lisbonchick

We got offered the jobs back in December so it has seemed like a long wait to get here. We finally landed on the 2nd August and now it was time to start getting settled. It is funny how there is so much excitement and stress beforehand, so much to do, so much preparation and then there is the slump where you are finally here and reality hits… Mozambique was particularly challenging with the paperwork required. It took us 7 months to get it all done and to get the visas which we did a few days before we were due to get on the plane. We were warmly welcomed in Maputo and taken good care of, great start.

Our container leaving Phuket!

The first few days were spent shopping, eating (a lot! the food is pretty good here), sightseeing and getting to know the place. This is Dhow, a beautiful place with amazing sunsets and some furniture made of old ammunition left from the war.

The old train station built between 1908 and 1916 is truly beautiful and well worth a visit both inside and out. I can’t find any information on where the trains go so I guess we won’t be going anywhere by train soon…

When I first came to Mozambique in 1993, I went to a lovely stretch of beach just outside Maputo and I have fond memories of swimming in the sea there. Even though the weather wasn’t great, we decided to go to Macaneta beach, about 40 minutes away. It is a wild stretch of beach with large waves and no people although apparently it can get very busy once the summer arrives.

We also explored a local fisherman’s village near our house where you can buy fish and seafood on the street and have it cooked in very rustic shacks overlooking the sea. A lively place with great atmosphere and no electricity, got pretty dark and everyone was eating by the light of their phones!

This was the table, when I say rustic, I mean rustic!

We had a long weekend, so what better way to explore than to go down to Ponta do Ouro. The closest beach to Maputo that is decent and has scuba diving. Diving here is not like Thailand! The water is cold and we had to wear 5mm wetsuits which made us all look totally ridiculous. The best bit is that you get taken out on a speed boat, jumping over the waves and holding on for dear life. Coming back in is even more hairy, as you approach the beach, the boat’s engine is revved to the max and you go flying up the beach onto the sand. They do tell you to hold on tight…

There’s a peacock outside my window!! Apparently they come over from the Portuguese International School next door. This seems to be his favourite perch. And, an owl outside my room! And a monkey outside my house!

One of the benefits from living here is the close proximity to South Africa’s Kruger National Park, one of the largest game reserves in Africa, covering an area of 20,000 km². It is about 2.5 hours drive away although the border crossing can prove to be challenging. It took us 3 hours to make it across, not great, but apparently it is not always this bad. Kruger has a large number of animals and we were impressed with what we saw. However, we missed the wilderness that we encountered in the Tanzanian parks. Kruger is very organised. Paved roads, service stations, petrol, restaurants, souvenir shops, fenced campsites… Not my kind of thing but the animals were great. We saw pretty much everything apart from leopards and rhinos.

We had a mid term break in October and some time to explore Mozambique. We were recommended to go north to Tofu beach, next to the town of Inhambane. Tofu is a cute, small village with a few restaurants and places to stay. The beach is wild and empty – there’s a theme here! We didn’t know that this is where most of the teachers, parents and students go to during the October break so there were plenty of people to bump into.

Inhambane is a sleepy town of about 80,000 people and is described as one of the prettiest towns in Mozambique. It was indeed very nice with lots of old buildings and large tree lined avenues. It has a small museum and an old church and remnants of old colonialism. We heard there was a statue of Vasco da Gama in the main square so we set off to find this old relic. We finally found him in a scrap yard down a back street. Funniest thing ever!! Apparently nobody wants him but not quite sure what to do with him, he has been relegated to some back year where is regularly topples over! The town has a long pier where you get beautiful views of the city and the bay and a decent local market with much better prices that you get in Tofu beach.

The area around Tofu is very beautiful with long, wild, sweeping beaches. Less developed than Tofu and with a popular kite surfing area, this felt like a special place. Not much there, a few places to stay and a great restaurant – the Green Turtle. On the way there, we stopped at a raised, wooden mangrove walk which took us to some fishermen and some interesting shadows under the pier.

And so, we come to an end of our first 3 months here! Lots more to explore and learn in this beautiful place. It has its challenges and moving is not easy but we are finally settling in. We are lucky to be able to explore and to have such easy access to beautiful places in and around Mozambique. I like Maputo and it has much to offer. There is a vibrant art culture here and we have seen some great music such as Bongeziwe Mabandla, from South Africa. Highly recommend having a listen to his latest album reviewed here in The Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/apr/28/bongeziwe-mabandla-amaxesha-review. See if you can spot Geoff!

Currently, there is a dance festival, Kikani, taking place. There are many interesting shows at affordable prices. The venues are simple and intimate and it is a good way to meet other people outside of school. Another great show that is currently on tour, opened the festival last night, very impressive performance. Here is a short video: https://fb.watch/om0rIVbWDV/ for those who like modern dance, Bantu de Victor Pontes from Portugal, a collaboration between Portugal and Mozambique.

To finish off, here is a dung beetle doing its thing, some beautiful waterfalls in Nelspruit in South Africa and a candelabra tree.

We left Thailand behind after a full seven years. What a ride that was! So much happened in that time. We learnt to scuba dive, went on many adventures, I finished another masters, did teacher training, set up a counselling practice. We lived in Bangkok and Phuket, fostered many cats, fell in love with Misty dog, mourned Misty and a few cats passing…. Watched countless sunsets and swam in warm oceans, walked through jungles and went on many boat journeys. It was sad to leave but it was time. Time for a new adventure and a new job, time to meet new people and explore new places. Thailand will always be in our hearts and we will forever cherish those memories. But, before Mozambique, it was time for yet another European summer. As you know, my blogs are more about documenting things with photos, so here it goes!

We finally made it to Edinburgh to see where Joshua and Sandra are living. Edinburgh is such a beautiful city but after Thailand it was rather chilly and we had to stock up on warm clothing which oddly has come in handy in Maputo! Our walkabouts through the city took us to many places… Their flat is by a lovely canal and I found some graffiti, of course! Edinburgh Castle is visible from many parts of the city and although it looks austere there is a beauty to it. It was a pleasure to walk around the city and to be shown sights and places that Joshua and Sandra enjoy going to.

We visited Dean Village in the Stockbridge district. Until the nineteenth century it was an independent village in the shadow of Edinburgh. The village is on The Water of Leith, the main river that flows past Edinburgh to the sea via the Firth of Forth. Dean Village was best known for its many mills, which were used to grind grain. It is now a residential area with beautiful houses and views. Way out of our price range!

We went to Carlton Hill, in the centre of the city and so easily accessible. Amazing views of the city and Arthur’s Seat, and a selection of historic monuments.

We travelled to Brighton by train, a very nice journey and a lot cheaper than flying. Brighton remains the same but it is always good to see friends and spend time with family. We managed to see some live music, enjoyed Don Letts at the Concorde 2 and found some cool graffiti, good to see Jah Shaka immortalized on the streets of Brighton!

As it seems to happen every year, we made our way to Portugal, ready to depart to Maputo from there. We explored Olhão in the Algarve, a cute small town by the water’s edge, gateway to our favourite island, Armona. Olhão is an old fishing village but more recently has become popular with tourists. There are still plenty of good places to eat, great cafes and the riverside walk is lovely in the evenings.

We went to Armona island for the day with a picnic and lots of suncream. This island is is part of the natural park of the Ria Formosa. It is just so beautiful and special with magnificent beaches and so much space. The water was a little cold but we managed to dip our toes in.

We went to Lagos and took a boat trip to look at the famous secluded beaches of Lagos such as Praia D. Ana and Praia do Camilo and the amazing rock formations. Lagos was surprisingly ok, very touristy but quite pretty. I was pleasantly surprised! It is historically associated with the Portuguese Discoveries with an attractive centre that is mostly pedestrianized. The rock formations were really cool and it is well worth doing the boat trip if you are in the area.

In Faro, we visited the Bone Chapel. There are a few of these around Portugal but we had never been to this one! It is an ossuary dating back to the 18th century. The chapel was constructed from the bones of over 1,000 monks. If you look closely at the photos, you’ll be able to see that it has femurs and is decorated with over 1,200 skulls. Above the entrance, there is the following insightful or creepy inscription:

Stop here and consider that you will reach this state too.

The church also has a beautiful tower with amazing views of Faro and the nature reserve. Oh, and the planes fly right over.

On the drive back to Lisbon we stopped over at Cais Palafítico da Carrasqueira. The Cais Palafita de Carrasqueira is composed of a wide range of boardwalks made of wood that is buried in the mud of the River Sado. These improvised constructions are a little more than fifty years old and were built to allow fishermen to board their boats during low tide. It is a surreal place with its own unusual beauty. Kind of eerie but beautiful.

Nearing the end of our holiday, we finally made it to Lisbon. No matter how many times I go there, it always looks beautiful and special. Some photos of old shops that were common but are now disappearing and some beautiful blue skies.

With our holiday coming to an end, we explored Ericeira, one of the big surfing areas in Portugal. It is pretty wild and windy with a pretty old town centre. We also went to Mafra Palace. It is the most important baroque monument in Portugal and it covers an area of almost 4 hectares! It is truly massive. Some fun facts: it includes 1,200 rooms, more than 4.,700 doors and windows, 156 stairways and 29 inner yards and courtyards. Its library is thought to be one of the most beautiful in the world and the Royal Building has two carillons with 98 bells. Oh, and there is one room full of furniture and chandeliers made of animals! We were only able to see a fraction of it and I was left wondering how one family could possibly need so much space.

And finally, the last 2 days at a beautiful beach in Alentejo with brother Jorge and Filomena. Thank you for a lovely stay and companionship. See you next Summer.