I returned to Luanda, Angola, to film a docuseries featuring Queen Nzingha, based on my book She Took Justice. Luanda, the capital, had temperatures hovering around 75 degrees Fahrenheit. It was wintertime, with hazy skies, causing some Angolans to wear winter coats. But music blasted on the Avenue Murtala Mohammed that runs down the peninsula Ilha do Cabo. Half of Luanda’s nearly nine million population are under 30-years old.

This coastal metropolis hums with activity, hustling street merchants selling everything from golf shirts to cookies. The people are friendly. But I heeded hotel precautions about thieves snatching cell phones and cameras. Kwanza is the national currency; one dollar is worth about 430 Kwanzas. A long hungry day in search of Kwanzas taught me to hoard cash because many ATMs and restaurants do not take international cards. Hotel food is Portuguese-influenced.

Angola is a business destination, with vast resources of gold, platinum, diamonds and oil. Tankers formed a convoy across the ocean horizon. Luanda’s newest area, Talatona, boasts high-rise condominiums and great wealth. Angola has museums, canyons, wildlife, galleries and a growing need for a tourism infrastructure. No signs direct visitors to the imposing bronze Queen Nzingha statue. A new National Archive contains historical treasures.

History is everywhere. We know “20 and odd” Africans arrived in Fort Comfort, Virginia, in 1619. But, from where? The answer is Angola. African history has many royal figures. Kings and queens exist in Africa today. However, Queen Nzingha, the warrior, diplomat, military strategist fought oppression in the 1600s. Her remarkably complex life inspires me, and once known, will inspire others. The beautiful Lesliana Pereira, former Miss Angola, played the Queen in the international film Njinga: Queen of Angola. We spoke of history and strengthening bonds with African Americans, having Queen Nzingha as our bridge.

During my visit, former Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, 79, died in Spain, after a long illness. He had held office for 38 years. The country’s current President Joao Lourenco was seeking re-election. Lourenco is only the country’s third President, after it gained independence in 1975 from Portugal. Many said it was a complicated time of mourning and reflection, with young people pressing forward, seeking opportunities as Angola looks past a history of colonialism, civil war, natural disasters, and geo-politics to her rightful place on the world stage. I wondered what Queen Nzingha would have thought.

In a gold-and-blue dress made for me locally, I climbed the steep stone stairs to the National Slavery Museum, a 17th century two-story house overlooking the bay, once owned by a Portuguese slave-trader. I felt emotions were still trapped within those walls. Later, walking the cobble-stone Rua Rainha Jinga, I thought of the merchants selling shackled women, men and children on the beachfront Marginale, now sprinkled with galleries and restaurants. The Angolan sunset was a golden bronze. Fishing boats returned to shore. I was invited to a party. In the end, filming was completed. It was an amazing but complicated journey.

This story was originally published July 28, 2022 9:00 AM.