ZAIRE - the DRC - "My Home"

Many times in my life I've had people sound very interested in the fact that I grew up in Africa. Usually that interests lasts less than a minute. If, for some reason, you are interested in knowing about the country I love so much, check out this link (thank you Peter Transburg for it).

The country is now called the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It was Zaire when I lived there and was called the Belgian Congo before that.

I believe it was Time Magazine that just called it the most dangerous place in the world to live. It's a huge tragedy.

I dream of taking my family back there some day to show them where I grew up and to meet my friends. I nearly cry every time I think of doing that ("Lori - this is where I played soccer every day... this is where I built a fort... this is where I was born... this is where my first rememberable memory is" (getting spanked naked on the front porch at Kala)).

So check out the link and read just a bit about this country - the size of the U.S. east of the mississippi... a country rich in precious metals and diamonds... a country with enough potential through water power (hydro-electric) to give electricity to the whole continent, I believe... a country I still often call home.

Yes, these pictures are normal - a typical bridge (I've seen far worse) and a typical road during rainy season. Yeah - we don't mess around with Fords and Chevys much - just Toyotas.