Macaneta v North Devon...

We all went to Macaneta this weekend. It’s about 1 ½ hours north of Maputo in a chappa and the nicest beach close to the city. (1 ½ hours must be a Mozambican estimate as it took us 6 hours.) It was hot all of last week so no-one was that worried about the weather. 8am on Saturday…grey skies, black clouds and frequent downpours! It proceeded to rain on and off pretty much solidly all weekend. Mozambique in the rain reminds me a lot of parts of England. It’s like a completely different country minus the blue skies. At least I felt fairly at home, it reminded me of North Devon on a bad day. 

The transport from the ferry to the beach was a pick up truck. You had to be careful where you stepped as there was the odd chicken in a carrier bag on the floor. 

The beach was nice and would be beautiful in the sun. Despite the rain, I was the first one in the sea and once you went numb, it was lovely. 

As Nick wasn’t staying with the car, everyone bought food for the next day…bread. I think I ate my own body weight in slightly damp, stale bread this weekend. Having sworn off it for a while, I got home and had rice…and bread. Although Nick was a let down on the car front, he did make everyone sandwiches. I, being picky about sandwiches, had requested mine specially, cheese and cucumber, no butter and most definitely, no mayonnaise. Nick conveniently forgot to mention all the other tasty ingredients he had and so whilst everyone had very grown up sandwiches, I had my special “child’s sandwich”. It was good though.

 

That evening, everyone was treated to a beautiful rendition of “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Matt and I, around the fire. It’s hard to say how much they enjoyed it and conveniently, no-one seemed to have “Don’t Stop Believing”. 

I don’t think the tents were designed for downpours and the puddles inside the tent were pretty sizeable by about 9pm. 

By the next morning everyone’s sense of humour had disappeared a little bit and it was a fairly quiet journey home. I found it all rather comical…if you don’t laugh you might cry I suppose.

In the last chappa, about 5 minutes from home, I had my phone stolen L I had a bit of a sense of humour failure as I always always keep my phone and wallet in my bra to avoid this but as I had my iPod and my camera, there had been no room for my phone and I had my hands full of with sleeping bags! I must have taken my hand off my bag for about 2 minutes! On the plus side, it would have been much worse had it been anything else. Phones are replaceable but I’m sad I lost all my messages. It’s just a pain as now I have to try and find another one and go to Vodacom to register another sim. Oh well, as is life. 

I’ll definitely go back to Macaneta when the weather gets better. Although, typically, today is warm and sunny! Tofu, which is a lot further north, about 8 hours, is next on my list I think.

The African Games start next weekend which should be interesting. At the moment, no-one knows how to get hold of tickets as nothing has been announced, in typical Mozambique fashion. I think I'll try and go see as much as possible. 

Not too much other news from last week I don't think. I should be starting my original project at some point this week which will be good. I spent some time with the physio on Friday at the Infantario and so now know how to do most of the exercises with the children so will start some more of that tomorrow. 

A good day...

Yesterday was a good day and deserves a blog all of its own.

It started with a lie in, a hot shower, fresh bread and the best seat on the chappa. Sonia, who was 4 hours late to meet me on Friday, was then, amazingly, early. According to the other volunteers, this has never happened...I think it was perhaps down to some slightly passive aggressive texts on my part. I then finally got to visit my original project, ACCORD. Everyone in the office was lovely but I'm not sure how I feel about it as it seems as if I will be in the office teaching English to the staff and translating, as opposed to actually working with any of the young people but we shall see. I then had a day with not much to do so Nick took me to get a burger. This burger came from a hole in a wall, down a small alleyway (a burger, cheese, chips, an egg and salad in a bun for about 1 pound) and it was eaten overlooking the sea. We then met Jan and Nastasia and we all had a 4 hour chauffeur driven tour of Maputo (thanks Nick) on the hunt for headphones and a diary. Headphones were easy, the diary not so. After 7 shops and nearly giving up, I found one in the last supermarket we went to. Happy days! I really wanted one! I don't think Mozambicans understand the need for diaries and planning as a whole most of the time. I think the woman thought I was slightly mad, as I was so happy to have found one, and asked me if I wanted to buy 2! To be honest, I think Nick, Jan and Nastasia all thought I was slightly odd too. Then, finally, to top it off, Chris gave us his external hard drive so now Nastasia and I have enough films to have film Saturday and Sunday! A good day all round!

I have now come to the conclusion, if I can get Sonia to arrive early and find a diary for 2011 in Maputo...I can do anything!

Some of the children in my house, from Infantario da Matola...

More of my house

My host Mum and my house

One week in...

I have now been here for just over a week and can now find all my chappa stops on my own, and in the dark, a key turning point!

I started my first project this week, Infantaria da Matola. I have to get 2 chappas to work and I start at 8.30am so I leave my house at 6.30am ish. I'm working in Casa 3, which is home to the most disabled children in what is essentially, an orphanage. There are 12 children in the house and 10 of the children are in wheelchairs. I love them all already. I work until 12.30pm and spend the day playing with the children, talking to them in Portu-english and doing some minor physio with them. None of the children speak but lots of them understand exactly what I'm saying. I talk to Satchane, one of the boys, a lot, he understands everything and we laugh a lot. I spend a lot of time hiding behind a pillow and then popping out again and covering them with a sheet and pretending I can't find them, both of which they find hilarious! I am going to take some pictures this week and will upload them. I find it hard as the Mozambican 'tias' in the house spend very little time with the children and can be rough when feeding and moving them. Now it's getting hotter I am going to take them outside for walks. I try and do some basic physio, with the two boys that can walk, every day. We have exercise balls which I am going to use next week. The children can lie on them and it strengthens their muscles and helps their posture.
I've started a second project in the afternoons. It's called CEMO and it's a think tank for issues, which affect Mozambique. I am translating a back log of their documents from Portuguese into English. It’s interesting and hopefully it will help my language.

I went to my first African dance on Wednesday...today is the first day I can walk without a limp! It was so much fun but so hard. The first hour is more like an exercise class, every variety of lunge and squat imaginable. The teacher is amazingly good. The second half is the dancing part, not my forte. I’m going to try and go 3 times a week.

Friday was a really frustrating day. I still haven't started my original project, called ACCORD. No-one has ever heard of it or seems to know anything about it. I waited at the office for Sonia for 4 hours and she didn't turn up, or call. It meant I missed the morning at Matola and was just a waste of time. I understand its 'Mozambican time' but she is always always really late. She said she would be there soon, which meant I couldn't leave and do anything else.

But Friday night was good and made up for it. We all went out to Rua de Arte. It was free entry and a free whisky on entrance. It was playing Ocean-esque music and even Baywatch came on! On Saturday we went to Chris's house for a braii and pool party. It was the first warm day for a while so in my mind, summer has now started. Nick was too hungover to bbq a fish but he did manage to make some great caipiroskas. Again, it was good to meet lots of new people and again, everyone is so friendly.

I think we are going to the beach tomorrow afternoon and I’m going to see my friend from school, Kate, in Johannesburg in a few weeks time which is exciting!

I’m going to try and upload some pictures now…

Day four...

I have now been here for four days...

I arrived at my host mum's on Thursday and for most of the afternoon she thought that I was German. She was very pleased to find out I was English in the end, and not a vegetarian. I then spent about a day trying to hang a mosquito net that was far too small for the bed, mumbling through a mix of Portuguese and English instructions. My house is really nice and we have a shower (with cold water) but it beats a bucket! Claudina, my host mum is lovely and frequently asks "you understand?"

I had my first lunch on Thursday of bacalhau (salted cod), potatoes, egg and greens. It was swiftly followed by a second lunch! My host mum wants me to try all the Mozambican food and I was so full but didn't want to offend her. I also had cake for breakfast yesterday as she was offended when I only ate bread the day before. At this point I will come home the size of a house!

Luckily I live with Nastasia, a German volunteer who has already been here for six months. She has been a lifesaver. The organisation were going to pick me up on Friday and take me to my project but then told me that it would actually be Monday. Without Nastasia I would have had no money, no idea of how to get to the city and would not have met the other volunteers.

The majority of the other volunteers are German. As I would in a large group of English people, they slip into German all the time. I don't mind at all until it comes to making plans...there is a lot of conversation, a decision gets made and they start walking...I am left wondering who/what/where and when which is why I'm wondering...which to learn first, Portuguese or German?

To get to the city and to work, I have to take a chappa. Imagine a small minibus that seats 15...now add 15 more people, some children, some bags, some boxes, a door made of sellotape and little to no floor and you have a chappa! I complained about the commute in London this summer at rush hour...how little I knew! My first chappa was fairly empty and I was eased in gently. My second chappa, yesterday, was a different matter...it pulled up and Natasia said "Get on". There was no way we would fit...how wrong I was. I was pushed headfirst onto someone's lap and the door was wedged shut behind me. At the next stop, I was shoved out backwards so people could get off and then the battle began...getting back on first  to secure a good spot. I failed miserably and ended up wedged against the ceiling at an odd angle, bum in some poor Mozambican's face...a comfortable hour! I'll get the hang of it though.

One of the first things Nastasia told me was "everyone is always late". Not just 15 minutes late...3 hours late. I am never late, in fact, I am always early. I have been told this will change while I'm here. Another thing, apparently I walk at 'English speed' and I need to slow it down to Mozambican speed. Again, I do nothing slowly so that will have to change.

Yesterday we went to the Art market and Catembe. We took a ferry to Catembe and sat on the beach which was a little cold. I keep forgetting that it is still winter here and at night it gets so cold, England cold. We stopped at a little hut/bar and I am happy to say that they sell cider! The Mozambicans call it sweet beer and refuse to believe that it comes from apples!

I came to a brilliant party last night. It was to celebrate Nina's birthday and raise money for an orphanage in Maputo. Her brother Nick is going to train to become a chef and the food was amazing! I also discovered a talent for beer pong...Nick and I won 3/4 games. I'd been so tired the first two nights so I had stayed at home. My host mum was so happy that I was leaving the house! I think she thought she may be stuck with a social recluse!

Tomorrow night some of us are going to an African dance class in the city. I can't dance and struggle with Zumba so it may be short-lived but I'll give it a go. There is a running club called the Maputo Hash House Harriers and I think I'm going to go on Saturday as it will be a good way to see Maputo and meet lots of people.

I've left it until last but the Portuguese is coming along slowly. The accent can be quite hard to understand and everyone speaks really quickly but I'm making sure I try to speak a lot. When all else fails..."nao falou muito Portugues!" I also slip into Spanish a lot, but with a Portuguese accent. My language teachers are going to have a field day next year.

I'm slowly finding my feet and I'm really enjoying it so far. Everyone is so friendly and Maputo seems like a great city. Everyone I've met raves about it! I'm starting to plan my weekend trips out of the city and waiting for it to get hot so we can go to the beaches. I miss everything at home but I plan to be too busy to miss it all too much.

And the packing commences...

I have compiled the ULTIMATE packing list, everything you could ever want/need...the only problem being...it is not designed to fit into a rucksack! I have laid everything out on the bed, in super organised piles and now don't have the energy to try (and quite possibly fail) to pack it all.On the plus side, I think I may offer the final list to Lonely Planet, I could make a fortune from being so efficient/over prepared.

I have just taken my first malaria tablet and now it is all starting to feel more real. For the last three days I have been veering between completely calm and completely panicked! I am worried that I have spent far too much time downloading ebooks for my Kindle and audiobooks for my iPod and far too little time brushing up on my Portuguese. I wish I hadn't let on that it is actually my degree subject as then I could have wowed my family/project as opposed to underwhelming them, although I suppose that's what 11 hour plane journeys are for...perhaps I can find an ebook called "Re-teach yourself Portuguese!"

My Kindle is my new favourite thing. I could read for hours and was honestly considering using most of 23kg baggage allowance for books, until someone mentioned a Kindle. I'd always prefer a book but given the choice of an 'almost book' or no books, I chose the 'almost'. I forgot that I then also had to buy the books so most of my 28 are the free "classics". Jane Eyre = great, The Book of Were-Wolves = maybe not quite as great, but still free so I intend to read it! Natwest actually blocked my card because they thought all the ebook/iTunes activity was down to fraud. I found myself explaining that I don't always spend so much on books and music, as if the woman was secretly judging me. 

People keep asking me..."why Mozambique? Why not Portugal? It's a lot closer and more convenient!" I'm not sure I'm one for convenience so it shouldn't really be a surprise! Also, people keep asking me what exactly I'm going to be doing. When I can't really give them an answer for either question, they look at me as if to say, "good luck with that!"

Nothing to do with Mozambique but it made me laugh - Grandma came for supper on Sunday to say goodbye to me. Supper was lovely and then, promptly at 6.45pm, she said, "I must go. I'll let you all get to bed!" Classic Grandma. 

Now, I really should start packing!

 

A great cause...

Thank you to everyone who has sponsored me so far.

For those that want to and are yet to, it really will be hugely appreciated. Here is a link to my Just Giving page with some more information/details about the projects:

http://www.justgiving.com/Alice-Breitmeyer

It's for a great cause and I really am very grateful for all your help.

Thank you x