Maputo, Mozambique

Much of South Africa seemed familiar and looked something like the US or Europe, espcially Cape Town. But in Maputo, I think, you are closer to the real Africa.

My first difficulty was that suddenly all the conversation and signs were in Portuguese. The streets are very crowded and traffic rules seem pretty arbitrary. We joked that stop lights were just "a suggestion" and that is not far from true.

Another kind of alien factor is the widespread use of armed guards. Some were police but most were private security. With the automatic rifles at the ready, these guys were pretty serious looking.

I met a lot of interesting and nice people in Maputo thanks to Heather and Nuno. These ranged from other people at the Port. embassy to street people who Heather and Nuno had gotten to know. Heather has a nice habit of bringing peanut butter sandwiches to the people selling things on the streets. They always seemed happy to see her. I'll write more about the people on the streets of Maputo later.

From Heather and Nuno's apartment in the embassy, there was a beautiful view of the Indian Ocean that I never tired of seeing. The top two photos are of that view. Next is a view out of my bedroom windown looking across the city. Finally, this photo of Heather and our guide in Kruger was too good not to share.