Brazzaville, Congo vs Kinshasa, DR Congo

Welcome to another episode. This time, it is in the land of Lingala. The land of music. Arguably, Africa's authentic music is best exemplified on the banks of the Congo River. Pays des sapeurs, or land of the dandies. You can hardly tell the difference between these two, except you speak French. The colonial language, which is the official language of both countries, possesses a subtle, or dialectal, variant that is often difficult to identify immediately.

With less poverty, Brazzaville is cleaner than Kinshasa, which is overpopulated and has a vast wealth gap. It has one of the lowest GDP per capita for a country with mineral resources valued at over $20 trillion. Brazza and Kinshasa are only separated by the Congo River, from which they derive their country names. Congo-Brazza and Congo, as the locals distinguish themselves. Both countries boast rainforests, rivers, and diverse wildlife in the heart of Africa's tropics.

Léopoldville, the former name of Kinshasa given by Belgium, its colonial master was changed by Mobutu Sese Seko as part of his authenticité campaign. When Belgium seized the land we now call DR Congo, its population was under 6 million, similar to Belgium's of about 7 million. However, its land was not only larger than Belgium but also larger than all of Western Europe. The other Congo, on the opposite bank of the Congo River, was seized by the French, leading to a permanent European border that separates the Congolese to this day.