Maputo is Mozambique's capitol and largest city. It's location on the Indian Ocean has led to an economy centered on the harbor. Coal, cotton, sugar, chromite, sisal, copra and hardwood are the chief exports. Mozambique was freed from Portuguese rule in 1974. Over 250,000 ethnic Portuguese left the area, virtually overnight, so the newly-independent country had no skilled professionals to maintain its infrastructure. The economy plummeted. The government turned to the communist Soviet Union and East Germany for help, but by 1980 the country was bankrupt. A Civil War, which lasted until 1992, further weakened the economy, but with the end of the war, growth and stability returned. Today, tourism is playing a part in boosting the economy.
Today was HAL's first stop in Mozambique, ever. Our port guide wasn't really sure what to expect, she'd never been there either. We arrived at 8 a.m. They off loaded an elderly gentleman who had fallen down some stairs in the rough weather we'd had day before yesterday. He was one of the dance hosts, onboard to dance with the single women. He was severely injured and not expected to live. Very sad.
Mel and I hadn't booked a tour so got on the shuttle bus into town. We were taken away from the central area to a small shopping center. Vendors were set up on the median of the street. There was nothing else close by, guess we were just taken there to shop. We did what they wanted, they forced us to buy! :) We picked up a few nice things then took the shuttle back to the ship for lunch. After lunch, we again got on the shuttle into town, but asked to be dropped off at the Central Market. The weather was nice and cool, a great change from Kenya. The market was amazingly clean and didn't even smell! There were the usual fish and vegetables, as well as booth after booth of hair supplies, hair pieces, shampoo, curlers, etc. That was kind of different. There were also vendor booths. We saw many of the same things we'd seen in Kenya, as well as some new things like beaded work and ebony wood.
We headed toward City Hall, passing by the Iron House and Cathedral. The Iron House, is exactly that, a house built entirely of iron. Whoever built it wasn't thinking straight since once it was finished, it was so hot inside that no one wanted to live there. It became an office building, with different government departments moving in, then out again because of the heat. It is currently empty. We continued walking, looking for an office supply store. We need more tape to package all the things we've been buying. We found a small shopping center with an outdoor food court in back. Next to that was a HUGE grocery store. In that store we found tape, made in the USA. We bought a roll for each couple at our dinner table too. (They were thrilled with their gift!) We then walked back to the market, picking up a giant wooden hippo on the way. Their carvings are so beautiful and inexpensive that it's hard not to buy.
We arrived back at the market, hoping to find a shuttle back to the bus. Only the shuttle buses were allowed inside the port gates. If we took a taxi or tuk tuk, we would still have to walk quite a distance. Hard to do with a 25 pound hippo under your arm. We were able to flag down an empty shuttle and returned to the original destination, then back to the ship. We were onboard by 3:30. I wanted to swim in my small pool, but the water was freezing, so I passed. Time to get packed for our second overnight safari in Richard's Bay.
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