Our day in Maputo

Well, I knew that it was going to be hot, but I woke up the next morning and just felt sticky. For the first time, I really didn’t need to use a blanket at night, which is good, because the blanket that they gave us was a very heavy winter blanket. Oh yeah, and I cannot forget to tell you about the stuffed to capacity pillows that they gave us. They were absolutely worthless. In the lower bunks, the mosquito nets don’t flow over you as much as they bunch all around you. In the morning, I realized that I was using if more for a blanket than a net.

I found a quiet place to do my morning exercises while I waited for Jeremy to wake up. We made “gari” for breakfast, which is a mush from plantains. I thought that this would be good, but it was way too sour for my tastes. I had to get rid of it and ate some cereal instead.

After breakfast, we decided to checkout the Revolution Museum. Sadly, it was closed. They did let us in and we saw some of the artifacts (guns), but there was absolutely no information available. This was a shame, because Jeremy had been told by many people that it was very nice.

The next stop was the Nucleo de Arte. We took one of the local mini-buses to get there. I told Jeremy a few days earlier that one of the best things to do in a city was to figure out how to get around. Well, it’s different in Moz, but the feeling of belonging is heightened when you can figure out the public transportation. This artist’s workshop is famous for its statues made out of AK-47 parts. We were able to snap some pictures before being told that they weren’t aloud. Then, a local artist took us around to the artist’s studios and we were able to see many works in progress.

We tried in vain to find the National Art Gallery, but the map that was provided to us by Fatima’s was absolutely rubbish. I suggested that, instead, we go to the old Fortress and take the ferry to Catembe. However, our first stop was the new Maputo Shopping Center. We checked out some of the stores before heading to the grocery store to purchase lunch. Lunch was two massive rolls (more like loaves of bread), Gouda cheese, pressed beef loaf, and an apple. We also picked up some Muesli and some water.

The fortress was a lot of fun, even though it didn’t contain any information about the fortress. Still, sometimes these old monuments and places are best explored when there aren’t any people around to tell you that you can’t do something. It was fun to mess around with the old guns lying around and to ride the cannons!

The ferry over to Catembe was fun, and when over there, we walked around for a bit before settling into a café to order drinks. We sat there for a while, were heckled by a can playing local, and then left so that we could make it to a restaurant for dinner. Instead of riding the car ferry on the way back, we “accidentally” purchased tickets for the much smaller passenger only boat. The ride was somewhat choppier, but also fun.

So, what happened next? How about a nice and peaceful walk to “Sagres” for dinner? Nope. It wasn’t a bad walk, but we were almost mugged on the way. I was confronted by a local who extended his hand as if he wanted to shake mine. I extended my hand, ready to give the African handshake, when his other hand shot out and grabbed my camera. I quickly grabbed it back and while he wrestled with me to take it, Jeremy got my back and pulled him off! Ack! We were lucky that time, and we both decided that it would be best to keep my camera away when we knew that we wouldn’t be actively using it.

So, how was Sagres? It was so incredibly delicious. I ordered the catch of the day with vegetables and boiled potatoes. Jeremy ordered Surf n’ Turf (steak with prawns). We also ordered clams and a prawn cake for appetizers. The fish was deboned this time and it was moist and cooked to perfection. We split the fish and the steak, so I was also able to try Jeremy’s meal, which was also fabulous. The steak was covered in a cheese white sauce with mushrooms that must have had a pound of butter and cheese in it! I have not seen Jeremy full in some time, but he was after this meal. The restaurant then hailed us a cab, and we made it back to Fatima’s in time to get our items out of the safe and inquire about ATMs in Tofo.

We were told that they don’t have any! We later found out that this was incorrect, but it did leave us in a bind. We would need about 40,000 Meticais, and we simply did not have that. We had to walk about two blocks in the dark, with our pockets stuffed full of 200 meticais notes. It was really stupid, but we honestly didn’t see what option we had.