Mozambique

Wednesday, March 7th found us in Maputo, in the country of Mozambique on the east African coast. The tour people on the ship, and all the information we had received, had warned us that this was a “developing nation” and to be prepared. Mozambique just won its independence in 1975 and up until the 90s, the country had been racked by civil and tribal wars. The impact of the fighting left Maputo just a shadow of its past glory. The country had been colonized by the Portuguese (Portuguese is still the official language) and there were some beautiful, classic buildings and gardens, but all in such disrepair.

Our tour was on minibuses that held about 25 people. They ran out of busses, and we got on the last one, which had started out being used for a run to the airport. Our “guide” was named Afonso and, though he knew a little English, was not a guide and really didn’t know what exactly to do with us. He was very pleasant though, and we gave him a copy of the tour description so he knew where to take us and told us a little about the places. It was really more of a drive through the area and we had some minor descriptions of the attractions from the info we had received on the ship.

We made a stop at the Central Market which again is in a very shabby, but elegant (1901) building. There are dozens of stalls selling all types of fish, meat, vegetables - plus just about anything else you could need from wood carvings to hair extensions to pots and pans and soaps. They had warned us to be very careful with our valuables and that the market was a haven for pickpockets and thieves. We never felt threatened, but we were surrounded by groups of people, inside and out, trying to sell us every type of souvenir – wood carvings, baskets, cloth – even “genuine” Mount Blanc pens – for $5!

They have tried to develop the area and there is a very deluxe Hotel Polana and, of course, a new casino. Other than the main roads, the others are all dirt and sand and there are people everywhere in the city. One encouraging sign was that we saw a number of schools, some quite large, filled with students – all in pressed shirts and blouses of varied uniform colors and dark pants/skirts and ties. It’s this generation that is the hope of the country.

This was a maiden call for Crystal Cruises, and they probably won’t be coming back on a regular basis. Even though it wasn’t a “highlight” of the trip, I’m glad we got the opportunity to see the country and share a little of their vision for their future. I’ll be following Mozambique’s progress in the news from now on.