Mars said nostalgically, "We had barely been happy for a day before we discovered the enormous gulf between reality and imagination. Although we had been assigned to Benguela City, it was not the already well-developed urban district of Benguela at the time."
"It was a new district being built by Benguela City—Falta New District. When we arrived in Falta New District, we were dumbfounded. Apart from sand, dirt, and piles of construction materials hauled over from Benguela's old district, there was nothing in the entire Falta New District."
"Our hearts sank halfway to the bottom. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought we'd been exiled!"
In truth, when Anton and Mars first arrived in Falta New District, it was indeed little different from exile. Though they had come from villages in central East Africa, Salzburg Province was a renowned land of fish and rice in East Africa.
Even its rural areas could be called scenic and rich in produce, while Falta New District had only just been approved for construction at the time, and its conditions could only be described as extremely harsh.
Anton said, "But no one could have imagined that in just a few short years, Falta New District would develop to this extent. Perhaps Benguela City can rely on Falta New District to reclaim its position as the second city on the West Coast!"
Benguela had once been East Africa's second-largest port city on the West Coast. However, with the rise of Cabinda and Lobito, it had fallen to fourth place, behind Luanda, Cabinda, and Lobito. Fifth was Port of Alexandria.
The relationship between Lobito City and Benguela City was similar to that between Cabinda and Luanda. Lobito and Cabinda focused on the economy, while Benguela and Luanda emphasized politics and the military.
East Africa was