building, the main one that was supposed to have the printing presses:
The construction crew; my brother and dad are in the back, to the left:
Inside a Zairois 'kingdom hall':
The washroom in said 'kingdom hall':
My dad, on an outing with some Zairois 'brothers':
Me, off playing by myself:
The Congolese port city Matadi, the country's only one:
Street vendors, this woman is selling bread (yum!):
The neighborhood convenience store:
These store-owners have invested:
Transportation isn't always what you're expecting... these guys are sort of 'courriers':
They usually fix cars right in the street, wherever they happened to break down:
This guy is tired:
Farmer's market:
I don't know what she's selling, but I wouldn't mess with her:
Village life:
A bus, more commonly known as a 'Fulla-fulla':
Don't know if they're cooking or making charcoal:
Village on the road to Matadi:
If you're wondering why some of the pictures seem a little blurry or out of focus, it's because the Zairois don't much care to have their pictures taken. Most of these were taken from a moving vehicle, I would hide the camera on my lap under a jacket or something, and just take rapid snapshots when something caught my eye. Of course, this was befor the invention of autofocus cameras. I'm amazed that any of them are even recognizable.
Oh yeah, if they catch you taking their picture: you'll be attacked by an angry mob and likely beaten to death. They really don't like having their picture taken.
I don't remember all that much from the trip, I was (very, very) sick for much of that time.
The actual 'bethel' building, the main one that was supposed to have the printing presses:
The construction crew; my brother and dad are in the back, to the left:
Inside a Zairois 'kingdom hall':
The washroom in said 'kingdom hall':
My dad, on an outing with some Zairois 'brothers':
Me, off playing by myself:
The Congolese port city Matadi, the country's only one:
Street vendors, this woman is selling bread (yum!):
The neighborhood convenience store:
These store-owners have invested:
Transportation isn't always what you're expecting... these guys are sort of 'courriers':
They usually fix cars right in the street, wherever they happened to break down:
This guy is tired:
Farmer's market:
I don't know what she's selling, but I wouldn't mess with her:
Village life:
A bus, more commonly known as a 'Fulla-fulla':
Don't know if they're cooking or making charcoal:
Village on the road to Matadi:
If you're wondering why some of the pictures seem a little blurry or out of focus, it's because the Zairois don't much care to have their pictures taken. Most of these were taken from a moving vehicle, I would hide the camera on my lap under a jacket or something, and just take rapid snapshots when something caught my eye. Of course, this was befor the invention of autofocus cameras. I'm amazed that any of them are even recognizable.
Oh yeah, if they catch you taking their picture: you'll be attacked by an angry mob and likely beaten to death. They really don't like having their picture taken.
