Survived the ESP but told I will be spending a lot of time in Angola. Is it safe there?
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Ex wife was your husband British?
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Safe in the camps, use your best judgement in Luanda. Boring as hell in your off time. Yes things do take hell of a lot longer to do. I love the people, they're real. If you've never been check your expectations at the Houston Express door and realize that you're going to be okay and one day you'll look back with fond memories of the friends you've made while forgetting all the company and all other non-sense that drove you crazy.
I would go back on a rotational assignment in a hart beat.
You must be one of those whinos that spend your whole SASBU 3yr assignment bitching about how things should be more like DWEP. Or Thailand. Or whatever. And never actually doing anything besides collecting premium and a planning your next R&R.
Premiums and alloawances make up for more than any inconvenience
When buying meat for your BBQ cookouts, know where you buy your fresh meats. Sometimes beef is scare or you prefer to buy lamb meat. Be careful they don't sell you dog instead.
Safe unless you wander too far off the beaten path. Then it could be deadly. Pretty much like one of the worst places in Houston, which is pretty bad. Good analogy, @HdinxKT-2ske.
Safer than most areas of Houston or New Orleans.
No imminent danger but you must be aware of your surroundings. Cabinda, Malongo or Luanda? Things may deteriorate some with the low oil prices contributing to the Country's lack of money and food for the locals. I have been in Malongo for a while and the Camp is safe but traveling outside of Malomgo, you should exercise caution. Luanda has a lot of crime, mostly robberies against persons. Good luck.
If you don't mind living in a country with elk camp level medical care, surrounded by a population of people foaming at the mouth with every named disease and many unnamed diseases, and being sponsored by a company who could give a $hit less about your health or the health and well being of your family, and you don't mind taking malarone every day, and don't mind working with the most incompetent national workforce i have ever ran across in my life, and you don't mind a 3 hour round trip commute to the office you will love the kind, ignorant folks in Angola. Don't get me wrong...there are some great folks in Luanda. I only met a couple during my years there. If you don't drink, i would recommend starting so that you can convince your sober self it's worth it.
Spent 3 years in Luanda with my wife and kids up until 2014....expensive and not a ton of things to do but generally safe if you use common sense and follow certain precautions.....security gives you a good overview.....i think parts of Houston and NOLA are more dangerous
U.S. Embassy Luanda, Angola
Security Message: Developing Crime Trends
April 29, 2016
The U.S. Embassy informs U.S. citizens in Angola that crime continues to be a serious problem in Luanda
For further information:
· See the State Department's travel website for the Worldwide Caution, Travel Warnings, Travel Alerts, and Country Specific Information for Angola.
I travelled there often when I worked for SASBU and I would say it is a much safer place than a lot of other locations Chevron can send you to. Luanda was very expensive but you will be paid living allowances and premium. I walked freely on the streets with other colleagues, went out to restaurants and beaches, and shopping places, etc. Angolans are inherently nice people. Of course there are bad people and you can avoid them by not being at the wrong place at the wrong time.
And you have the 60% salary premium to boot.
I enjoyed my 4.5 years in Malongo very much, good luck to you!!
It is safe. Where in Angola will you be working? Luanda can be treacherous if you are not careful, but as long as you are observant, you should be fine.
If you are in Soyo, it is very safe. It is also incredibly boring, which contributes to it's safety.
If you are in Malongo, it is very similar to Soyo.
Work does not get done quickly here, but it is not just do to people who do not work hard. There is a ton of bureaucracy to wade through, and depending on where you are, vendors are not anxious to help because they do not get paid on a regular basis. How hard would you work if you did not get paid?
some people think it's hard to find hard working people there so work doesn't get done very fast.
Why is it tough to work ?
Yes. It is safe and peaceful. Tough place to work, but safe.