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Published: March 24th 2010
Bilene, Mozambique
The beach at Hotel LagunaMozambique
Welcome To Mozambique Where You’ll Find The Best Prawns........
…..so says the sign that welcomes us as we enter Mozambique. I can’t wait!!!!
The main attractions of Mozambique are the capital,
Maputo, and some of the beaches along the coast. We are going to the coastal resort of
Lake Bilene. It’s also of interest to me because I nearly took a job in Mozambique 30 years ago - we’re only here for a few days but it’ll be interesting to get an impression of what I missed out on!
One of the guide books reassures us that “most of the landmines have been cleared” - I’m not going to be disappearing behind a bush for a pee when the truck stops!
The Road To Paradise Is Not An Easy One
The drive from the South African border up to the
Laguna campsite on
Lake Bilene takes a long time. We get badly stuck in traffic in
Maputo and get stopped a couple of times at road blocks. By the time we turn off the main road into what appears to be a resort area it has been dark for some time.
We make a short stop to pick up some firewood and
Vegas, who is going to be helping us while we are in the area. I know we are not too far from the campsite when I spot a sign saying “Paradise 28km”. Unfortunately it’s also at this point that the road deteriorates even further and we are thrown about the bus for the last few kilometres until we eventually reach the
Laguna campsite.
We have the campsite to ourselves, we have the beach to ourselves, we seem to be only sharing the lake with a few goats. Justin tells us that during South African
School holidays a lot of South Africans come up here and the place can be busy but at the moment Mozambique is relatively “undiscovered” and we have the beach to ourselves. The lake is open to the sea at some times of the year but while we are there there is a sandbank separating the lake from the
Indian Ocean.
Some of us hire a boat to cross the lake so we can go and see the Indian Ocean. Again we are the only people on the beach - no holidaymakers,
Lake Bilene, Mozambique
We have the beach to ourselves no sunbeds, no beach umbrellas, no donkey rides and no cold beers. The Indian Ocean is warm! - about 25 degrees - even I manage to get into the sea. The current and waves are very strong where we are though and I have a couple of “Neil Kinnock” moments when the ocean knocks me about and I end up taking more of a swim than I’d originally intended to!
Maputo - Friday Night Is Party Night
Maputo is the capital of
Mozambique. ·The highlight of the city centre for me is the old railway station designed by Eiffel {
of Eiffel Tower fame} and built by the Portuguese in 1903. Despite having 11 platforms it now only has 2 trains per week. It still has all of its original features and while we were there work was being done to decorate it. The waiting room has survived all the changes in Mozambique and looks like something from a different age.
We are staying on the outskirts of
Maputo on the beach at the
Hotel Costa Do Sol. It’s far more interesting than staying at one of the big hotels in the city in that,
The Old Railway Station At Maputo
Only two trains a week and here comes one of them! like a lot of other budget hotels in Africa, it has “character” and you never know which of its advertised facilities will be working. Three of us share a room with 8 beds in; we have two shower attachments in the bathroom, only one which delivers warm water; and we have a sink which will only deliver scalding hot water.
Our hotel is opposite a small car park for the beach. It seems that the way people party on a Friday Night in Mozambique is to drive their 4WDs to this car park, open all the doors and play music as loud as they can with as much bass as possible and party. Some of it even makes the walls of the hotel vibrate! We are told to expect this to go on until about 3a.m. Fortunately our room is on the opposite side of the hotel from the car park and we don’t get the full blast of this - the noise from the air conditioning {
we have the room where the air conditioning works} also helps drown out the noise from the party.
….And a Football Shirt!!
The next morning a new party has
Maputo
The beach at Costa do Sol started on the beach {
or maybe last night’s party hasn’t finished}. We finish off our stay in Mozambique with a visit to the market in Maputo. The speciality here {
apart from the prawns, of course} is cashew nuts which are incredibly cheap and we all stock up for the rest of the trip. I also strike lucky because I find a “geezer” who manages to supply me with a football shirt for a local team,
Costa Do Sol, in my size (XXL of course).
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