Come and discover your country!

Daiana TABORDA GOMES
Mar 2, 2023
4 min read

« Tchon Tchoma ! » -The land is calling- The wind of return to the Motherland is blowing for the African diasporas. You, who were born in Western world or who have lived there long enough to consider yourself "Westerner of Bissau-Guinean origin", you are beginning to ask yourself questions about returning to your country... Becoming a REPAT !

Have you never been to Guinea-Bissau, or only on a short vacation? Please come and look closer!

The first advice I have to give you: Put some money aside, take a long vacation and come to discover the country deeply!

I advise you to plan your trip relatively far in advance in order to be able to take all of your annual leave and no less than 3 weeks if you want to do more than just visit. Anyway, given the price of the plane ticket, less than 3 weeks, it is not "profitable". Highlight of the year? The carnival! Not to miss! This means coming in February/March. Not very practical for children I agree.

Otherwise, come in May and take advantage of French public holidays. May is the month of abundance: fruits and vegetables, weather not too hot (everything is relative lol) and not too humid, foreign tourists are less numerous, prices a little lower, etc...

Set aside a big week to meet the family there! Between those of Bissau and those in the "villages" of origin, 10 days is in express mode and well organized.

Another tip, if you are curious about your family ties and your roots, record your conversations with the oldest and make a family tree ! With your head rested, you will be able to listen again and surely better understand who your great-grandmother's mother's aunt is!

You will also take the opportunity to do the first administrative steps, such as picking up your parents' birth certificates in the village if you don't have them, getting your identity card and/or passport done. Do this the first week because there can be many delays and setbacks. You will realize the difference in the organization of the State and the difference in the mentality of the population.

Then play the tourist! Go out and about, have fun, go clubbing or have a drink in a bar. Eat in different restaurants and not only those in "Praça".

Soon an article on the nice spots of the capital.

Take the toca-toca or the "7 places" and discover the other cities of the country and the unmissable Bijagos or Manjack islands. Go to the Bandim market and dare to enter inside (You will surely get lost there!).

You will realize ALL the opportunities that exist in ALL areas ! And you will also see the differences in living conditions between Bissau and the rest of the country. You will see that on certain points, the inhabitants of the "interior" seem almost better off 😉.

Ask all the questions that come to mind and don't settle for answers about political instability.

Finally, save the headaches for last!

Go visit houses, land, equipment sheds, go visit Ministries to ask how much it costs to legalize EVERYTHING!
If you plan to come with your children, contact different schools that you might like and ask to visit the places, find out how they work, their pedagogy and of course their prices. To my American readers, know that there is no English school. Portuguese, French, Senegalese, Turkish, Chinese, Brazilian, Japanese… But nothing for the language of Shakespeare!
The opportunity to go to a hospital is very often unfortunate, but it will help to understand the health system and the state of the hospital structures. This is a real plus in your thinking.
Go shopping with your host to realize how time-consuming it is, it's uncomfortable after 10 a.m. but also how much you will have to change your eating habits! Fortunately since 2022 a large supermarket (Santy commercial) has opened in addition to the 4 or 5 Darlings supermarkets already present in Bissau. The food shock will be less traumatic.

But above all, ABOVE ALL stay calm! Be patient, stay humble, don't make assumptions, and don't take anything personally. Surely you only know 10% of the deep reasons that lead the country and the population to act in this or that way, whether positively or negatively. Don't forget that you have your Western culture bias.

Let me wrap it up:

1 week to say hello and do your paperwork if needed.
1 week for sightseeing.
At the very least 2 weeks to confront you with the reality of the cost of living in Bissau (House, Transport, school, hospitals, shopping…). This is a minimum to be able to have a good overview of real life in the country.

Soon an article on a detailed program of your discovery trip.

To amaze you and give you ideas, I advise you to watch the different episodes of the program "No Bai Guinea" !Beware it's in Portuguese! on YouTube, produced by RTP and presented by our national singer Manecas Costa.

The images are magnificent, you will go around the country from your living room, and if that does not make you want to be there, I will eat my loincloth!