Mozambique – New Years
Happy New Years! I spent 2 wonderful weeks in northern Mozambique over the holidays. I went with a group of volunteers (1 honorary member) and we first headed to Mozambique Island( Ilha de Mocambique). This is an old Portuguese settlement and was once a very prosperous shipping port in its hey-day during the 16th to the 19th centuries. It was also the capital of Portuguese East Africa. However, after the capital was moved to Maputo at the end of the 19th century, the Portuguese moved out and there has been no new development on the island. Today the old city center ‘Stone Town’, on the northern part of the island, is a ghost town - full of beautiful but dilapidated buildings that were once a sign of the affluence of the island but are now in ruins. The streets are clean and kept but there is hardly any commercial activity, or even residences in this area. Most of the locals live on the southern end of the island in very simple homes. I am curious on the property rights of the abandoned buildings in Stone Town as these buildings are beautiful. A few of these buildings have been renovated and are now guest houses or restaurants, but only a few. The place we stayed in was just recently completed and was really nice-high ceilings, big windows, a porch in the back and we had access to a kitchen for self catering. One evening we moved the kitchen table out onto the porch and enjoyed eating our meal in the breezy and beautiful night. I imagine this place will start to come alive in the next few years as tourism picks up again in Mozambique and investment returns to the island. But we enjoyed the quietness and it was fun exploring all the empty streets while wondering what this place was like 200-300 years ago.
Then we headed up to Pemba – where I did my 1st salt water dive! I took my PADI course in Lake Malawi with Aqua Africa. I was able to split the course over 2 weekends and finished that weekend before Christmas. Andy and Dusty gave me great instruction and I felt very comfortable in the open sea. It was such an incredible experience to be under water breathing and seeing the amazing marine world. I think I like diving
Then it was off to the Quirimbas Archipelego to the island of Ibo. In the 18th century Ibo was a bustling port for the slave trade and the 2nd most important town in Mozambique, after Ilha de Mocambique. It is a very interesting place to explore, and much like Ilha de Mocambique, the island has been abandoned long ago and is now a ghost town of dilapidated buildings. We had to take a little sail boat called a ‘dhow’ to the island. This boat is just a small wooden boat with a mast made of knobby long skinny log and a single sail made of sewn together pieces of canvas. And when we ran aground, the guys took out these long poles and poled us back into deeper waters. We had arrived a bit late to the village/port of Tandanhangui. The tide was beginning to go out, so the trip to Ibo took about 3 hours, which we were told normally takes 2 hrs. But we had a big full moon to guide us towards the island - it was such a great way to arrive! The island proved to be another interesting place to explore the empty streets of a deserted trading town.
After 3 days we were off on a dhow to take us back to the mainland where we started our 2 day drive back to Blantyre. The northern road we took back was tricky and we almost did not make it through one section as the road disappeared into a big wide and deep mud puddle/lake. But with the persistence of our captain Roger, he got the car through…after many attempts and the last one proving to be successful! Except we lost the roof rack, but without much damage to the car or the rack we were able to put it back on and continued on through the wilds of northern Mozambique. Once we arrived in Blantyre we had a wonderful lunch - I was ready for some good vegetables as we did not come across many during our trip. I was surprised by the lack of vegetables and fruit in Mozambique and it gave me a new appreciation for the selection offered Malawi- because you can always find tomatoes and onions in Malawi! Later that afternoon, I caught a night bus to take me up to Mzuzu, since I needed to get back to work the following day.
The northern region of Mozambique was such a fun and interesting place to explore. I felt so very lucky to have been able to see this area before tourism pick up again and these place become overrun with tourist.
Happy New Year!
Church on Ilha de Mozambique:
Streets of Ilha de Mozambique:
View through one of the abandoned buildings:
Beach view from our camp site in Pemba:
Diving in Pemba:
Catching our ride in a dhow to Ibo:
View from the old fort on Ibo:
Low tide:
I will have to add these photos later.....
As the sign shows, you need to be very careful on which beach you choose to swim:
Kids on Ibo:
The 'port' back on the mainland:
Happy New Years! I spent 2 wonderful weeks in northern Mozambique over the holidays. I went with a group of volunteers (1 honorary member) and we first headed to Mozambique Island( Ilha de Mocambique). This is an old Portuguese settlement and was once a very prosperous shipping port in its hey-day during the 16th to the 19th centuries. It was also the capital of Portuguese East Africa. However, after the capital was moved to Maputo at the end of the 19th century, the Portuguese moved out and there has been no new development on the island. Today the old city center ‘Stone Town’, on the northern part of the island, is a ghost town - full of beautiful but dilapidated buildings that were once a sign of the affluence of the island but are now in ruins. The streets are clean and kept but there is hardly any commercial activity, or even residences in this area. Most of the locals live on the southern end of the island in very simple homes. I am curious on the property rights of the abandoned buildings in Stone Town as these buildings are beautiful. A few of these buildings have been renovated and are now guest houses or restaurants, but only a few. The place we stayed in was just recently completed and was really nice-high ceilings, big windows, a porch in the back and we had access to a kitchen for self catering. One evening we moved the kitchen table out onto the porch and enjoyed eating our meal in the breezy and beautiful night. I imagine this place will start to come alive in the next few years as tourism picks up again in Mozambique and investment returns to the island. But we enjoyed the quietness and it was fun exploring all the empty streets while wondering what this place was like 200-300 years ago.
Then we headed up to Pemba – where I did my 1st salt water dive! I took my PADI course in Lake Malawi with Aqua Africa. I was able to split the course over 2 weekends and finished that weekend before Christmas. Andy and Dusty gave me great instruction and I felt very comfortable in the open sea. It was such an incredible experience to be under water breathing and seeing the amazing marine world. I think I like diving
Then it was off to the Quirimbas Archipelego to the island of Ibo. In the 18th century Ibo was a bustling port for the slave trade and the 2nd most important town in Mozambique, after Ilha de Mocambique. It is a very interesting place to explore, and much like Ilha de Mocambique, the island has been abandoned long ago and is now a ghost town of dilapidated buildings. We had to take a little sail boat called a ‘dhow’ to the island. This boat is just a small wooden boat with a mast made of knobby long skinny log and a single sail made of sewn together pieces of canvas. And when we ran aground, the guys took out these long poles and poled us back into deeper waters. We had arrived a bit late to the village/port of Tandanhangui. The tide was beginning to go out, so the trip to Ibo took about 3 hours, which we were told normally takes 2 hrs. But we had a big full moon to guide us towards the island - it was such a great way to arrive! The island proved to be another interesting place to explore the empty streets of a deserted trading town.
After 3 days we were off on a dhow to take us back to the mainland where we started our 2 day drive back to Blantyre. The northern road we took back was tricky and we almost did not make it through one section as the road disappeared into a big wide and deep mud puddle/lake. But with the persistence of our captain Roger, he got the car through…after many attempts and the last one proving to be successful! Except we lost the roof rack, but without much damage to the car or the rack we were able to put it back on and continued on through the wilds of northern Mozambique. Once we arrived in Blantyre we had a wonderful lunch - I was ready for some good vegetables as we did not come across many during our trip. I was surprised by the lack of vegetables and fruit in Mozambique and it gave me a new appreciation for the selection offered Malawi- because you can always find tomatoes and onions in Malawi! Later that afternoon, I caught a night bus to take me up to Mzuzu, since I needed to get back to work the following day.
The northern region of Mozambique was such a fun and interesting place to explore. I felt so very lucky to have been able to see this area before tourism pick up again and these place become overrun with tourist.
Happy New Year!
Church on Ilha de Mozambique:
Streets of Ilha de Mozambique:
View through one of the abandoned buildings:
Beach view from our camp site in Pemba:
Diving in Pemba:
Catching our ride in a dhow to Ibo:
View from the old fort on Ibo:
Low tide:
I will have to add these photos later.....
As the sign shows, you need to be very careful on which beach you choose to swim:
Kids on Ibo:
The 'port' back on the mainland:
