On Monday night, the 20th of October 2008, our journey was kick started with the InterCape bus trip from Old JHB road in Centurion to Maputo, Mozambique. We crossed the Lebombo border in Mozambique by sunrise on Tuesday, fortunately having no issues with customs or prolonged searches.
Once in Maputo we settled at The Base Backpackers which provided dormitories and all necessary means to pack off, and rest it out for the night.
Our first day was anything but rest as we set off exploring the city, which is like any other, exchanging money, obtaining a fishing permit, and visiting the Costa de sol fish market.
What an amazing site! Fresh fish and seafood, still live, crayfish and prawns at very cheap rates! Needless to say, we bought a few and ended off our first day with a fish braai, a cold beer and an early night in.
Because we were yearning for beach life, we set off for Praia de Tofu at 5:30am the next morning. This took a taxi ride to town, a Chuppa (which is a bus bigger than a taxi, but smaller than a local bus) to Tofu which is situated in Inhambane, 789km North of Maputo, and a ten minute walk to Bamboozi Backpackers which is home for the next few days.
We found Bamboozi through the Coast to Coast Backpacking guide, and immediately loved their offered accommodation which allows us to set up camp, sheltered in beach huts, with electricity provided from 5am to 10pm daily. They are self catering, but also have a restaurant and bar if one prefers otherwise.
Bamboozi is surrounded by rural villages on the one side, and a stretch of open beach on the other. A 15minute walk takes you to Tofu village where you can buy fresh bread, fruit and veg or catch a taxi to Inhambane for ATM’s and transfers to other destinations.
Thus far, at 4am every morning Ferdi goes fishing, either from the shore, spear or like today, with one of the locals on their boats.
We spend our days lounging on the beach with a book, or in his case, entertaining the local kids with rugby, which they find very enjoyable!
Along the beach are various bars and backpackers where we stop off to enjoy cool drinks before the late afternoon fishing and a bit of rain.
Being here allows one to appreciate the beauty by which we are surrounded. The everyday sunshine and time spent outdoors, the clear blue waters and clean air and bright starry skies at night! Before we left Pretoria I read a verse from Joshua 1:9:
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” And this opportunity and the bit we’ve experienced so far make it very clear! With excitement fluttering in our tummies, we kept bursting out with nervous laughter, not quite knowing what to expect. But being here, together, and yet again surrounded by what we longed for, for so long, one thing is for certain:
This is us, this is what we’re made of, this is what we’re meant to do..It feels like home!!
Ciao!
Accommodation rates: Base backpackers 150 Mets per person for dorm room sharing.
Bamboozi Backpackers: 150 Mets per person for camping.
Tip of the Day:
Ensure that you have cash on hand when entering accommodation areas. Only when we arrived we realized that ATM’s were only to be found in Inhambane which is quite a distance from accommodation sites, thus to far to walk.
There is no internet access in Tofu, but public telephones can be used at 1meticai per second.
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