Trish
- 3 min read

Urban Photo Safari in Bata

Cruising around Bata on an urban photo safari.

Equatorial Guinea or EG as we all call it, is a very small country, with a population around 1 million people spread between the capital city, Malabo on Bioko Island and here on the mainland.

As in other African countries I've visited, there are so many building projects that are abandoned because the developers/builders ran out of money. Here's one complete with grass thatched huts out the front. I wonder if it was going to be a hotel.

This building is quite close to our apartments and is spectacular. As we drove by I asked my driver to slow down as I love the look of this building. He said it looked good but would probably fall down. I asked why and he said cause it was built by the Chinese.

Cool high rise black and gold building in Bata

See the signage along the barrier fence: China State Construction. Chinese are a presence throughout Africa.

Neat looking building showing the sign "China State Construction"

Surprise, surprise, they have Chinese Restaurants.

This guy was walking fast. Not a bad walk to work?

The oceanside walkway goes for miles or should I say kilometres, and its not just boring old concrete, it looks like tiles. The Spanish influence. It's called "Paseo Maritimo".

Guy walking fast along the ocean front walkway

Below is the Spanish Cultural Center.

I'm intrigued by the mural above the entrance. I'm going to have to go back and take a photo. Perhaps because I've just finished reading a sci fi book I'm seeing aliens.

Whoah, check out the guy in the yellow Tshirt! I sure didn't see him when I was taking the photo cause I was focusing on aliens.

When I first landed in Bata and we were driving (at night) towards the apartment, we came around a corner and there was the Freedom Tower all alight in neon purple, it was spectacular. Don't know why the clouds have a green hue to them, all I did was crop the photo, nothing else and the other colors are all true. Hmmm cameras, especially phone cameras, do funny things to color at times.

It's called the Torre de la Libertad which means Tower of Liberty and also known as the Freedom Tower. When you hear Freedom Tower in Africa one might think of slavery, but this particular Freedom Tower is a monument representing the celebration of the independence of the nation from Spain. BTW this is the only Spanish speaking country in Africa. Population is nearly all Catholic.

The Freedom Tower in Bata Equatorial Guinea

And when the sun goes down Torre de la Libertad lights up.

I took this photo on a Friday night and I know it changes color, I just don't know how often.

Freedom Tower in Equatorial Guinea lit up in red

That is a revolving restaurant in the middle ... but I've only heard bad reviews and I didn't go in to see for myself cause I didn't get the chance. A policeman came up to us while I was taking photos from across the street and tried to get me to give him money. Why? Just because he could.

My driver was furious and argued with him for about five minutes but we finally got away without paying anything. If I'd been on my own, of course I would have given him money!! My driver was so upset and ashamed of his people. Poor guy, it goes on everywhere in the world. Just not pleasant when you experience it first hand.

I plan on going back again on different nights cause I really want to see the other colors it shows, especially the purple. I will update with photos when I get them.

Update: Caught the tower on another night, this time in blue.