Mozambique
Ilha de Mozambique
Known as UNESCO World heritage site, this former capital of Portuguese East Africa was a trading post, for gold ivory and slaves, used by Portuguese ships on their way to India.
Ilha de Mocambique must be one of the most magical places on Earth – a meeting point of West, East, and South, a vital Portuguese trading settlement and military bastion left completely intact, its streets a seamless blend of Portuguese, Swahili, traditional African, and Far Eastern. Crystal blue waters surround an island busting with activity day and night, dhows and canoes circle the shores, fishing and ferrying passengers to and from the mainland.
The island is split in two by an imaginary line. North is the Stone Town, the European city built between the 16th and 19th centuries. South is Makhuti Town, a dense, low-lying city of reed houses, almost bursting to the seams with people. Makhuti Town tempers Stone Town. As charming and one-of-a-kind as the north half is, the appalling conditions of the south end prevent me from being swept off my feet by Ilha’s grace. And conditions are indeed appalling, there is very little food, even less fresh water, and no jobs to speak of. Its fish everyday for these people, and the women must scour the island for water.
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