We've been in Mozambique for over a year, and for a number of reasons haven't explored the country much - mostly because South Africa and eSwatini are closer to Maputo than the majority of the country
With some excitement and trepidation we booked in August to spend my birthday on Ilha de Mozambique.
Trepidation because we were flying LAM the notoriously poor service and safety Mozambican carrier, and because 15 October was election day here.
We asked around and hoped that flying two weeks after elections would be OK in case of any upset (it turns out the Official Results were announced when we flew back on the 30th) - there were no large upsets (though perhaps given the irregularities on the 15th there should have been https://clubofmozambique.com/news/eu-mission-condemns-irregularities-and-bad-practices-in-mozambique-elections-aim-report-146534/)
The flights were rescheduled to a completely different time of day but were without incident.
Having read positive articles such as this
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/africa/mozambique/articles/paradise-island-that-time-forgot-ilha-de-mozambique/
we were expecting something rather more than the Isla delivered. Perhaps because we have been to Zanzibar and Watamu and have been spoiled.
Our hotel though was an airco wifi stylish super upgrade to anything we stayed at in the old days!
We went on a guided bike tour of the Isla - which despite being small, was extraordinarily hot!
We found an excellent restaurant to eat seafood at - super fresh!
Market day, lots of second hand clothing
Another day another lunch, this time we witnessed a boat being repainted as the tide came in
Matapa - a seaweed / spinach staple in Mozambique - this was the seaweed version which requires multiple boils and rinses - if you want to try a simplified version yourself https://explorers.kitchen/recipes/mozambique-matapa/
this was a kind of lobster eaten with plenty of garlic butter - delicious
We took a snorkel trip too - which in all honesty was a disappointment - what these pics don't show is that it took hours over rough sea to get to this island (the wind/tide conditions were such that it should have been cancelled - oh well)
On our drive back to Nacala airport we caught glimpses of the Mozambique that needs aid, villages where no houses have glass at the windows and more than 50% are mud and thatch built, with water pumps not taps. A stark contrast to the world we live in in Maputo.
With some excitement and trepidation we booked in August to spend my birthday on Ilha de Mozambique.
Trepidation because we were flying LAM the notoriously poor service and safety Mozambican carrier, and because 15 October was election day here.
We asked around and hoped that flying two weeks after elections would be OK in case of any upset (it turns out the Official Results were announced when we flew back on the 30th) - there were no large upsets (though perhaps given the irregularities on the 15th there should have been https://clubofmozambique.com/news/eu-mission-condemns-irregularities-and-bad-practices-in-mozambique-elections-aim-report-146534/)
The flights were rescheduled to a completely different time of day but were without incident.
Having read positive articles such as this
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/africa/mozambique/articles/paradise-island-that-time-forgot-ilha-de-mozambique/
we were expecting something rather more than the Isla delivered. Perhaps because we have been to Zanzibar and Watamu and have been spoiled.
Our hotel though was an airco wifi stylish super upgrade to anything we stayed at in the old days!
We went on a guided bike tour of the Isla - which despite being small, was extraordinarily hot!
We found an excellent restaurant to eat seafood at - super fresh!
Market day, lots of second hand clothing
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| coconutty donut thing |
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| one of the most refreshing cold drinks ever |
Another day another lunch, this time we witnessed a boat being repainted as the tide came in
 |
this was a kind of lobster eaten with plenty of garlic butter - delicious
We took a snorkel trip too - which in all honesty was a disappointment - what these pics don't show is that it took hours over rough sea to get to this island (the wind/tide conditions were such that it should have been cancelled - oh well)
On our drive back to Nacala airport we caught glimpses of the Mozambique that needs aid, villages where no houses have glass at the windows and more than 50% are mud and thatch built, with water pumps not taps. A stark contrast to the world we live in in Maputo.
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