Beautiful Africa under light and shadow

During the three years of working abroad in Africa, I have visited more than 20 countries and recorded the colorful African continent with cameras, drones, mobile phones and other equipment. Behind each image is a vivid and full atmosphere of the times, and a particularly impressive picture of China-Africa friendly cooperation.

Magnificent nature and colorful culture coexist

The clear boundary of the confluence of cold and warm ocean currents in Cape Cape, the unique scenery of half of the cliffs and half of the sea of the "most beautiful highway in the Atlantic", and the continuous and colorful "seven-colored soil" formed by the volcanic ash of Mauritius... The natural scenery of Africa is vast and beautiful.

If you come to Pretoria, the administrative capital of South Africa, from September to November, you must not miss the boulevard where the jacaranda are in full bloom (see photo, taken by Lv Qiang): more than 70000 jacaranda are blooming in the city. From a distance, the continuous sea of flowers is like a blue and purple cloud, lingering around the whole city. The jacaranda symbolizes wisdom and knowledge. The blooming season coincides with the exam season in South Africa. If the petals fall on the students, it will be regarded as a good sign of success in the exam. Its flowering time coincides with the local early spring season, and therefore also symbolizes rebirth, vitality and creativity.

In Mauritania, I took pictures of the quiet blue Sahara desert. This is taken within half an hour after the sun sets, and is called "blues period" in photography terminology. The blue light in the sky maps onto the earth, making the undulating dune lines more deep and long.

Africa has not only magnificent natural landscapes, but also splendid and long history and culture. In Egypt, one of the "four ancient civilizations", the rich historical relics are breathtaking: the Giza pyramid, which is golden in the sun, the whole mythical relief on the tower door of the Horus temple... These light and shadow are fixed in my camera and become precious memories.

In Ethiopia, the Lalibela Rock Church, known as the "African miracle", was built from the end of the 12th century to the beginning of the 13th century. It is a complex of 11 churches, located on a rocky plateau 2600 meters above sea level, and was listed on the The World Heritage List in 1978. The construction of La Libera Rock Church took more than 20 years, and the project was extremely difficult and complicated. It was necessary to reserve walls, roofs, colonnades, doors and windows in a whole rock, and then carefully cut the rest. The internal stone column corridors, hollowed-out doors and windows, statues, reliefs and other processes are very exquisite. Such outstanding stone carving art attracts tourists from all over the world.

"African children love to laugh"

In the interview in Africa, ordinary people will always become the protagonist of the picture. I have taken many pictures of children everywhere. If I want to publish this album, it will be named "Children in Africa love to laugh": in the rural Senegal, the westernmost part of Africa, children look curiously at the camera; In Eritrean streets along the Red Sea, children returned from school wearing school uniforms; In Uganda, East Africa, children are waiting in line for lunch... They are optimistic and cheerful by nature. As long as someone sets up a camera, they will dance and laugh at the camera without waiting for your greeting.

In 2018, when I interviewed in Nairobi, Kenya, I participated in a carnival organized by Chinese volunteers for children. In talent shows, painting exhibitions and football matches, their laughter is flying in the air. Before the start of a football match, I took a picture of five little girls warming up happily on the sand and preparing to play. In the distance, a group of children sat on the fence and chatted in twos and threes, as if they were predicting the outcome of the game for a while.

African children love football. Football match is one of the most common events on campus. The school responded positively by purchasing ball uniforms, finding coaches and training regularly for the match. The facilities on the field may be simple, but the children's eyes sparkle when they prepare for the game and fight hard.

I also interviewed Peter, a 15-year-old boy who was the champion of the "Got Talent Show". He amazed the audience with a rap song. Entering his home, it was a small space made of several plastic steel plates and only one piece of cloth was used as the door. But in his eyes, "home is always warm, even if it is made of plastic". Peter's father is a driver who commutes from Nairobi to Mombasa all year round. Peter said that while his father was flying on the land, his dream was to become a pilot and fly freely in the sky.

Freeze the story of China-Africa friendship in the new era

New fast trains run on the endless wilderness, the continuous asphalt roads connect towns and villages, the bright production workshops embrace the dream of industrialization, and the spectacular industrial parks come into reality from the blueprint... In recent years, the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" has injected new vitality and dreams into Africa, and China and African friends have written a vivid chapter of common development together.

Nairobi Station of Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, the silver-gray railway station is avant-garde and dynamic in design, with four stewards facing the camera "Bixin"; On the Nairobi-Malaba Railway, the stewards of China and Kenya stood side by side, smiling at the passengers; On the platform of the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway, the stewards waved their thumbs in a neat way

When I read these photos, my mind often echoes the beautiful song composed by a Kenyan singer: "My friend, you must go and fly by that train. The rolling wheels are our wings. My hometown has the power to take off..." The song is about the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway opened in 2017. This is the largest infrastructure construction project in Kenya since its independence. During the construction period, more than 40000 Kenyans worked in the project, with local employees accounting for more than 90%; Since its opening and operation, the new jobs provided to the Kenyan people have covered 123 types of work and employed more than 3000 local employees. Because of a series of China-Africa cooperation projects, including the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, local young people not only found good jobs, but also led a happy life.

Before the 2020 Spring Festival, I went to Bukavu, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to interview Chinese peacekeepers. On the bus to the peacekeeping camp, I caught a street photo through the window: pedestrians jostle and jostle on the busy road, and the vendors are doing business in the sky. In the International Children's Village, peacekeeping officers and soldiers celebrate the Spring Festival with the children, write with them, take a group photo with the word "Fu", and the bright "China Red" adorns the children's village with full flavor of the year... The great love, righteousness and perseverance of a group of Chinese peacekeeping officers and soldiers have played an indispensable role in local peace and stability.

Zanzibar Island, Tanzania, is located in the western Indian Ocean. It is a world-famous clove producing area. The profound friendship between the Chinese medical team and the Zanzibar people is just like the lilac flowers in the mountains. It is located in the tropics, with strong ultraviolet radiation and high incidence of cataract. An ophthalmologist operates more than 1000 cases a year. Chinese doctors told me that although the workload has increased a lot compared with that in China, they do not feel hard because "there is nothing happier than seeing patients see the light again". In the eyes of the local people, Chinese doctors are skilled, and they are the angels in white to save the dead and heal the wounded, as well as the friendly envoys to convey friendship.

Behind countless light and shadow freezes is the beautiful Africa at that time. This is a land full of hope. People cultivate dreams and welcome light on the ancient land. Those gorgeous scenery, smiling faces and touching friendship will stay in the memory of tourists for a long time.