The Kinshasa Airport: A Survival Guide

We are IN. THE. AIR. WITH. OUR. DAUGHTER. Oh my goodness, I can hardly believe that I am typing these words. If you have never adopted from Congo, you have no idea the relief and emotion behind this realization! I hremember reading in the blogs of a few families that have gone before us that they felt as though thay had just escaped with their lives. I thought they were just being dramatic. Well, you can officially call me a drama-mamma... but at least you can call me a MOMMA, cause we got OUT! All day long we have been singing the lingala song “Yesu Azali Awa” to keep our minds focused on the reality that “Jesus is here.” I have so needed to hear these words. The last 24 hours have been chaotic beyond what I can talk about here, but let me just say that it makes us all that much more grateful to be heading HOME. Congo is a very messy place, there is a lot of corruption, and nothting goes as it “should.” Instead, it is more like an adventure movie or murder mystery book. Adoptions are no exception. But by the grace of God we are headed home, and with every air mile behind us, my sanity, peace, and love for the good parts of Congo is returning. 

So while everything is still fresh in my mind, I want to write a quick list of “helpful info” for other families who will be traveling soon, and who need to fly out of the Kinshasa airport to get home. We flew Ethiopian air, and have LOVED their service so far. The dreamliner direct flight between DC and Addis, Ethiopia is easpecially nice. And by the way, they have the BEST airline food in the world, and they feed you multiple times! Considering you are stuck in the plane for almost 24 hours total, eating helps to pass the time at least! Dan says that he feels like a well fed prisoner.  ;)  

Anyhow... some thoughts on going through the Kinshasa airport:

1. First of all, if you and your hubby or wife don’t work well as a team.... don’t adopt from Congo!  :)  If you can work together, stay on top of multiple things going on around you all at once in other languages, and divide and conquer, then you have won half the battle already. Proceed!
2. Plan a travel bag of fun. This is a no-brainer to moms everywhere, but it is worth mentioning. Make it a bag that your child can carry themselves if they are old enough.   One less bag for you! We also brought a “stuffed animal pillow thing” that has a compartment inside where we stashed a small blanket. Our daughter used these while we were in country, so they became a “comfort item” that she can love on when on the long flight home. In my opinion it helps the sleeping to have a familiar snuggle item. Also pack snacks (although Ethiopian feeds you WELL! They keeps the food and drinks coming!), germX, wipeums, pull ups, tissues, some folded pieces of TP (for the lovely airport bathroom discussed below), gum or something chewey for takeoff, and children’s benedryl/ motion sickness chewables just in case. Beyond just crayons and coloring books: beads and string, water color paints, stickers, slinky, silly putty, playdough, and children’s books/magazines are great. We are not big fans of electronic gadgets for young children, and especially for adopted kids who can benefit from fine motor practice and one-on-one interaction. That is why we chose not to bring any kind of “video game things” or whatever they are called these days... but if you are all for them, then these would of course be handy! Leap pad would be especilly nice.
3. You will be SOAKED with sweat before you have even entered the airport. Do yourself a favor and wear shorts and short sleeves. We had been told by our agency that we should only pack capris, pants, ankle length skirts, and overly modest shirts. This was not true... plenty of Europeans here wear shorts or knee length skirts. Now, we wouldn’t suggest going for a miniskirt or booty shorts or anything (under any circumstances anywhere, for that matter!) but some comfy shorts and a T shirt or tank would be just fine. And while we are talking about clothes, we suggest packing two sets for you and your child. Also, pack some pull-ups no matter how old your child is. You never know what can happen on a plane ride. We had an older child with us who had an accident. Fortunately her momma was prepared.  :)  Better safe and dry than wet and sorry!
4. Hire your own transport to the airport and make sure you book it for at least 1 hour BEFORE you actually want to leave. We had a 2:00 flight, and we booked our transport for 9:00. We did not actually leave till 10:30. Traffic is VERY variable, so you should plan on at least an hour travel time. Then it takes about an hour and a half at the airport to pay the exit tax, check your bags, fill out exit cards, get through DGM (“immigration” AKA “intimidation”), and go through security. Once you are at the gate you need to plan on them beginning boarding pretty early... they hand-search your carry on bags again and pat you down before boarding. Then you are bussed out to the plane. All in all, quite a process, and - like EVERYTHING in Africa - it takes time! We got to our gate with only about 15 minutes to spare before we lined up to board. 
5. When you get to the airport, make it very clear in no uncertain terms to your driver and the many men who will flock to your van if you do not want others to carry your bags. They will just grab them and do it, but it is definitely for a price, and once they have done it, they pick the price for you! You just FORCEFULLY say no as man times as you need to, then grab your bags yourself and take charge. They cannot force you to let them carry the bags, but they are aggressive and once they have started you are sort of stuck with it. They want to charge $5-10 per bag! And they do NOT take $1 bills. Just be forwarned! (all of this info goes for arrival too... the men in jumpsuits are not trying to be helpful to you, they just want to charge you a high price to carry a bag a few feet, LOL.)
6. We had someone from our agency walking us through the process. This was very helpful, if you have the option. However, we believe that the most helpful part was that they had “friends” there it seems. Hard to say because we cannot understand the language. All we know is that the head of homeland security (or something like that) walked us through with a lot of head nodding. Not sure how we should feel about that, but it got us through and out, and so we can’t complain. We saw him doing it for lots of others as well too, though. This is Africa, after all. If you don’t have connections, you don’t have anything. In any case, having a Congolese guide who can accompany you through the process is GREAT because we don’t speak French and no one here speaks English. You do the math! 
7. Don’t zip tie your bags or tape them ahead of time. They will make you open them all before checking them anyway, and they do not have a way to break your ties; If all of your sharp objects are already stowed safely inside of the ziptied bags, then neither do you. This really holds up the show. We all learned that lesson the hard way.  :)  You can pay $10 a bag to have them seriously Saran wrapped after checking them, which is way more secure anyway. Just pay the money and go with that.
8. It is very helpful to go through as a GROUP if you can. I cannot imagine doing it alone. Safety and support in numbers. 
9. Have a good way to carry all important documents, like a great travel organizer that straps on. When you pay your exit tax they give you a receipt called a “go pass” that you CANNOT lose. You need it to board. You will also want your yellow fever card, passport, and boarding pass handy. And cash, of course.
10. Security is nothing like in the US. In Congo you just put your bags through a scanner and you walk through a scanner... without taking out your laptop or your nicely ziplocked travel sized liquids or throwing out your water bottles or taking off your belt or shoes or coat. In fact, we took all quantities of liquids through with us. Full water bottles, juice boxes, and all. Not one word. So I guess air travel regulations are not universal? Once again, it made our lives easier, so we are not complaining! Our kiddos had water to drink at the gate, and after all that sweating through the airport process, that was priceless! In any case, all this is to say that you do not have to worry about hurriedly gulping down all your liquids before security... it is not necessary, and will only make you have to pee! :)
11. On the subject of pee... the bathrooms here leave much to be desired. They do not have paper, and the sink needs to be turned on by the water valve below. They guy who attends the bathroom wants payment too, or will ask you for things you are carrying. I would definitely go in a group, and bring your own TP just in case.
12. There is a small restaurant and souvenir shop at the gate. The souvenirs are pretty nifty, but definitely more than you wouldpay elsewhere. Still, if you forgot a gift for grandma, this is a convenient last chance to pick up something nice. We did not buy from the restaurant (packed out own lunch/snacks) so I cannot comment on that.
13. Don’t whip out the camera! For whatever reason, this is a VERY touchy issue here. They have a big problem with people taking pictures and video in public. It is quite serious actually, and there are guards everywhere. The one place that you don’t want any extra attention or trouble is in the airport on your way out! Just use discretion, if you must. 
14. Once you are on the plane, ENJOY! Whip out your travel bag of fun games or toys and thank the Good Lord Almighty that you are officially on your way HOME!!!

Whelp, that’s about all that I can think of... If you have travelled through Congo and have something to add, please feel free to put it in a comment below. And all you who have yet to travel, GODSPEED!!! We will be prayign you through as well. After all, as great as the head of homeland security is, God is the one who builds families... HE is the most important “connection” you could ever have!