The capital cities of the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo ~ Brazzaville and Kinshasa respectively ~ are the two closest capital cities in the world by proximity, being separated by the area of the Congo River known as Pool Malebo and connected by ferry. Kinshasa was originally called Leopoldville after King Leopold II of Belgium who ran the country like a personal fiefdom and it was founded as a trading post being the home to many fishing communities on the Congo. It was renamed Kinshasa in 1966 and today is home to just over ten million people.

Whilst to an outsider is may look like a modern city, in reality, it was badly damaged by the years of conflict and many buildings are still in a state of disrepair and abandoned. The city centre is the only place with a reliable electricity and water supply with outlying areas subject to frequent power outages and breakdown of water supplies. Many of these outer areas of Kinshasa don't have even have paved roads, just dirt tracks.

We like this video as it shows the city from the perspective of one of its proud inhabitants rather from an outsider's viewpoint. Despite this optimistic outlook, Kinshasa is a dangerous place with 4 out of every 100 people being murdered and there are reports that street children are shot dead by the police for relatively minor offences. Make a virtual landing at Kinshasa airport here and explore the city using our interactive map of Kinshasa below.

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