Africa, At Last!

Yes, I know that Madagascar is technically a part of Africa, but we are at last on the mainland of Africa. I know we are really in Africa, because our ship is docked by the longest suspension bridge in Africa.












Our tour took us to the major sights in Maputo, Mozambique, on the Indian Ocean just north of South Africa.

The first stop was on the main city square, with the Cathedral on one side, the city hall on another and a statue of the leader, Samora Machel, who fought for independence.

City Hall

The train station is considered to be one of the ten most beautiful stations in the world, but I do not know what criteria they use.  Inside the station they had pictures of all 10, an exhibit of photographs of ordinary people at the station and a couple of the first engines used in the country.

Does the name Eiffel remind you of anything?  Perhaps a tall airy structure in Paris?  Eiffel liked to design using metal, so before he became famous for designing the Eiffel Tower in Paris, he designed an all metal building as a government office building in Maputo.  The only problem was that when it was done and the tropical sun shone on it, it became a huge oven, making it uninhabitable.  The government did not want it, so it was handed off to someone else.  They have added air conditioning and now use it as a museum.

Every city has a fort, and Maputo is no exception.  Most of the cannons have been retired to form a work of art in the main courtyard of the fort.

 Every city also has seems to have a botanical garden and Viking makes sure that it is included in at least one tour.  In the case of our tour, this meant going into the garden looking around for a minute or two and continuing on the tour to a most important stop -- lunch.  The food was delicious, but I have no idea what it really was.  I think that one of the skewers was chicken and the other shrimp.  The triangular piece was a semosa filled with meat of some kind.  When I asked about the third piece,  neither the owner nor our guide could come up with a word in English.  Whatever it was, it was delicious.

The final stop was at a natural history museum.  We had been warned that many of the pieces were quite old and may not be in the best shape.  I was not prepared for the overwhelming number of animals in natural poses in such proximity.  Many of the animals were shown in action poses doing what they would normally do --running, jumping, attacking other animals or caring for their young.

Each time a ship comes into a port for the first time, city officials come aboard and exchange some sort of plaque or certificate with city officials.  Sometimes these are very low-key events but often the local press is invited and the ceremony is held in the "Atrium", the center of our ship, on the grand stairway.  The screen on the landing with its changeable pictures displays an appropriate work of art or a colorful local postal stamp.  This time the screen displayed some of the knitters with an array of the baby caps we  have done.  All the knitters present were invited to come up and stand on the stairs while we presented a box of hats to the local Red Cross.

Supplies for disaster relief

In addition, Viking Sun donated $50,000 of food and other ship stores such as bedding and cooking supplies to the Red Cross for disaster relief for the large hurricane which had hit the country recently.