TO DO MAPUTO
If you’re heading to Mozambique to escape the winter blues, do stop to sample the multiple delights of the capital, writes Bridget Hilton-Barber
T HERE’S a skip in the step of Maputo, a smile on its face, a frivolous wave in its palm trees. Dubbed Little Havana because of its retro charm and tropical attitude, it has seen an explosion of galleries, bars, bistros, restaurants, clubs, coffee shops and street culture. Here’s a list of cool things to do.
Take an historic ramble
Wander through historic Maputo to get a feel of the old baixa — the original downtown. Praça de Independencia (Independence Square) is a massive neo-classical number celebrating the end of Portuguese colonialism. Nearby, you can see the giant statue of the country’s first president, Samora Machel, the Roman Catholic cathedral and the Jardim Tunduru botanical gardens, designed by Thomas Honney in 1855. Though they’re in need of some TLC, they’re still a green haven for tourists and lovers, students and office workers. The nearby Franco Mozambicano cultural centre is a hip space in a Victorian building with a gallery and bistro, and sculptures made from old guns in the garden.
Commit prawnicide
Prawns are an excellent reason to visit Maputo. Try the fabulous Marisqueira Sagres (4272 Avenida Marginal), a convivial, familyfriendly Portuguese restaurant on the beachfront with maritime kitsch and good prawn platters with a traditional Portuguese twist of spicy chorizo sausages or
trinchado, strips of beef. At the popular Zambi Restaurant (8 Avenida 10 de Novembro), you can take the country’s signature dish to its logical conclusion and go for the Prawns Laurentina — prawns cooked in beer in an original secret recipe.
Zambi is an upbeat spot with a shaded terrace in a building designed by avant-garde Portuguese architect Pancho Guedes in the ’50s. For fine-dining prawnicide, head for Southern Sun’s Bayview restaurant (4016 Avenida Marginal) with its ocean views and excellent food and wine.
Hop on and off
The Maputo Express ( www.mozambiquecitytours.com) is a brightly coloured hop-on, hop-off 10-stop ride through the city that passes the railway station, the Mercado Central market and the Natural History Museum. You decide how long you want to stay at each stop and you’ll be accompanied by a friendly local guide. They also offer a Maputo Night Safari.
Cruise the Marginal
Known simply as “the Marginal”, this 12km-long palm-lined avenue is Maputo’s most famous ocean road, with bars and bistros, markets, shebeens, restaurants and street culture. People gather on the sea-facing sidewalk to listen to music, drink wine, party and watch Afro-Catholic weddings on the beach. The mosaic murals at the southern end are a city landmark, made by Mozambican artist Naguib. The Marginal is best on Sundays for its carnival atmosphere.
Head for the islands
It’s a two-hour ferry ride to Inhaca and nearby uninhabited Portuguese Island, set in a marine reserve famed for its gorgeous coral reefs, mangrove swamps, great diving and birding. You can walk between the two islands at low tide. The Santa Maria Channel, which separates the island of Inhaca from the continent, has violent currents they call Portões do Diabo (the devil’s gates).
Hop on the ferry
Catembe, across the bay from Maputo, was a popular weekend spot for the Portuguese rich in the colonial days and today’s shabby, run-down and totally charming houses tell of a decadent Afro-Mediterranean past. Have lunch at the Catembe Gallery Inn ( www.catembe.net), an interesting hotel with good outdoor decks, a small museum and a fabulous bar.
Admire Eiffel’s railway station
Maputo’s Caminhos de Ferro de
Moçambique (CFM) station was voted by Newsweek as one of the 10 most beautiful train stations in the world. It’s all peppermint green and marble with glorious Victorian arches and pillars, and a wrought-iron roof dome designed in 1910 by Gustav Eiffel. Inside the station building are two ancient steam engines and a little jazz bar called Kapfumo which
has live music and a cool crowd.
Check out the elephants
The Maputo Special Reserve, formerly the Maputo Elephant Reserve, is a gorgeous stretch of bush along an isolated coastline with mangrove swamps in the north and, elsewhere, a mix of high-grassland thorny thickets, dune scrub and acacia woodlands. The reserve was established in 1960. Along its western extent is the ancient Futi Channel, a migratory path for elephants. There are three saltwater lakes, more than 300 bird species and plenty of leatherback turtles.
Boogie nights
Maputo’s nightlife is a delicious blend of Afro-Mediterranean flavours and rhythms. There are New Orleans-style jazz bars, trendy Afro-chic cocktail spots, shebeens and pubs. Try Dolce Vita on Julius Nyerere for cool cocktails, Kapfumo bar at the CFM station for good jazz, Gil Vicente for live music and Núcleo D’Artes for reggae. The undisputed crown jewel of dancing is Coconuts, which has several dancefloors, music stars from all over Africa, countless bars and is a glorious living catwalk — but go late.
And so to bed
One of the oldest in the city, Hotel Cardoso (707 Avenida Martires de Mueda;
www.hotelcardoso.co.mz) has historical drama and great views. It was Renamo’s headquarters in the run-up to the 1994 elections, and its fourth floor was famously damaged by a rocket-propelled grenade when talks between Frelimo and Renamo broke down. The Cardoso Hotel has a busy, friendly vibe and a good restaurant.
Alternatively, try the soulful B&B Mozaika (769 Agostinho Neto; www.mozaika.co.mz), a homely sanctuary downtown. It has a swimming pool and good lounging spots in a luscious garden with a big, fat mango tree. The rooms are artistic with African, Asian and South American touches. —