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Published: November 26th 2007
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The Mighty Zambesi
Tom at the Zambesi River in Tete, Mozambique I like to spend some time in Mozambique
The sunny sky is aqua blue
And all the couples dancing cheek to cheek.
It's very nice to stay a week or two. (Bob Dylan on the album Desire)
Well my dear friends, Tom and I have spent a week (or two) in Mozambique and I am glad to say Bob Dylan, the greatest living American, has got it right, at least in part.
It is hard to know where to start. We did some of the most amazing deep sea diving off Tofo Beach and swam with dolphins and saw humpback whales. We saw honeycomb moray eels and some amazingly beautiful fish. We saw lion fish, octopus and giant manta rays and many, many more. Tom and I did three dives together which was a wonderful experience to share and I will never, ever forget it. We have spent most of the last week on Tofo Beach which is relaxed and friendly and home to some beautiful and rare sea life.
The roads here are a jumble of good roads which allow fast driving for a 100 or so km then are full of potholes for the next 100
Dive Boat
Our dive boat about to venture into the waves. and slow you down to a crawl.
Yesterday we moved on to the Mozambiquan capital of Maputo which although somewhat dirty and crumbly has a pleasant mediterranean atmosphere and some interesting art deco buildings. It's like a cross between Miami, Tooting and Mexico. It is quite multicultural with Indians, South Africans of various hues, Macao Chinese and a mix of Africans. The populace seem very proud of their independence and although they speak Portuguese as the main language, they do not appear to have forgotten the horrors perpetrated on them by the Portuguese when they were fighting for their independence. In the early years of independence the government looked to the Communist bloc for support and this is reflected in the names of many of Maputo's main streets.
I wonder if the Mozambiquan police learned their style from the Portuguese Salazar oppressive fascist dictatorship which treated them so badly. I wonder this because, on a more negative note, we came up against some Mozambiquan police who were the nastiest, rudest, most aggressive and blatantly corrupt police that I have ever met in 40+ years of travelling in over 40 different countries. We arrived on our second day in
Maputo Man
Kevin (not the new Australian prime minister) on top of the Museum of the Revolution in Maputo. Mozambique in the town of Chimoio in the north. It is a fairly small town and a travel junction for people going south or going to Zimbabwe. We got down from the bus after a particularly harrowing journey of 6 hours in a crowded, crowded bus so were tired and keen to find a place to stay and put down our bags. We were stopped by two policeman who demanded our documents. (It is the law in Mozambique that everyone carry identification.) We produced our passports with current visas and the one policeman asked us what we had in our backpacks. We explained and he then demanded to see a receipt for Tom's guitar which he has had since he left Australia in February and which is clearly used and loved. He kept my passport while doing this to add to the pressure. When Tom explained he no longer had a receipt the policeman said he was going to arrest him and charge him but would not explain why. He was clearly looking for a bribe. He then asked us what our jobs were and we both explained we were schoolteachers. I have my fairly long beard in a plait
Tofo Beach
Wonderful waves. Wonderful sealife to keep it tidy and manageable and he accused me of looking like a 'bandido' and said I was a bad man. He demanded that I unplait my beard which I did to placate him. He then said he was going to charge Tom. At this point we said, 'OK let's go to the police station' and he then said he would come and arrest us later at our accommodation (apparently we had called his bluff) and we went on our way with some anger and relief.
Unfortunately, the story does not end here. After booking into our accommodation and getting refreshed we went back to the bus station to check out our bus for the next morning departure. Imagine our chagrin to find another policeman stopping us and demanding our documents. We were rather ragged by now and told him we had already been through this nonsense only an hour previously. We walked away. A big mistake. This policeman became very angry. He grabbed Tom. I got my phone out and pretended to phone the Australian consul. He demanded I stop. He summoned assistance and two gun toting officers arrived. We were shouted at, had fingers wagged at
us and told in no uncertain terms that we were out of order.
It seems the game is that if you do not have your documents they demand a bribe. If you do have your documents they try to frighten you into thinking you have done something wrong so you offer them a bribe. I regard Chimoio as the arsehole of Mozambique and my advice to any traveller is give it a very wide berth. Having said that we got stopped and checked in Maputo today by three police who were formal but polite. Those of us who live in true liberal democracies where the right of law prevails and where police are accountable are very, very fortunate.
Now I have had my whinge I will return to my wonderful holiday in Mozambique. The people here are a little like the Cubans with a sense of rhythm and passion which comes through in the generally enthusiastic approach to life. The economy is on the up and there is a sense of optimism. It is quite unlike any of my preconceived ideas or images of Africa. There are lovely pavement cafes and good cheap food served with a smile
Relics of Marxism
Most of the main streets of Maputo are named after famous Communist leaders. Quaint but passe. and with efficiency.
In the next couple of days we are heading to Richard E Grants homeland of Swaziland and then on to South Africa where we have arranged a hire car in Durban to explore the Wild Coast, ( formerly I believe referred to as Transkei) and we hope to reach Cape Town around the 17th December. I will keep you posted and thanks for all the comments and messages.
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Hey Kev. your blogging is improving, you seem to have got the hang of it. Glad to hear your having such a great time. We both miss you lots. Unplait that beard. Sion and Niki xxx