10 Interesting things about DRC Congo that you should know

Here are some of the interesting things you didn’t know about DRC also formerly known as Zaire.

Music is its biggest export

This is a bit interesting but it real, in the 90’s Congolese music was the sole music listen to almost on the entire continent. With musicians such as Koffi Olomide, Papa Wemba and Werrason – can compete for the same audience as Justine Bieber in Africa.

Kinshasa is world’s second-largest French-speaking city

Its hard to believe but this is the second French biggest city after Paris. One would think aren’t there any other big cities in France? It’s estimated that Kinshasa has about 10 Million people.

Locals eat mayo with everything

A legacy of the Belgian colonial period is the overwhelming preference for huge blobs of mayonnaise on almost everything — meat, fish, fried plantains, manioc, peas and salad are just a few examples.

Kinshasa and Brazzaville are the world’s closest capitals

Both Kinshasa and Brazzaville are separated by River Congo which is the second longest river by Volume, it stretches just 5 km.

The wildlife is phenomenal

The Okapi is one of the rare endemics of DRC. Congo is also home to the rare mountain Gorillas. The specie concentration of animals in DRC is second to none in the world.

The Congo isn’t overrun by the Ebola virus

Very people believe catching Ebola in DRC is as easy as catching a cold anywhere else in the world. This is not true. After the 1995 outbreak that killed over 200 people all the other out breaks have been contained very well.

The Congo played role in World War II

The Uranium used to manufacture atomic bombs in the world war II in Manhattan was Gotten from the Shinkolobwe Mine in Katanga province.

Shinkolobwe has been officially closed since 2004, but as is the case all over the Congo, private miners still try to eke out a meager existence from what they can extract on their own.

Mountain Gorillas and Eastern Lowland Gorillas

DRC is one of the few Countries in East and central Africa where one can find Mountain Gorillas, others being Uganda (Bwindi Forest & Mgahinga National Park) and Rwanda (Volcanoes National Park). In DRC, Mountain gorillas can be found in Virunga National Park Where Gorilla Trekking is one of the best activities done in the Park.

Also, DRC has a special species of Gorillas called the eastern Lowland Gorillas which can be found in Kahuzi Biega National Park.