We are deep inside D.R. Congo, near the town of Nyunzu, one day’s off road travel from Kalemie (former Albertville) near Lake Tanganyika.
Congo is magic to everyone who has read Joseph Conrad’s novel Heart of Darkness.
We were driving in a Toyota Hi-lux as we passed be a group of women carrying stuff home from the market. The sun was about to set, it was the best time of the day to take photographs.
I asked the driver to slow down a bit, grabbed my camera, rolled down the windows on the back seat and climbed out of it while the car was still moving – managed to get back on platform still holding my camera. The women cheered a lot when I started photographing, running and waving, yelling and laughing.
Me, the Muzungu (white man) on the hi-lux did apparently funny and unexpected things so they started following the car. I asked the driver to slow down even more and continued my shots.
Then a man with his bike struggled to get into the picture.
Look at his t-shirt, which is kind of absurd in a context where so many cases of gender-based violence have taken place. Rape and killings in thousands.
I mean, this is Congo in a peaceful and joyful moment, at the same time so violent and horrible that no one hardly can believe it.
That is why so many of us wants to return