One of the coolest things about the Congo River along the stretch separates Kinshasa from it's sister city, Brazzaville (The Republic of the Congo), is it's many sand bars. Because the river is so wide, these little islands can sometimes be a mile long, and they make excellent places to spend the day if you can rent a boat and a savvy captain. We found ourselves sharing this particular sand bar with a group of young boys whose dugout canoe had just enough room to take three people at a time for a little ride up and down the river. It was a good way for them to make a extra few bucks and an incredibly peaceful way for us to enjoy the river.