A Travel Jewel in the Rough

I went to Mozambique during my "Spring Break" from attending class at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban. One of the most memorable parts of Mozambique were the busy rides and roads, which were rough to say the least. In between when I was sweating from the sweltering heat or sitting next to a man with a box full of delightful smelling shrimp I took several action shots of the land scape we were passing. I loved the way the clouds were just hanging in the air that day. The tropical Mozambican countryside seemed to be encouraging me to run through the fields. The sun peeped through the clouds giving the day a sleepy feeling were I can remember that despite my physical discomfort on the bus gave me a pleasant complete feeling.

A lot of backpackers skip Mozambique during the famous Cairo to Cape Town tour, normally opting for a Botswana - Zambia - Malawi - Tanzania trip instead. I have heard all kinds of reasons: "i don't need anymore beach culture" "the roads are too bad" "i don't speak Portuguese" or my personal favorite "aren't they still at war?" I think this is too bad, I believe Mozambique has a lot of unique features to offer the traveler, a type of land scape and culture that doesn't exist in the rest of Africa. My biggest desire for a return trip to Southern Africa would be to spend more time in Mozambique and go from the far north of the country to the South so that I can see the ruins of the ancient sea trading culture as well as the old Portuguese forts. Plus the beaches are beautiful!