| Just off the coast of Mozambique are an Archipel of 4 Islands named Bazaruto. It is designated a national park to protect the islands themselves as well as the surrounding waters. Especially the latter are teeming with life. One of the main reasons tourists come here is the great opporunities for scuba diving and snorkelling. Probably the highest reward would be to see one of the threatened Dugongs that infest these shallow waters. The Islands themselves are offlimits for tourists unless you stay at one of the blatantly expensive lodges. We went for a couple of dives with a Scuba dive company based in Vilanculos, the village on the mainland closest to the Islands. |
| The biggest draw for most Scuba Divers is this area around Tofo. Just Off shore are several beautiful dive sites. It's main attraction are the Giant Mantas and Whale Sharks. While the former are present pretty much year round, Whale Shark sightings are highest in their summermonths. Apart from the 'big' attractions, there is a lot of smaller critter around: many moray eels, nudibranches, shrimps and scores of coral fishes. If you're not into scubadiving, there is not much else to do than enjoyin the beach (not that bad either though...) |
| This town has many backpacker's, hotels and campings since it's the main hub to visit the Bazaruto Archipel. A nice relaxed little town in which you can observe daily live of the locals. From here it is easy to organize some scuba diving around the Islands, or the visit one of the Islands on a day trip by sailing on a Dhow (the traditional fishingboats). It's a great way to relax, have a snorkel and enjoy the beautiful Islands. |
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| Physical activities: eg Walking / Rafting / swimming Nature: eg National Park / Reserve City / Cultural site |
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© Bart Everts
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| In Northwestern Mozambique lies this non-descriptive town that for mosttourists is only a stopover between central Mozambique and Malawi. We spent the night there at a camping overlooking the zambezi and the only bridge in hundreds of kilometers that crosses it. At the campsite we met a guy that had been working in Tete for a couple of years adn he told us that Tete is one of the fastest growing cities in Africa, sincehugh amounts of heavy metal deposits have been found in the area. As a result, there is an enormous influx of people into the city trying to make a profit. Also many foreign companies, lead by Chinese, are interested in getting something out of the scramble for these valuable metals. Just in general, it is sad to see how countries such as China take advantage of the situation by offering Mozambique to build roads in order to get natural resources (minerals, wood) in return. Guess for whom it is most advantageous in the long run. It's not Mozambique. It's basically a cryptic form of colonialization. And it happens in many poor African countries that can't resist the easy money... |
