I’m going to Kinshasa in the DRC in ten days for my first ever visit. I keep telling myself it can’t be any worse than Lagos, where I’ve visted over 85 times. My prospective agent there is sending a driver to meet me at the airport with a “protocol” name as well as his own name – presumably this is posh speak for a password?

“The DanubeCongo flows particularly quickly on days like this”

“Yes, and the clouds reflect beatifully on the surface”

works for me

Edited so I don’t look too thick.

What do you do that means your employer has decided to send you to (what has been called) the most dangerous city on Earth?

Have you upset your line manager or something?

It’s all very well until you turn up and there’s no one there at arrivals to meet you at all and your ‘protocol’ driver is asleep in his car in the car park and you have no idea what he or the car looks like. This happened to me last time I visited Lagos.

I used to be met by The Protocol Officer at Benin City Airport when working there, he would organise secure transport to site and to the hotel. He was quite good at organising stuff and ensured the drivers alternated their routes regularly, ensured your luggage actually got on the plane etc. Normally expected a dash which is fine as he took the ball ache out of a lot of stuff.

Good luck !

I think the protocol name means he’ll hold a card with “globalti” on it.

And this could mean many things!
“At each step of your journey in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a member of our team will take charge of the registration formalities so that you have time on hand to simply watch and enjoy the very special atmosphere in these transit points.”
http://www.purecongo.com/en/useful-information-and-links/arrival-holiday/airport-protocol

Is it not just that you will struggle to pronounce his real name, so instead he introduces himself as ‘Kevin’?

I always try and get the drivers mobile number before I land, just in case you can’t locate him….

Thanks for the encouraging words lads. It can’t be worse than Lagos, can it? Surely not?

Yes I’ve got the driver’s mobile number.

Worse than lagos…… Lagos is a walk in the park mate. Really.

Ph is a million tims worse than lagos , makes lagos look like lhr

Mind you at least Ph has an airport, Lagos burnt down last month….

Ph is tents. – i shit you not

Ph is tents. – i shit you not

They knocked it down a year ago to modernise….. Only thats as far as it got.