Along the northern bank of the Catumbela River, a handful of Portuguese colonial buildings from the late 19th and early 20th centuries survive in varying states of repair. These warehouses and trading houses date from the rubber-boom era, when Catumbela briefly flourished as the staging post for inland trade routes to Bailundo and Bié. The streetscape is modest but atmospheric, especially in the golden late-afternoon light that bounces off the river.
Colonial Riverfront
A story
In 1650, Portuguese administrators seriously debated moving the provincial capital from Benguela to Catumbela, attracted by its better water supply and cooler river breezes. The proposal was shelved, but it explains why Catumbela's colonial-era buildings are more substantial than a town of its size would normally justify.