
There are many challenges to be met while working in such context:
1. on one side there is all the history of unbalanced and unfair political and economical relations among actors from both continents;
2. from another perspective, there are the different expectations, perceptions, stereotypes and prejudices that affect the way many Africans see Europe, European Institutions and Europeans, and the contrary as well - the way Europeans see Africa. Most of times, these expectations, perceptions, stereotypes and prejudices do not allows us to fully comprehend the reality once that both Africa and Europe are very diverse continents and any country in each of this continents also encompasses huge social, economical and political diversity when it comes to the peoples;
3. No matter how much i question and how much open i am to look at the realities of Africa and try to understand them, i must recognize that i will always be influenced by my background as a middle class, white, man, graduated in Economics, youth worker, portuguese, european non formal educator, etc... So any attempt to understand things in Guinea Bissau, like in any other place in the world, needs to accept this fact and try to reduce its influence in my capacity to analyze and comprehend realities around there.


In the capital, electricity supply is cut off in the end of the afternoon and generators get in action everywhere. Still it is possible to see an amazing sky full of stars every night!
Walking in the night can become dangerous due to the many holes in the roads and sidewalks which can become an unpleasant surprise to the distracted walker. During the day, walking in the streets of Bissau centre is an amazing experience with the hot sun rays falling on your head and shoulders, the soft thin dust getting impregnated in each little pore, the open air improvised shops, the simple friendly eyes of the locals, the appearance of a village in each corner, the colors, the scents... So different and yet so familiar to me. Bissau is full of decrepit old colonial style buildings. A living remembrance of other times - constantly questioning us about what is was? What it could have been? how history could have told another story if other ways of interaction among peoples would have already been in place.
Bissau impacts us by its rawness, savage atmosphere but as well by it's peoples of immense sympathy, openness, solidarity, simplicity, joyfulness, etc, etc. Here we cannot talk about inclusion of nature in the city environment simply because nature doesn't allow us to forget that we are a part of it.
Bissau is a crossroad, an obligatory passage to those who transit from the airport to the countryside, those who lay their eyes on the port on any afternoon sunset and dream with the amazing Bijagós Archipelago or those who try to cross Bissau driving between Senegal and Guinea Conacri which can take couple of days or weeks depending on the weather conditions.

To be continued...