Mozambique Island, Mozambique
(Notes from a journey to Mozambique, Malawi, and Zambia, Sep/Oct 2015.)
The lovely Ilha de Moçambique (“Island of Mozambique”) was once a hub of many cultures on the Indian Ocean trade network and an Arab port and shipbuilding center. Vasco da Gama visited the island in 1498 en route his famous voyage to India. Beginning in 1507, a permanent Portuguese settlement—including a port, a naval base, and a chapel—was established in the northern part, which grew to take up the area now known as Stone Town. The island then became the Portuguese capital of East Africa until 1898, when the capital shifted to Maputo. Now a UNESCO world heritage site, the Island of Mozambique abounds in crumbling colonial era buildings, many under restoration—including a Hindu temple—and “the oldest complete fort still standing in sub-Saharan Africa.”
We stayed in a lodge whose interiors and courtyard-centric design had a strong Indian sensibility; we learned that its Italian owner had purchased it from an Indian family who had lived there for generations. The island's current population of 14,000 is 90% Muslim and 10% Christian, but as an American evangelical pastor we met here indicated (that conversation is a story for another day), monotheistic lore sits loosely upon older beliefs that include animism, ancestor worship, and witchcraft, as well as matrilineal social arrangements. We were lucky to encounter a bi-weekly street market on the island, full of a bright and expressive sense of color most evident in the fabrics of chitenge—the dress women wrap themselves in all over east Africa. [—Namit Arora, October 2015]
View from the one-lane
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Restored part of Stone Town
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Portuguese architecture
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Sunset
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Mosque (more)
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Church, Igreja da Saúde
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Hindu temple
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A public park
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Mac and his friend
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Two girls
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With a brand new ball
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A restaurant run by an
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A facade in Stone Town
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Recently restored
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Deep blue sky
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Historical buildings of
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Built between
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Colonial-era buildings
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Restored town hall
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Awaiting restoration
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Fallen apart during
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Dilapidated
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A restored building
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Children, Makuti Town
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Children, Makuti Town
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Children, Makuti Town
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A hotel pool / restaurant
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Island coast
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Sunset hues
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Street on eastern side
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Street on eastern side
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Street on eastern side
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For lunch, anyone?
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Steet on the eastern side
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East coast
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East coast
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Three children (more)
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Island's residents
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Plaza with statue of
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Luís Vaz de Camões (more)
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Vasco da Gama
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Museum of the Isle of
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Museum courtyard
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Igreja da Misericórdia
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Chapel decor
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Colonial era rickshaws
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Restored colonial-era boat
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The fort in the distance
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Old customs house
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Near the southern end
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Street going north
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The southern coast
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Banyan tree lined street
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Faded splendor
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A colonial-era theater
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Street on the eastern side
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Restored buildings
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Eastern coast (more)
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Northwest coast
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What color is the sea?
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Indian ocean blues
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Hospital de Mozambique
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A street Stone Town
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An Indian origin trader
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A plaza in Stone Town
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Madrassa Ibrahimo
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Thatched-roofs of
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Street vendors,
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Condom ad in an eatery
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Sunset (more)
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Dusk
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Restaurant
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Matapa siri-siri with rice
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Homes in evening light
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Home with thatched-roof
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Beach shack / bar
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BFFs
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Banyans in a public park
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Playing basketball
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Evening in Stone Town
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Italian restautant (more)
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| A bi-weekly market on the Island of Mozambique | |||
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| The Fort of São Sebastião | |||
Oldest complete fort in
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Dates from 1558
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Late afternoon (more)
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Dominates the northern
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Another view of the fort
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Inside the church
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Canons and crosses
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Awaiting restoration (more)
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View from the ramparts
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Canons (more)
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Northeastern wall
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Chapel of Nossa
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Recently restored, the
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The oldest European
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An example of Manueline
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