Travel Guide

Places To See

Bazaruto Archipelago National Park

This archipelago consists of five main islands: Bazaruto, Benguera, Magaruque, Santa Carolina and tiny Bangué. It's about as close to a tropical paradise as you'll find, and is one of Mozambique's highlights. Among its attractions: clear, turquoise waters; tranquil, white-sand beaches; a plethora of colourful birds; and rewarding diving and snorkelling.

The larger islands were originally connected to the mainland at Ponta São Sebastião. The small population of Nile crocodiles that laze in the sun in remote corners of both Bazaruto and Benguera islands is evidence of this earlier link.

Thanks to this protected status, and to the archipelago's relative isolation from the ravages of war on the mainland, nature bursts forth here in full force. Most impressive, perhaps, are the elusive dugong who spend their days foraging among sea-grass meadows around the archipelago. As a backdrop to all this are extensive and excellently preserved coral formations.

Living amidst all the natural beauty are about 3500 Mozambicans who call the archipelago home.

Mozambique Island

Tiny, crescent-shaped Mozambique Island has played a larger-than-life role in East African coastal life over the centuries. Today, it is an intriguing anomaly - part ghost town and part lively fishing community. It's picturesque and pleasant to wander around, with colonnaded archways and stately colonial-era buildings lining the quiet, cobbled streets.

In Makuti Town, with its thatched-roof huts and crush of people, narrow alleyways echo with the sounds of playing children and squawking chickens, while fishermen sit on the sand repairing their long, brightly-coloured nets.

The waterfront in between, along the island's eastern edge, is known as the contracosta.

Maputo

With its Mediterranean-style architecture, waterside setting and wide avenues lined by jacaranda and flame trees, Maputo is easily one of Africa's most attractive capitals. It's also the most developed place in Mozambique by far, with a wide selection of hotels and restaurants, well-stocked supermarkets, shady sidewalk cafes, and a lively cultural scene.

The heart of the city is the bustling, low-lying baixa (busy port and commercial area). Here, Portuguese-era buildings with their graceful balconies and wrought-iron balustrades jostle for space with ungainly Marxist-style apartment blocks. Galabiyya-garbed men gather in doorways for a chat, Indian traders carry on brisk business in the narrow side-streets, and women wrapped in colourful capulanas (sarongs) sell everything from seafood to spices at the massive Mercado Municipal (Municipal Market).

A few kilometres away, along the seaside Avineda Marginal, life takes a more leisurely pace. Fishermen stand along the roadside with the day's catch, hoping to lure custom from the constant parade of passing vehicles; banana vendors loll on their carts in the shade, with Radio Moçambique piping out eternally upbeat rhythms in the background; and local soccer teams vie for victory in impromptu matches in the sand.

Pre-Departure Information

When to go?

The best times to visit are between May and November, when both rainfall and temperatures are at their lowest. It's also possible to travel during the early part of the warmer, rainy season from November to January (though be prepared for high temperatures, especially in January). If possible, avoid the height of the rains - from about February to March/April - as many roads become impassable and flooding is common in the south and centre. Around Easter, Christmas/New Year's and in August, Mozambique's southern coastal resorts become overrun with the vacationing neighbours and advance bookings are highly advisable.

Travel Visa Overview

Most visitors need visas, which are good for one to three months, and proof of onward travel.

Electricity

220/240V

50Hz

Electrical Plugs

European plug with two circular metal pins

South African/Indian-style plug with two circular metal pins above a large circular grounding pin

Health Information

HIV/AIDS

HIV (Human Immuno-deficiency Virus) develops into AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome), which is a fatal disease. Any exposure to blood, blood products or body fluids may put the individual at risk. The disease is often transmitted through sexual contact or dirty needles - body piercing, acupuncture, tattooing and vaccinations can be potentially as dangerous as intravenous drug use. HIV and AIDS can also be spread via infected blood transfusions, but blood supplies in most reputable hospitals are now screened, so the risk from transfusions is low. If you do need an injection, ask to see the syringe unwrapped in front of you, or take a needle and syringe pack with you. Fear of HIV infection should not preclude treatment for any serious medical conditions. Most countries have organizations and services for HIV-positive folks and people with AIDS. For a list of organizations divided by country, plus descriptions of their services, see www.aidsmap.com.. Mozambique's official HIV/AIDS infection rate is 16%, though it's well above 20% in some areas.

Weather Information

Mozambique's south coast offers a pleasurable expanse from April to November of consistently little rainfall and pleasant temperatures between 20 to 29°C (68-85°F) days. Temperatures rise somewhat as you go further northwards, and are downright unpleasant in the northwest around Tete city, though refreshingly cool in the higher country around Lichinga, near Lake Niassa.

History and Culture

Pre-20th Centure History

The first people to see Mozambique's Indian Ocean sunrises were small, scattered clans of nomads who were likely trekking through the bush as early as 10,000 years ago. The real story begins around 3000 years ago, when Bantu-speaking peoples began migrating into the area from the distant Niger Delta, bringing iron tools and weapons with them. Soon scattered kingdoms began to arise, including those of the Karanga or Shona, which extended from present-day Zimbabwe into Mozambique, and the legendary kingdom of Monomotapa, southwest of present-day Tete. Meanwhile, from around the 8th century AD, sailors from Arabia began to arrive along the coast. One of the most important trading posts was at Sofala, near present-day Beira, which by the 15th century was the main link connecting Kilwa with inland gold fields. Other early coastal ports and settlements included those at Ilha de Mocambique, Angoche, Quelimane and Ilha do Ibo. These were all ruled by local sultans until Vasco da Gama sailed onto this scene in 1498, and over the next centuries, the Portuguese built forts and set up trading points along the coast.By the mid-16th century, ivory had replaced gold as the main trading commodity, and by the late 18th century, slaves had been added to the list.

The Portuguese never quite managed to get the grip over their vast hinterlands that they hoped for. In the 17th century, they divided much of the interior into vast agricultural estates, nominally under the Portuguese crown, but actually run as private fiefdoms with their own slave armies.

Modern History

In the early 20th century, expansion of the nearby Witwatersrand gold mines and oppressive Portuguese labour laws led to a mass labour migration from southern Mozambique to South Africa and Rhodesia. Mozambicans had had enough, and a resistance movement grew. In 1964, shots fired in the unlikely northern village of Chai set off the struggle that finally culminated in independence in 1975. Mozambican independence - organised as the Mozambican Liberation Front or Frelimo - was helped along by a series of charismatic leaders, including Eduardo Mondlane (assassinated in 1969) and Samora Machel, who became independent Mozambique's president.

The Portuguese pulled out virtually overnight, leaving the country in a state of chaos with few skilled professionals and virtually no infrastructure. Frelimo, which found itself suddenly faced with the task of running the country, threw itself headlong into a policy of radical social change. Ties were established with the former USSR and East Germany and private land ownership was replaced with state farms and peasant cooperatives.

However, Frelimo's socialist program proved unrealistic, and by 1983 the country was almost bankrupt. Onto this scene came the Mozambique National Resistance or Renamo - a ragtag group established in the mid-1970s by Rhodesia as part of its destabilisation policy, and kept alive in later years with backing from the South African military and certain sectors in the West. Renamo had no desire to govern - its only objective was to paralyse the country - and for the next decade atrocities and destruction were committed on a massive scale. In 1992, peace accords finally brought a halt to this, helped along by the collapse of the USSR, winds of change in South Africa and growing international pressures.

Since then, Mozambique has gone about rebuilding itself with gusto. Renamo was transformed into a fledgling political party led by Afonso Dhlakama, and in 1994, stood in elections against Frelimo, under the leadership of Joaquim Chissano (who had taken the reins following Samora Machel's 1986 death under suspicious circumstances). Despite a strong showing by Renamo in the central heartlands, Frelimo won, and the work of rebuilding the country went forward at full steam.

Recent History

In December 2004, prominent businessman and long-time Frelimo insider Armando Guebuza was elected to succeed Chissano. With a long-running banking and corruption scandal dominating the headlines, Frelimo is now working to polish its public image, while Renamo is still struggling to prove itself as a viable political party. Progress has been interrupted by natural calamities, including severe flooding in 2000 and 2001. Yet Mozambique has a remarkable ability to rebound in the face of adversity. Tourism is taking off, the economy is slowly but surely growing, and most observers count the country as one of Africa's rising stars.