Last Weekend in Maputo... for now at least...

Last weekend was our last in Maputo for this three month assignment. We started off the Friday night by going to one of our favorite restaurants, Zambi. They have probably the best seafood and a really nice outdoor patio just across the street from the water. Dan got two different salads with crab and a seafood medley. I got salmon with vegetables.

Dinner was really nice except for a drunk guy behind us who was unnecessarily rude to the staff. There's a "thing" here in Africa... excuse my generalization but this happens in Ghana too so I'm going to extend my assumption to an entire continent... how American of me. A patron who wants the attention of a server makes this really loud sound pushing air through their teeth in what comes out as a "tsist" sound. I now cringe whenever I hear it. However, this gentlemen decided to do it pretty much every time a server was within 10 yards of him. It was clear that he thought he was more important than everyone else dining that evening. Luckily, he eventually got up from his wimpy cocktail, almost fell over and then proceeded to drive his loudly painted vehicle home. Sigh.

On Saturday, we lounged around after breakfast and eventually headed over to the craft market to finally purchase the obligatory Christmas tree ornament. We did a full walk of the place and settled on a little African house that says Mozambique. The seller offered to carve a name on it for us so we requested the year.

After completing our purchase, we went over to Mundos sports bar to have some lunch and watch the Manchester City match. Headed back to the hotel for a bit with the intention of trying a new place for dinner that night. We've heard about how good (and expensive) this Portuguese place called Taverna is. It's one of few places we haven't yet tried here and figured our last Saturday night would be as good a time as any. Well, joke's on us because they aren't open on Saturday. Yes, you read that correctly. A nice restaurant that is not open on Saturday. We agreed that was utterly ridiculous and defaulted to our favorite wine and tapas bar. Had some good conversation, thanked the manager for a consistently good restaurant experience (since we don't know if we'll ever be back) and headed back to go to sleep.

Sunday was the epitome of laziness. We watched a bunch of movies and ate dinner at the hotel while watching some of the NCAA basketball tournament via Slingbox. So now we are in the home stretch in Maputo. We expected a pretty calm week leading up to our departure on Saturday... until I came upstairs yesterday to find our bathroom flooded under half an inch of water. Never a dull moment in this place haha. Dan came home to check it out and have lunch with me as we expected to have to change to the fourth room of this trip. However, to our shock, they actually were fixing it when we returned from lunch. Amazing! Dan made a great point that we think the hotel is actually full so there was nowhere to move us. As a result, they actually had to do something about this issue.

Fair warning that our flight lands pretty late on Saturday night in Ghana. I suspect we will sleep pretty well in our own home, so I apologize if my Sunday blog post is a bit late. Consider yourselves warned :)

VIP Fancypants Dinner

They say life is all about who you know... well, we know the Food and Beverage Director. We were in the lobby a few weeks ago waiting on the ever temperamental elevator when a guy extended his hand and said he had seen us around quite a bit. Turns out, he is Roy, the Food and Beverage Director at the hotel. We chatted for a bit and parted ways.

We saw him again (and again, and again) and he said that he really wanted to plan some sort of dinner for us his "special guests". Now I'm pretty sure he meant "special" in a good way. Not the way that your mom says "you're special" when you've just done something really stupid. Anyway, he insisted on making this occasion a surprise for me and sort of a birthday dinner. In an effort to keep this a surprise, he and Dan had several phone chats and text messages to sort this whole thing out.

Last Sunday was the big day. Roy told us to be downstairs by the bar at 8pm. We had just come back on the ferry from Inhaca so we got showered and watched some soccer before we headed down. We exit the elevator to find Roy in workout gear having just come back from a jog. He clearly was flustered that it was already 8 and had us sit at the bar while he ran to get a shower (funny point: He's in the room next to ours). He had Nelson, the bartender, make us a pina colada and a manhattan. We laughed having no clue what this evening was going to entail.

After drinks, we were ushered out to the pool where they had set up a table with candles. The candles were a nice touch but it was a particularly windy night so they didn't seem to want to stay lit. Roy presented Dan with a rolled up paper that had a nice note about how much they appreciate us as guests and whatnot and explained the evening's menu.

Now, let's backtrack a bit. Roy's previous engagements include the Hyatt in Miami and a Sandals resort in Jamaica, although his wife and kids are still in Portugal. Coming from those hotels, wining and dining patrons is somewhat easy and what he really enjoys doing. This makes his current hotel much more difficult since it is 99% business people and convention attendees. Almost no one is here on vacation with their spouse. So when he saw us (and kept seeing us) it was clear we were an anomaly. Hence why he practically begged to put something together for us. Anyway back to the food....

The first course was spicy shrimp with mango and a delicious sauce of some sort. Quite possibly the best plate we've had here. The main was a juicy, perfectly cooked chicken breast with a vegetable tart-like thing in puff pastry. (I just made a point of saying how well cooked a chicken breast was. I think that pretty well describes the barometer of food we've had for the last three months, although we have had some very nice meals.) Dessert was a custard in a cup that my best description is that it would be listed on a San Francisco dessert menu entitled something like "deconstructed custard tart". The custard was in the glass topped with some fruit and some graham cracker crumble thing. Everything was delicious. We had some wine and the chef, a very nice Swiss gentleman, came out and chatted with us.

 Shrimp Appetizer

Empty Dessert Glass

Did you notice there is no picture of the chicken? Yeah. About that.

All in all it was a lovely evening. Good food, good company, and it was free! All because we know a guy... Guess it really is true.

Holy Crap, I'm 30.

I survived my 30th birthday in Maputo. I woke up to an endless chain of Facebook messages, phone calls, texts, emails of people sending me birthday wishes. Certainly eases the blow of being so far away when you wake up to such a rush of love.

I started off the day with a workout and then headed to Hotel Polana to go to the spa. I had a two hour massage and facial combo and then got a nice sushi lunch at one of the hotel's restaurants. The couple we met last weekend on the ferry to Inhaca came to have lunch with me. So nice of them given that they just met us but they wanted to make sure they came by for my birthday.

After lunch, I headed back to our hotel to work for the rest of the day (womp womp). Work has been quite busy lately so most of my evenings are trying to juggle projects and Dan's arrival home after work so we can go to dinner without me missing anything work-related. Oh well, there are certainly worse problems to have.

We decided on dinner at Bom Garfo, which is a rodizio restaurant. A rodizio is the Portuguese version of a churrascuria. Essentially, it's a prix fixe restaurant where they bring out different grilled meats on long knives and shave off pieces for you. You have a little coaster looking thing that is green on one side and red on the other. If green is up, the meats keep coming, when you're full, you flip it over and they stop. They also give you beans and rice, sauteed greens, grilled bananas and a small buffet table of different salads as starters (ex. Greek salad, pasta salad, a bean salad with chickpeas etc.).

Dinner was me, Dan, Driaan, his wife, Carolina, and Arthi and Andrew came a bit later and just got drinks. We got some salads and some wine and prepared ourselves for the impending food-baby. We got some chicken and a few types of beef, then some garlic bread, more beef, some grilled pineapple with cinnamon that was delicious and, surprise, more beef. Granted, you get maybe one slice of each one so it's not as daunting as I've made it sound.

Driaan and Dan were determined to make the full round as they were convinced there was an "end" to the meat train. They were clearly struggling when the guy came out and said the name of the meat he was offering. Dan excitedly said "We've already had that!" He and Driaan looked incredibly relieved and shared a high five over their conquering of the revolving door of meats.

Some had dessert, others had coffee or after dinner cocktails and we had a nice evening. It really meant a lot to me that some of our friends came to dinner. We had some great conversation and  enjoyed the company.

Here's a post-dinner photo to prove our survival (and evidence the tans we are developing after a few months in Mozambique):

Watch for Falling Coconuts

Sorry I'm late on this post. We just returned about an hour ago from a weekend excursion to Ilha da Inhaca. Yesterday morning, we took a ferry over to the island, which is about 35km East of Maputo. We walked to the ferry station and met some fellow Americans while we tried to locate the place to pay for tickets. They are here for a month or so as part of the wife's, Arthi's, doctoral residency. We sat with her and her husband, Andrew, and quickly learned they were also staying at the Pestana on the island. Off we went with new friends in tow!

The ferry ride was... rough. There was a storm that we had to go through and it was touch and go there for awhile. Lots of swaying and bouncing and the occasional sick person. Luckily, we all were okay, some with dramamine, some just taking some fresh air. When we finally arrived at the island, the weather was clearing and we went to check into our hotel. Dan and I went to our room to drop off our stuff and went straight to the pool. We spent a couple hours lounging by the pool. I read a book, and Dan took a nap, resulting in an excellent tan line from his earbud cord that goes across his chest.

We went back to the room and rested, watching some soccer before dinner. Met up with Arthi and Andrew for dinner and conversation. Really enjoyed their company and they are also having a hard time meeting friends. Invited them to get together for dinner later this week which they seemed eager to accept. We certainly understand the challenge of meeting similar personalities here in Maputo so I was more than pleased that they accepted.

We retired fairly early last night after a day of rocking the boat and a hearty dose of sunshine. Woke up this morning and had some breakfast and went for a walk on the beach. We found several boats washed up on the shore, one of which looked in perfect working order and was freshly painted. Dan wanted a picture of him on the boat, so without further ado...

We wandered into a little town... and little is probably an overstatement. There were maybe two shops and two or three restaurants with seafood. We had some snacks and watched a dance troop perform with a group of drummers. Afterwards, we went back to the room to pack up our things and check out. We spent the rest of our afternoon by the pool again before heading back to the ferry to come back home.

Luckily, the ride home was significantly smoother. We chatted with our new friends on the ride back to town and then the four of us went by the mall to grab a quick bite. We introduced them to our favorite shawarma place! Afterwards, we said our "see you later's" and parted ways.

I'll leave you with a quick word of wisdom: Watch for falling coconuts (a sign from our hotel).

Weekend Happenings

Friday night after work, Dan and some team members had a happy hour at Mundo’s (the sports bar). Dan invited me to tag along for which I was quite grateful. I met them at the restaurant and was introduced to most of the team with the exception of Driaan and Ana whom I had met previously. We had some beers and pizzas and watched some cricket on the TVs. It was nice to go out with some people.

Saturday morning, we slept in and had a lazy morning. We finally worked out and got moving around lunchtime. I had been interested in a place called Dhow, but the location seemed to be really inconvenient to the part of town where we are staying. Come to find out, I was mistaken. The place is on Rua da Marracuene but what I didn’t realize is that there are two Rua da Marracuene’s in Mozambique. The other one is actually not far at all. So we took a taxi over there around 1pm, deciding to risk table availability during prime weekend lunch hours.

There is no signage outside for the place so I could see how people miss it all the time. Luckily, there was a guy sitting outside who confirmed that was the place. The restaurant has a shop with some really cool furniture, light fixtures and trinkets. I figured I should go through to the restaurant part in case we were going to have to wait for a table. Luckily, we were sat right away which was excellent considering I didn’t eat breakfast and was quickly approaching a level of hunger that made my left arm look mighty appetizing.

We got some chicken samussas to start, and then ordered some lunch. Dan ordered a sandwich called the Leonardo “sim queijo” (without cheese). It was carne asada, which is pork here rather than beef, lettuce, tomato and mustard on really fresh bread that he thought they might even make on site. I got the chicken souvlaki, which was roasted chicken, onions, tzaiziki, and grilled tomatoes on what might be the most delicious pita bread I’ve ever had in my life. We hung out for a while and enjoyed the scenery. I now understand why everyone loves the place.

We browsed the products for a bit. The light fixtures were really nice and there were some pieces in the shop that we liked but everything was quite expensive. It was very clear that the “targeted audience” is tourists and expats. There was a wood statue that I really liked but it was 3500MT. The guy was really trying to sell it to me and I said it was too expensive. He said it’s only 3500 mets! I said yeah that’s like 100 dollars. He said yes but Americans are rich. I said “not this one”. I took note that the item I liked is actually from Cameroon. Good thing we know two Cameroonians in Ghana!

All in all, the food was great, the view was great, and the company was great (insert obligatory sappy “awwww” here). After lunch, we returned to the hotel to relax and watch some soccer.

Hotel Living

Looking back on the last handful of posts, life seems to be very exciting and full of adventure. That's certainly accurate; however, we haven't been without our struggles. When we first were told we would be coming to Mozambique and where we would stay, I remember thinking: Ah, what it would be like to live in a hotel... I pictured Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman listening to a Walkman in the bubble bath. That sounds like something I might be interested in.

The hotel we are staying in has been, in a word, challenging. The staff doesn't seem to care about a thing, nor does management. We are normally pretty easy going but we are staying here for a couple of months so you'd like to think a bit of effort from the staff has been more than earned by the cost of this reservation. We've had some interesting experiences: the elevators stop working and trap guests frequently, laundry is expensive but seems to have arbitrary rules as to when it will be picked up and when it won't, and, my personal favorite, the breakfast staff women seem to have a crush on me (this is Jen, not Dan). I even got a handwritten love note in broken English one day. They fight over who gets to take my plate and pour my coffee.

When we got here, our first room was perfectly fine. We did notice that the commode seemed to rock when you sat on it but didn't think much of it. Over time, it became evident that the toilet was not properly attached to the pipe behind it and the pipe was leaking water onto the floor. We were okay with it for awhile but at some point, stale toilet water smells "not so fresh". We told the staff and got a new room. We did notice later, though, that they didn't seem to fix it, just mopped up the water and called it a day.

The new room was also fine. Had it's wear and tear. The bathroom door didn't hang correctly so you had to lift up the door to get it to fit into the frame. The air conditioner was quite loud when it turned on and off (which was just often enough to wake me up mid-slumber as I'm a light sleeper). I had taken to wearing ear plugs to bed each night. The closet slider door was never in its tracks. But this was the second room so we were pleased just not to have a leak in the bathroom... until we did.

We reported the ceiling leak but no one came to look at it. About a week and a half later, the ceiling collapsed and a chunk of plaster hit the floor. I went downstairs, told them and several hours later the maintenance man came... to fix the lightbulb. Hmmm. You do see the hole in the roof, right? I'm not imagining this due to sleep deprivation, am I? Alas the following day, I called again when water was dripping through the hole and that managed to succeed in getting us moved.

So now we are on lucky number 3. No problems yet to speak of. Still excitement and adventure but figured we should share some of the not-so-glamorous moments as well. Here's to hoping nothing else breaks and we have no bathroom leaks for the next four weeks until we go back home to Ghana!

Craft Market and "Mercado da Peixe"

Last Saturday, we decided to go out exploring. I had been wanting to go to the craft market which is located in a park. We took a cab and during the ride I attempted to muster the strength and patience for what we were about to walk into. You see, I had done this craft market "thing" in Accra and it was nothing short of a miserable experience. Just constantly getting hounded by people to buy things and people essentially chasing you through the place. So we took a deep breath and walked in.

It was lovely. A lot of stalls of the same stuff over and over again but the people were friendly. Of course, they wanted you to look at their goods but no one pressured you to stop or followed you around or made you feel horribly uncomfortable. We walked around a bit and then decided to stop for a bite to eat because we did't have breakfast. There are two restaurants with picnic tables under trees where you can have a nice lunch and just relax. The atmosphere was calm and we will probably go back just for the reasonably priced, quiet lunch. We decided on some things that we liked but didn't purchase anything this time. I'm still in the market for the obligatory Maputo Christmas tree ornament, so we were hunting for that. Dan wanted a carved rhino because he thinks Henry the Elephant is lonely back in Ghana. Luckily, he saw the logic in how impossible it would be to get it back to Ghana. Phew. Crisis averted.

After the art market, we went to Mercado da Peixe (Pronounced peshi... or like Joe Pesci), the Fish Market. Our cab driver... bless his heart... had barely pulled into a parking spot before our windows were stormed with people screaming at us in Portuguese. The cab driver smiled at us and rolled up the windows on them. We got out and people followed us, still yelling about something. The best way I can explain this scene is to say it looked like the seagulls in Finding Nemo. A cab pulls up and everyone runs to it going "Mine! Mine! Mine!".

We figure out that these people work at the restaurants behind the fish market and they want us to pick their place. We select a lady and walk into the market. Holy cow there are fresh fish everywhere. Just stacked and stacked on top of each other on various tables. People yelling again trying to get you to buy from them. Shellfish, clams, prawns, snapper, red fish, even eel and barracuda, all just sitting out waiting to be purchased. We decide on some snapper and some prawns. The lady puts them in a bag and weighs them and then the guy who is now with us tells us what is a completely arbitrary price that is probably 10x what a local would pay. Dan negotiates him down a bit but we are clearly being severely overcharged. Oh well, it's an experience.

After we pay, the kid takes our fish and asks how we want it prepared. Off he goes and we follow the original lady to the restaurant. For as loud and hectic as the fish market is, you turn the corner and it's just restaurant after restaurant with plastic tables and umbrellas and Kenny G playing over speakers. The complete opposite of where we just came from. We sit down and order beers and recap "What the heck did we just do?". Mr. I-clean-the-fish comes over at some point and we tip him 100 mets for his help and his respectable English. He says it's 200. We said for what? It's a tip. He argues for awhile and Dan says we'll see how the food tastes and then decide.

Food comes. It's absolutely delicious. They clearly know what they are doing. The prawns are de-headed, deveined and are pan seared in butter and garlic. The fish has been skinned on one side so Dan deboned the rest of it, which was flakey and cooked to perfection. Sorry, we scarfed down the prawns before I remembered to take a photo of them.

We paid the bill for our beers and the food preparation. We're walking out to the cab when I notice that Mr. Relentless is chasing us to the car wanting his extra 100 mets. We told him we gave it to the waitress at the restaurant and got in the car while he was still yelling. We did not feel sorry at all. If he's that upset, he should go demand a share of the cut from the woman selling the fish since he made up the totally ridiculous price. While we admit, it turned out to be an expensive lunch, it sure was an amazing experience that we will remember for a long time!

Live Music and Corrupt Police

Friday night, we decided to go check out some nightlife. Dan had read about a place called Coconuts Live up by the Radisson so we decided to just head there for dinner. Ate at a restaurant in the hotel and then went out to find Coconuts. We walked up and down the street looking for it and couldn't seem to find it for the life of us. We looked it up on Google Maps and walked to where it was listed on the map. There was a sign for two bars and Coconuts Pool.

We decided that maybe this was Coconuts "Live" so we went in to one bar/club. Loud music and not one soul in there. So we figured we'd try to adjoining bar. Went in to find more of the same, but at least there were bartenders. We had a beer and waited for other people to show up. Welp, beer is gone and still no one here. It's 11:30!! How is there no one here?! Oh well, let's try something else.

Got in a cab and asked to go to Gil Vicente which, apparently, is a popular hangout not far from our hotel. He starts to pull away and asks us if we have "documentation" (meaning our passports) on us. We said yes, as we've been warned several times that we should always carry them on us because the police often stop white people and things get quite difficult if you cannot readily provide your documents. The cabby said "good because the police like money". We know, buddy, but we appreciate your concern.

We start to drive back towards our side of town. Mind you, pretty much the only reason to be on this road is if you are coming from the nicer hotels on the Indian Ocean/beach side. So the police aren't stupid with where they have placed their checkpoint because it's likely tourists/foreigners who would be coming from this direction. Not surprisingly, they stop our driver and we pull over. I start to try to put my seat belt on (because I've been yelled at for this before in Ghana) and Dan says not to bother. Funny part is that probably 80% of cabs I've been in both here and Ghana have seat belts but the buckle part is no where to be found.... making it totally useless.

Dan is in the back on the curb side and the police are now outside his window. They ask for our documents in Portuguese and we, of course, play dumb and ask for English. We hand them our passports, very reluctant to let them out of our grips. The guys flip through them (honestly, we wouldn't have cleared customs without a visa so this is obviously just a money grab). They hand the passports back and try to write us a ticket for not wearing our seat belts. This is where Dan's Ghana training comes in handy.

Dan says "No, I cannot give you any money as I work for the government. I'll need your name and badge number for any payments because I am required to report it." The guys take a step back. "Who do you work for?" Dan says "PwC" blank stare. Dan says "INP" (Instituto Nacional da Petroleo).  They look at each other and say "Oh." I lean forward to the driver and say "Yeah, you can go now." Finally, the cops say "you can go" and the three of us laugh as we pull away.

We arrive safely at Gil Vicente and the place looks mobbed. At least 15-20 people outside the door, but we quickly learn they are just outside to smoke or hang out and we got right in. There was a band and the place continued to fill up after we arrived. The music was good and we had a nice time. Walked back to the hotel to get some rest after an eventful evening.

Dinner with Friends?!

Being in Maputo and living in the hotel hasn't been as glamorous as I'd imagined. I miss having an apartment with multiple rooms so that, if I have to work late, I'm not keeping Dan up or looking like a 5 year old who wants read after she's been told it's bedtime... you know what I mean... she's holed up under the sheets to block out the light of her flashlight (or Kindle since it's 2015). Mostly, I miss having friends to meet for lunch or dinner, or just sit around and do nothing.

So last week when Dan told me we had been invited to dinner with some people, you would have sworn he had just blessed me with some magical gift card that I could go shopping with and never pay a cent. I was elated. Thursday of last week, we went to the Radisson Blu hotel for a sushi dinner. I know what you're thinking... a Radisson? In Maputo? Yes, and it's arguably the nicest hotel here. Dan and I are convinced that hotel chains are backwards in Africa. Some of the nicest business hotels in Accra are a Best Western and a Holiday Inn, which is the reverse of the case in the US.

So we arrived a bit early and the restaurant didn't open until 7 (which was the time of our reservation) so we went up to the hotel bar and had a glass of wine and waited for people to arrive. In total, there were 8 of us for dinner. Me and Dan (obviously American), Dan's coworker Driaan and his wife Carolina (South African), another married South African couple who as terrible as this is to say... neither of us got their names that night, and two girls who work at PwC with the guys who are from Portugal. Their names are Ana and Elsa and they currently live together in a corporate flat. No, this is not a blurb from Frozen, nor did we go to Disney World for dinner. Although they made the Frozen reference without it being pointed out by any of us so they must be used to it.

It was a flat rate, all you can eat thing. They had sushi and sashimi and Korean BBQ and dumplings and a dessert table. I had never had Korean BBQ before which frankly, sounds more daunting than it is. When I think Korean BBQ, I picture the scorched ducks that hang from the windows in Chinatown back in SF. Do I have to BBQ the duck? Is he already dead? Is he going to convince me to switch to Aflac before I roast him like chestnuts over an open fire? Thankfully, it's nothing like that. Basically, you select a bunch of ingredients (noodles, raw chicken or fish or pork, broccoli, onions, whatever else you want) and hand it to the guy who is behind a hibachi grill. Then he cooks it for you... voila! Korean BBQ. We got some wine for the table and chatted for a couple of hours.

It was really nice to get out and meet some new people. Elsa took some photos at dinner with her phone and sent them to us. So here's a little photo collage of our dinner.

From left to right: Driaan, Dan, me, Elsa, Ana, Carolina, and the South African couple whose names we don't know (Wow I feel terrible about that. Really need to rectify that if there's a next time)

Valentines Day in Maputo

Dan offered to plan Valentines Day activities for yesterday, which is helpful because most decision making in this marriage ends with "I don't know". Where should we go for dinner? I don't know. Where do you want to go? Well, what kind of food do you want? I don't know. What kind of food do you want? And this dance goes on and on until one of us caves and makes a decision. Thus, his volunteering to take the lead was perfectly fine by me!

We slept in, got dressed for the day and headed out from the hotel. Now, to be fair, I asked Dan what to wear because I had no idea where we were going. He said a casual dress is fine. I said short or long. He said doesn't matter. So I put on a cotton maxi dress. This is significant because, upon leaving the hotel, he states "going to be a toasty one today. Google says it's going to hit 100". Fantastic, should've gone with short dress.

We walk down to a ferry which takes people across to Catembe. The ferry is massive and cars can drive on it to get across. We arrive around 11:10am and get on the ferry that should leave at 11:30. Ten minutes late (11:40am) we finally head out. Mind you, this ferry is packed with people who are all sweating profusely because it's really hot out and we were waiting there for a half hour with no air circulation... mmmm.

We arrive and Dan had planned for us to have lunch at a cute little boutique hotel in Catembe. The directions provided by the hotel are to take the ferry across and turn left and they are on the beach. What they neglect to say is that it's probably a 5k walk down the beach. Again, in 100 degrees. I am not typically a sweaty person. I can do a hard workout and just have a red face at the end but not really be drenched in sweat. Dan, on the other hand, just thinks about 100 degrees and starts sweating. So the fact that I'm quite sticky by the time we arrive at lunch, makes me realize what he must go through on a daily basis in Africa. We had a lot of water and a little beer and enjoyed the views of Maputo from across the water in Catembe.

After lunch, we got a taxi (quick learners) back to the ferry station and took a water taxi across to Maputo. Water taxis are significantly smaller ferries that only hold maybe 60 people and leave every 5-10 minutes instead of once an hour. This was a much better decision. We were shocked when we got back to Maputo and saw the big ferry that was about to head across. It was absolutely PACKED. Significantly more so than when we left a few hours before.

Upon arriving in Maputo, we took a cab to a place called Club Naval. It seems to be the expat hangout. Lots of families around and they have a pool. So you pay a fee (it was 100MT for both of us so about $3) and you can swim all day and they have a restaurant. We didn't bring swimsuits and it was already about 4pm so we just relaxed at the restaurant and had some sandwiches. The wind started to pick up and Dan mentioned it was supposed to storm later in the evening.

We decided not to tempt fate, paid the bill and took a taxi to the grocery store. Stocked up on some grapes, apples, cheese, crackers, chocolate, water, and a bottle of wine. Then we walked home, and got showers after our sweaty adventures. It started dumping rain outside and gusting "tropical storm-style". We stood on the balcony and watched for awhile as people risked turning in the flooded intersections. Eventually, we settled in for a night of movies by building a blanket fort on the floor of our hotel room (because we're clearly 10 years old).

Hope you all had a wonderful day as well!

Official Dannifer Maputo Restaurant Reviews

Dan's been moonlighting as a restaurant reviewer and by that I mean he eats and drinks at various establishments and then writes to you about it. Without further ado, I bring you Dan's latest guest post:

Mundos

I’m pretty sure this place was mentioned in previous posts.  The menu is extensive and the food won’t kill you.  The best thing here is the wings, but the pizzas are very popular too.  The pizzas are super thin crust (so in my book the highest rating they can achieve are “not bad”), and there are a large variety of toppings.  Sorry, nothing too “exotic”.  On principle, I ordered the Mexican pizza. Ground beef, lettuce, tomato and cheese.  It probably should’ve been called Taco Bell pizza. The atmosphere is what makes the place.  Good crowd, and lots of TVs for sports.  Wait staff is pretty good with English.

Africa Bar

We went on a Sunday evening.  Outside clientele will find posters advertising the exciting events they have coming up.  Sunday evening was not an exciting event.  The Saturday night before, however, supposedly was. By walking in, we can validate that the evening prior was definitely a lot of fun.  Evidence included sticky floors, the aroma of stale beer, and hungover staff.  Given all I remember about the place is the party I did not attend, apparently the food isn’t anything to write home about (pun intended).  English is not useful, hand gestures required.

The Wine Bar

What?! Wine and tapas?   Why the hell not?  Getting here required us to use a brand new taxi driver.  Like super new.  We went to this place our first week in Maputo and we knew our way around better than him.  However, his English was spectacular and he also showed up after our meal to bring us back.  But enough about him.  Walking in you can smell the wine.  Not like the stale beer from Africa Bar, this is more like a fancy smell that makes you feel sophisticated.  The menu is full of Portuguese style tapas.  Cured meats, random things with eggs on them, and plenty of fish dishes.  The wine menu involves literally walking around the place and pulling a wine off the shelf.  Not too bad.  Points deducted for having one shitty California wine (actually called “California Wine”), but I know I shouldn’t let national pride get in the way.  The food was good and what we ordered came out at a good speed. 

A Esquina

Oops, guess it turns out that Wine Bar is A Esquina’s slightly less attractive sister or slightly less athletically inclined brother.  A Esquina tops Wine Bar in atmosphere and wine list.  Coming here also revealed that Wine Bar was overcharging for their wine.  The food at Wine Bar might’ve been a bit better, but it’s hard not to like a place where the next time you sit down, they call you Papa Figo.  It’s sorta like being the Godfather except people don’t kiss my ring, I don’t get money from organized crime activity, and I have no political influence.  The name comes from the wine I ordered two bottles of the first time we ate here.  It was the second most expensive one on the list (approx. $40). 

New Galaxy Indian

Tacky neon flashing sign outside and it’s across from A Esquina.  This was very highly recommended by coworkers and others, so we were willing to give it a chance.  Also, India is a hell of a lot closer to Mozambique than the US.  The place isn’t too fancy, but there always seem to be Indians eating there – a good sign.  Unfortunately, the place is Halal (i.e., no alcohol, like, not even wine).  It’s tough to eat the flavorful dishes they have here and knowing across the street is an establishment with plenty of Cab, Shiraz, and other reds that would pair nicely with it.  Regardless, the food is pretty damn good.  Reminder: dosas in San Francisco (at the restaurant called Dosa) are about the size of your palm.  Dosas at New Galaxy Indian are approximately the size of a small newborn.

Shawarma Hut

I’m actually not sure what this place is called.  I just know it’s in the food court of the mall and cranks out $3.50 shawarma in minutes that’s delicious.  There’s a consistent group of Middle Eastern guys playing backgammon in the corner.  I’m pretty sure it’s a front for something, but I won’t push the issue as long as the food stays cheap and good.  It’s also halal, but for how quickly they turn out the concoction of sliced kabob meat, I don’t mind.

Costa de Sol

Went here most recently.  It’s a “famous” place along the beach that specializes in seafood.  On a Sunday afternoon, you can see the beach parties starting to get started (recommendation from coworkers – get a better tan and learn Portuguese before trying to partake in the Sunday beach parties).  I ordered a prawn cocktail that was quite good, but was served over some interesting neon green liquid.  Luckily the waiter came and picked it up before I drank the mystery ecto drink.  It’s rather difficult to get to without a car, but it’s worth the periodic trip.

Indian Ocean... check!

We often comment to each other that we would like to set foot on all 7 continents and see all 4 oceans. Notice I said "see" all four oceans, as I have no intention of putting my little piggies in the Arctic. Let's just say that I'm always cold so long dangerous excursions to Antarctica aren't high on my list, but we will see if Dan changes my mind. (Hey! He succeeded on changing my mind on Africa and it's been pretty incredible thus far! Maybe he knows what he's talking about, haha.)

We've been very fortunate in our 6.5 years together. We met in Europe, obviously we lived in North America and now Africa. We honeymooned in Southeast Asia, and did a New Years trip a few years ago to Australia... leaving us with South America and Antarctica to go. We've been to the Atlantic and Pacific and now the Indian Ocean. Now, to be fair, we're still not sure what ocean Phuket, Thailand counts for. We believe it could be Indian but also could be some obscure body of water. That said, we have now FOR SURE been to the Indian Ocean.

We took a taxi to a hotel on that side of Maputo with the assumption that they would have beach access and we could just sneak through. Unfortunately, we were failed by Google/Apple Maps which made it appear that the hotel was on the water, but, in reality, it's atop a hill. The hotel is beautiful but no access to the sand. So we decided to go on a walk to another hotel. We weaved through streets, walked past the President's Residence (as evidenced by a crazy helipad on top of a mansion), and ended up at another lovely hotel that actually had "sand-access". We were disappointed to find that there are no chairs on the beach and we didn't have towels. To top it off, there was a hefty breeze coming off the water. The kind that is lovely when you're sitting on a deck with a cocktail, but requires picking sand out of all orifices for the next week if you tried to go down to the beach (spoken like a true Floridian!)

Alas, we found a lovely little beach bar and hung out watching the water and the fisherman. Afterwards we walked next door to a little seafood restaurant that was full of people. Had some lunch and slowly made our way back to our side of town. So, just in case the Indian Ocean hadn't been accomplished before... it is now!

Hunger Games: Finding our favorite restaurants in Maputo

Since we both work during the weekdays, we try to go out to eat in the evenings when possible. Dan's office is just a short 5-7 minute walk from the hotel. I work either in the hotel room, in the cafe downstairs, or in the small business center just to change my scenery around when I can. All this means is that we try to go out to eat off the property when we can. We've tried a few restaurants around town so far, but there are still plenty to explore. Luckily, Dan's coworkers here are friendly and kind enough to offer up some recommendations.

Our first night in Maputo we went to Maputo Waterfront. Dan had a seafood rice dish that was a bit like a cioppino. I had some tasty red snapper with potatoes and veggies. The takeaway from the first night was: "oh thank goodness, the wine is better here." Suppose when you're a former Portuguese colony who sticks with the language and culture, the wine ought to be of Portuguese standard as well.

Sunday, we ran some errands... found the local supermarket and got some snacks to have in the room on days when I don't feel like going to the cafe or breakfast buffet. That night, we ate at the cafe downstairs and watched the Cowboys/Packers game on the computer via Slingbox. (And no, we shouldn't discuss Dez Bryant's probably-should-have-been-a-catch-to-likely-win-the-game-but-some-stupid-rule-says-it's-not.)

Monday, we tried a sushi joint that Tripadvisor had dubbed the best sushi in Maputo. Let's just say we hope it's not the best sushi in Maputo. If it is, we will be looking forward to our return to Accra where we have at least two sushi restaurants that are significantly better :)

Tuesday, was our most interesting find. A place called Wine Lovers (right up our alley, right?). A tapas style restaurant with a wide selection of bottles and an extensive menu. Biggest challenge? Servers only speak Portuguese and menu is in Portuguese. So we took a stab at it and ordered a few dishes and some wine and had a nice evening.

On Wednesday, we decided on a more casual vibe and went to Mundo's. It had come highly recommended by Dan's coworker, Driaan. Considering that he's "melanin-deficient" (aka white) and from South Africa, we trust his expat tastes. Upon pulling up in the taxi, we quickly learn that Mundo's is a HUGE, open-air Sports Bar. Way to go, Driaan! So we had some beer and wings and pizza and watched some soccer. I forgot to take pictures that night (whoops) so here's the logo for Mundo's:

Thursday was a quiet night at the hotel restaurant as I had some work that went into the evening and needed to stick close to home.

I'd say there's one major food takeaway so far: everything, and we mean everything, comes with french fries. While that was fun for about 3 days, we are totally sick of them on every level. Thus, one of the first Portuguese phrases we have perfected (along with thank you, good morning, and big bottle of water) is "sin batatas" or "without potatoes". We get some surprised looks for rejecting the fries but it's better for our health in the long run. Looking forward to seeing what else this city has in the gastronomy department. More foodie posts to come, I'm sure since this was only the first week's recap!