Blogs from Northern, Mozambique, Africa - page 4

the things that have happened! i tucked out of mtwara on sunday. saturday night my friend Osman had his wedding party in a strange square roofless courtyard of red brick, big enough to host the entire village inside. the stars and moon and some dusty clouds were the light as a team of young fellows continually fed an old CD player that was hooked up to some very big speakers in the corner. from the far end of the village and up the ridge to the old boma hotel, about two kilometers walk, the Swahili hip-hop came through clear enough. the center of the courtyard was occupied by fifty boys in their mid twenties, dancing away in a very African american brooklyn way. around the edges of this mass some very young children, aged five to ... read more

We finally arrived in Mozambique and I have to say it was well worth the effort! The white beaches, faded Portuguese charm, some of the most pristine corals I've ever seen, rock formations rearing up out of nowhere before melting back into the green expanses or red earth plains made it one of the most scenically dramatic countries yet and that's saying something after the Serengeti! It was also, seemingly, one of the most advanced in terms of male and female equality we'd been to in Africa so far (not that that is saying much to be honest!). It would seem that women here are not expected to be covered from mid bicep to knee and they are allowed some social time. In the other parts of Africa we've visited thus far most of the local ... read more

Hey, Arrived in Mozambique on Monday off the ferry from Malawi. After three days of travelling on the back of trucks and in crammed minibuses with chickens and goats etc. we have arrived in Nampula a bustling third world town. We are finding it very hard to communicate with the locals as we don´t speak Portuguese! From here we are heading to Ilha de Mozambique which is an island off the coast and then going to Bazuruto Archiepalgo for some beach chilling paradisical time. The people seem just as great as the Malawians but a lot prouder and a little richer but not by much! Sorry for boring blog updates but computers are painfully slow and expensive to use but we will definitely upload photos when we get to South Africa. Love Dan and Alex x ... read more

The fish eagle's cry. A peregrine falcon meticulously plucking and eating his breakfast of what appears to be a wader of some description, given the length of avian legs hanging off the branch. The self-important chattering of a giant kingfisher as it takes up its perch on the dead tree near the Lake shore... but only once the falcon has vacated the premises. A bearded scrub-robin hammering the local ant population, with our vocal encouragement. A slender mongoose with his reptilian breakfast hanging out either side of his mouth. The dassies among the rocks, playing peek-a-boo with the visiting humans. Iridescent-coloured skinks scuttling around the paths and rocks, their progress suddenly frozen when a human appears. A briefly-glimpsed otter. The ever-entertaining antics of a troop of vervet monkeys playing in the trees and bushes, their ... read more

Tonight: Nampula Tomorrow: Train to Cuampa, then Lichinga Wednesday: Metangula and Lake Malawi But in the last week or so I've been around Ihla de Mocambique and Nacala. The short story is the Ihla was the original Portoguese capital of the region. As it stands now it is a very run down town with lots of historical ruins. Walking around the streets you can easily see the Portoguese influence and architecture. The old fort is still standing, barely. The original chapel, which is believed to be the oldest European structure in the southern hemisphere is in good shape. One thing that was really strange is that many (most) of the houses were below street level. It was like you would walk down steps into these little shanty towns. Very strange. It was good to spend a ... read more