Harare to Ilha Mozambique

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Leg One: Harare to Blantyre: Bus

Jas covered this trip pretty well but I think I would just like to mention that we had no money left and so no water or food. There were no bathrooms so it was probably a good thing...and even fewer stops. The boarder crossings were the most ridiculous things ever. After waiting about 30 minutes for everyone to cram back on the bus (the aisles were packed with goods), we would drive about 1 minute where everyone would take another 30 minutes to get off the bus. It made the journey especially long. At least the windows opened a bit though.

Blantyre:

Blantyre was our rest stop just to recover after the long bus joruney. Once again we ignored advice about an area being too dangerous and once again we were right that people had just been exagerating. You could see the hostel from the bus station and yet everyone insisted that you should take a cab. Ridiculous.

OUr free day was spent changing money, catching up on interent and lounging by the pool. Oh yeah we also watched the world cup on the big screen. I also managed to get some laundry done and have my first shower in about a week, so life was good.

Leg Two: Blantyre to Limbe: Mini, mini-bus

Just a short ten kilometer jaunt to the city beside Blantyre. The bus was in good order except for the fact that the seats were busted and the bus runner had to hold the door so it would not fall off.

Leg Three: Limbe to Muloza (Malawi, Mozambique boarder): Mini, mini-bus:

The people from the last bus were kind enough to drop us off right at the door of the mini-bus heading for the boarder. AFter some shuffling with our huge packs we all managed to squeeze in and were just happy that we found a shuttle going to where we wanted. Things started off well until about two blocks from where we started the engine just died. After pumping the gas numerous times and getting pushed down a hill toward a round-a-bout, the engine finally managed to start. We were sure that it would die again but somehow the driver managed to keep it running by constantly reving the engine. Somehow we made it to the boarder where we were attacked by bike taxis all wanting to take us the few kilometers to the other side. After about the 50th time of me telling them we had no money, they finally turned back...Jas and I were sure they were going to follow us the entire way and then try and charge us for being our tour guides.

Leg Four: Milanje (the boarder town in Mozambique) to Mocuba: back of a truck.

About half a kilometer outside of Milanje (it was a longer walk than we expected...maybe we should have taken the bikes) a truck pulled up saying he was going to Mocuba. Awesome. Bonus: it was cheap. After getting ripped off by money changers (it was my fault....almost 40 dollars worth and at least I gave someone a good night) we transferred to another truck where we waited a good two hours for it to fill up more. While only 200 kms away the ride took well over four hours but it was one of the best experiences of the trip and easily the best way to travel:

Travelling through the jungle landscape with the odd mountain portruding toward the sky, with small and few villages popping up here and there, and kids waving to you as you passed was an awesome experience. It got me over the fact that I had just been ripped off at least.

The back of the truck fills and empties with people from little grass hut villages having as few as 10 people to as many as two rugby teams worth. That combined with the 2000 heads of cabbage (at least), bikes, luggage, our luggage and various other things makes for a pretty tight fit. For about one hour I was sitting on the fingernail wide rail with my legs barely inside and only room for one of my hands on the rail to hold myself in. The driver does not slow down so every time we went over a bump (and there were many), or turned a corner I caught a glimpse of death just over my left shoulder waiting to catch me. Luckily it was only for an hour of the trip. Finally we came across Mocuba. I never really thought that I would see electricity or buildings or paved roads again, and the people were kind enough to drop us off at a nice, cheap hotel.

Leg Five: Mocuba to Nampula: Bus

Woke up at 3:30am to go to where a bus might be leaving from. Turns out there was one and after about two hours waiting for it to fill up we were finally on our way to Nampula. THe trip was uneventful except for when, about an hour out of a town where we hap stopped for 20 minute, the bus driver tried to turn back. Apparently he had forgot some important papers. Luckily he decided that the papers were not worth the passengers rioting and so continued on. Jas and I went through all of the different and difficult sleeping positions such as: the forward lean, the neck sway, and the window bounce.

Leg Six: Nampula to just outside Ihla Mozambique: Mini-bus

I am still not sure how people around the world manage to fit in as many passengers as they do but once again we were travelling with what was the equivalent of two rugby teams in a bus not big enough for one. AFter the two hours or so of waiting for it to fill up (they dont leave until it is FULL) we were on our way. Aside from the fact that my bum went knumb as soon as we left the station, it was a pleasant ride, well as pleasant as one could expect anyway.

Leg Seven: Just outside Ihla Mozambique to Ihla Mozambique: Truck

Just on the other side of the bridge we had to switch to a smaller vehicle to that we could get across. Somehow the company managed to fit all of our gear and the other passengers gear into the box of the truck. We then had to fight and squeeze and find somewhere to hold on to. At one point I barely had my feet on the bumper, while holding onto the back rail. Apparently this was not safe though and they insisted I sit backwards with barely half my cheek on some luggage sticking above the box and with some rather large woman leaning against me. It was all I could do to hold on and stay in the back of the truck. I had a brief glimpse of what death must be like, but at least this time the roads were paved.

Ihla Mozambique:

Well worth the wait. The place, like lonely-planet says, is half ghost town, half community and being the only tourists here, we get quite a bit of attention. So while the beaches are not as nice, the place itself has a better feel than most of the islands we have been to. We have taken quite a bit of time to do nothing and just recover from the hellish journey out here but soon we will be heading north to more beaches and more isolated places. I love the landscape here and I love the people (moz), and it probably has the fewest tourists of any place I have been to thus far.

Once again no photos. Will have to do an update just for photos one of these days.

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