Just your Average Day in Mozambique

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation & Care work
WRITTEN BY: Stella Encel

Life of an Antipodeans Mozambique volunteer is always fun! Getting up at 8am is easy when the first thing you see from the front porch looks like a postcard of a tropical paradise. The sunrise over the water is truly unforgettable. We start the day with a morning dive in the crystal clear, warm water - home to a vast array of tropical marine life.

After a relaxing boat ride back to shore post dive (which allows you time to reflect on all your new aquatic amigos) we relax on a deck chair in the sun and read until the next activity for the day. Activities include an ocean safari or a fascinating lesson on the unique marine life that inhabits the waters of Tofo. Each lesson is passionately delivered by Ross or Katie, the resident marine scientists in Tofo.

Even seemingly dull data entry collected from research dives and ocean safaris is made enjoyable by the stunning uninterrupted view of the Indian Ocean from the office - fully fitted-out with couches and hammocks overlooking the water.

In our spare time, a short walk to the local market or the beach exposes you to a variety of friendly local characters, enthusiastically greeting you with a huge array of local wares, from handmade bracelets, fabrics and clothes, to fresh local fruit and vegetables.

The perfect end to the day is dinner of course! Whether its a traditional Mozambican meal featuring the freshest local seafood from Albatroz restaurant, or a taste of home in the form of a delicious pizza from Brancos, the famous local pizzeria. Back at the house, falling asleep to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach is easy, and even easier knowing that another day of adventure awaits us in the morning.

Want to volunteer in Mozambique? Get more information here. 

The Final Week in Mozambique!

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Katy Holden

It’s hard to believe that five weeks have flown by already. We only have one week left here in Tofo before heading home, and I’m not sure that I’m ready to leave the white sand beaches just yet.

The past ten days have been such amazing fun. The five of us opted to take a tour in which we visited Swaziland and Kruger National Park in northern South Africa. After a twelve hour drive starting at 4am, we were very happy to arrive in Swaziland on Saturday evening. Despite being so close to Mozambique, it’s a very different country. We arrived to rain, and fog sitting over the tops of the mountains surrounding the beautiful and lush Ezulwini Valley where we stayed.

The three days we had there were packed full of activities. We hiked our way up mountains and rode horses through the Milwane Game Park where we got to get up close and personal with the residents. Even an encounter with a hippo on the river the day before wasn’t enough stop our white water rafting and abseiling trip. On our final afternoon, we were taken on a cultural tour to the Lombomba village to taste local beer and meet the world’s most enthusiastic children. Our time in Swaziland was topped off with a huge braai, which is the South African term for a barbeque. This was a welcome sight after a month of fish in Tofo!

The drive to Kruger from Swaziland was shorter, and we were greeted on arrival at the gate by one of the park’s bigger residents: a white rhino. Kruger has some of the densest populations of animals in the world, and therefore the best game viewing on safari. This wasn’t hard to believe, as before we reached our camp, we’d also seen elephants and water buffalo, meaning we could already tick off three of the big five! We were quickly able to add lions to this list, as well as black rhinos, hyenas, warthogs, giraffes, zebra, jackals, and a host of beautiful birdlife.

Our canvas safari tents were enough to keep out the African thunderstorms at night, and these were also beautiful to watch. It makes you feel very small to watch the intense lightning and feel the thunder shake the ground, even from a great distance away. Even a four am wakeup wasn’t enough to dampen our enthusiasm when Sunday rolled around, as we were taken on a walking safari with armed guards to see some smaller game and to investigate the environment around us. I never thought I’d be standing beneath a tree with the body of an impala in its branches, knowing that a leopard had eaten there the night before.

Our return to Tofo meant an overnight stop in Mozambique’s capital, Maputo, followed by another four am start to catch our bus. We’d been warned thoroughly about the ambiguities of African public transports, and these were confirmed by the many, seemingly random, times that the driver stopped the bus. After eight hours, we arrived back to the beautiful beach and ocean breeze – and jumped straight in the water!

We’ve since returned to our volunteer work. We’ve finished the marine part of our combo programme, and are now focussing on the social work aspect. This means visiting a local kindergarten, Escolina Nassanana, and helping out in any way possible. We’ve done a little construction, a little painting, and a lot of playing with gorgeous children who love to laugh while they lay in our laps and pretend they don’t want to be tickled. We’ve also been taking part in swimming lessons. For a community living so close to the sea, many children are afraid of the water and it’s therefore very important that they learn how to swim. It’s extremely rewarding to see the kids slowing warming to the idea of being in the pool.

It’s sad to know that in a week, the smiling faces and bright sun of Tofo will be a memory instead of my daily reality, but we’re all looking forward to fresh milk and steaks back home!

Living the dream in Mozambique

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak & UniBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Katy Holden

After three weeks, Tofo is beginning to feel like home. Why wouldn’t you want to be in a place where diving with manta rays is all in a day’s work?

The six of us have settled into the routine here easily. It’s hard not to when the locals are so willing to chat to us – we’re even picking up a bit of Portuguese here and there. The most important word to learn immediately was ‘frango’, so that we could order the world’s most amazing peri-peri chicken from the markets. A majority of the people local to Tofo speak basic English, which is the legacy of the strong tourism from South Africa. But the interactions that are born from engaging with the local language still can’t be beaten, even if it means having our pronunciation laughed at occasionally.

"Being underwater is like being in an entirely different world"

Diving every day definitely isn’t a hard routine to get into either. There’s nothing better than rolling out of bed and heading across the road to the dive centre to start our day. We begin by setting up our own tanks and gearing up with wetsuits. Everything gets loaded into the boat, which is then towed down the road to the beach while we walk. Because Tofo is so exposed to the strait of the Indian Ocean between Africa and Madagascar, the swell can become intense and there are constantly currents present. As a result of this, the beach itself is constantly changing shape; consequently, there is no suitable site for a pier. For us, this means that we get to launch the boat off the beach, into the surf. This is always a highlight of our day. We wait while the ute brings the boat as close to the sea as it can, and then it’s all hands on deck to turn the boat the right way around and push it out to where it’s deep enough to jump in. This is only the beginning of the adventure, with dolphins, seabirds and sea turtles accompanying us on the way to the dive site.

The dives themselves are a dream. Being underwater is like being in an entirely different world, and there’s definitely something magical about swimming through schools of tropical fish to see giant moray eels, potato bass, and sea turtles. But nothing beats the moment when you look up to see a manta ray gracefully gliding over your head. Being in the presence of such a large and elegant animal on its own turf is something that needs to be experienced before it can be explained.

Despite the dives being so amazing, they are also an important part of the marine conservation work that we came here to do. We take cameras with us to take ID photos of sea turtles and manta rays, and slates to make note of all the different kinds of fish we see. Back at the ‘office’ (a breezy room with hammocks overlooking the beach), we enter this data so that it can be used by a community of scientists, both local and international, to study the health of the reefs.

Stay tuned for an update on our underwater adventures in the coming weeks!

Volunteers dive in to beautiful Tofo Bay

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak & UniBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Katy Holden

As a uni student from New Zealand, arriving in Mozambique has been a definite shock to the system, but in the best possible way.

Our journey into this beautiful country started in the city of Inhambane. But city is a loose term compared to what we are used to at home. The airport is tiny, a little blue building with one room that was both arrivals and departures, and one security screen point that worked both ways. This makes for a very hectic time when flights are leaving and arriving at the same time! Administration and protocol is very, very different here, with visas being administered in the arrival and departure lounge. When combined with the very intense heat, this made for quite the entrance into Mozambique.

Tofo is a small but bustling town that thrives on tourism. It boasts a great surf break, as well as what is arguably one of the world’s most beautiful beaches and an ocean teeming with life. We’ve arrived at the end of the South African holidays, meaning that tourist season will soon draw to a close. But at the moment, the town is still busy with people from all over the world who have come to surf the great breaks and dive in the gorgeous Indian Ocean. That’s half of why we’re here, too. This week has consisted of getting our PADI dive certifications, so that soon we’ll be able to dive with the beautiful creatures local to the Mozambique coast. Our first ocean dive on Friday gave us a great taste of this, with a visit to a 9m deep reef that was home to a whole host of beautiful tropical fish. Soon we hope to see sea turtles, manta rays and of course, whale sharks.

After arriving on Monday, we took Tuesday to explore. We took a local chappa- the name for the local taxi buses- back into Inhambane to explore the city. The chappa itself was an experience worth remembering. In a fourteen seater van, about twenty five people were piled in, all sitting and standing on top of each other. Every time we thought that it was well and truly full, the driver would stop and let a few more on. This made for a very hot ride! When we begin our childcare work soon, this will be our daily mode of transportation.

Volunteer life is great so far, with six of us living in a straw-thatch roof house. We’re less than a five minute walk to the beach, so naturally we’ve been swimming every day. I’m the only one from New Zealand, with four others from Australia and one from Norway. We’ve been sampling the local night life and eating delicious local food, which mainly consists of seafood, seafood, and more seafood. This is a fishing village, and everything comes straight from the sea to our plates. Whatever the fishermen catch that day is whatever we’ll eat. This is another reason why the marine conservation work that we came to do is so important. It is crucial for the community to create a sustainable environment to perpetuate the tourism that the sea life provides, and this involves education about sustainable fishing.

We’re all very excited to see how the next five weeks unfold!

GapBreakers take 'action-packed' to a whole new level

COUNTRY: Southern Africa (Swaziland, Mozambique & South Africa)
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Emily Forbes

Greetings!

There's quite a bit to fill you in with since my last blog. As signified by the title, we haven't wasted any time! We were lucky enough to have a week off our volunteer work to visit the stunning palm fringed beaches of Tofo Bay. Our accommodation at Fatima's backpackers had direct access to the beach, and we spent much of the week swimming, tanning and doing a whole bunch of activities.

Tofo was an undiscovered paradise and the highlight of the week was without a doubt the ocean safari. We all hopped into a speedboat and ventured out into the ocean with the hope of spotting a whale shark or humpback. We didn't have to wait long, within five minutes of being out on the water a baby humpback swam right alongside our boat, a sight that was rare even for our experienced guides! Things only got better from here on in as we ventured further out into the ocean, when we finally discovered a whale shark! We all hurried to jump in and swim alongside this majestic creature, and were blown away by just how big they were! As we made our way back to shore dolphins swam alongside the boat which topped off a perfect day.

The fun didn't stop there as we went on an island kayak to a remote island. After two hours of paddling over pristine waters we arrived on the coast of this island and walked underneath a canopy of tall palm trees through our tour of the island. After kayaking for two hours we were absolutely starving and were presented with a seafood feast that was enjoyed by everyone.

Other highlights of our time in Mozambique included quad biking, bartering at the local markets and enjoying breakfast on the beach.

Feeling refreshed after a week in Mozambique we headed back to our placement work at our home in Ezulwini. Our last two weeks of volunteer work were a flurry of activity as many of us had plans for our children. Our projects included building a new playground for the children in Lobamba, an excursion to Hlane game park for the Mlindazwe kids and purchasing toothbrushes and toothpaste for our children.

For our last day at our NCPs we all planned parties as a special treat for the kids. This included face paint, musical chairs, treasure hunts and pass-the-parcel to name a few. By the end of the day there were definitely a few tears as we realised we were saying goodbye to our beautiful children for good. We all promised to write and stay in touch, and hopefully return one day.

With our first volunteer placement behind us, we headed off on a road trip to the famous Victoria Falls. After travelling for two days through Swaziland, South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe we arrived at the tourist town of Vic Falls.

Our first activity planned was a day trip over the Zambian border to experience the falls from the top by going for a swim at the Devil's Pool, right at the edge of the top of the falls. We were greeted by absolutely breathtaking sights of the cascading falls and rainbows.

We also got to experience the might and majesty of the Zambezi river through white water rafting. This is said to be the best in the world, with the highest commercial rapid drop and it certainly did not disappoint! With rapids graded up to a 5 it was certainly hard work but thoroughly enjoyed by all, even when the raft capsized and we found ourselves being carried along the rapids.

On our last day in Vic Falls we visited the viewing platforms to see the falls in action. We were all blown away by these stunning views! In the afternoon two of us were game enough to test out the Vic Falls big air experience, which incorporated a zipline, gorge swing and bungee jump.

Our next adventure begins on Tuesday when we embark on our two-week road trip to Cape Town.

Until next time,

Usale Kahle!

Insight into a marine conservation placement

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Lottie Mellowes

Another two weeks has flown by here in Tofo, it's crazy to think we've been living in here for a month already. It's safe to say we are well and truly settled into our relaxed, beachside lifestyles.

Week three brought beautiful weather and lots of marine life. On one particular ocean safari some of us were lucky enough to swim amongst a huge pod of dolphins. There were upwards of forty dolphins jumping in and out of the water- certainly a highlight of the week. On the same ocean safari we were given permission to swim with a mother humpback whale and her calf. Usually, humans are not allowed to swim with humpback whales due to their sheer size and volume however these individuals were particularly calm and didn't mind the boat being near them. We were able to get good photo ID shots of the whales as well as observe their movements under the water.

Our social projects are continuing and we are already noticing progress in English skills in students and the teachers we work with. The teachers mainly speak the local language and Portuguese, so we have been working closely to develop their English skills so that they can teach the children in the long term. As much as we'd like to stay here forever, we will have to leave eventually! We also helped teach swimming lessons to students from the local school. Given that Tofo and its surrounds are coastal, it's so vital that everyone learns to swim, especially given that the local economy is based on fishing and tourism. It's hilarious watching the kids splash and play in the water, but very rewarding to see the them pick up what we're teaching them.

Week four was a busy week in Tofo as the group from Swaziland was visiting on the public holiday weekend. We spent the time doing an awesome quad bike tour of the areas around Tofo, driving through some of the surrounding villages with an awesome local guide.

This week we had a humpback whale specialist from the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) stay with us. We led our own purely research-based ocean safari and we got lots of data from various whales. We also saw an almost 2m leatherback turtle which was so exciting as they are quite rare here in Tofo.

Ciao for now!

A whale shark welcome to Tofo Bay

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Lottie Mellowes

Hello from Mozambique!

We've been in the little coastal town of Tofo for almost two weeks now, and we're already having the best time. We have settled into our volunteer accommodation, which is a traditional thatched house only a few minutes walk from the beach.

The first week was fairly relaxed and mainly involved some of us completing PADI diving courses or introductions to the marine conservation side of the program. Almost every day at least one of us was out on the boat and in the water, swimming or diving with the amazing marine life the coast of Mozambique has to offer. Sian, Ryan and I were lucky enough to swim with a whale shark on our second ocean safari! Unfortunately, the hype of jumping in the water meant that none of us were able to get our cameras ready. I assume we will see plenty of whale sharks over the next three months so expect photos in the near future!

Helena and Sophie have been busy diving and are now certified divers. During their dives they have seen numerous fish and octopus as well as humpback whales. As we become more accustomed to the marine project we will be collecting data and photo IDs of the animals both shore based and boat based. Shore based data research involves humpback whale monitoring and data entry- not as exhilarating as diving or snorkelling, but just as important!

Our program is the unique combination of marine conservation and social work at local schools and kindergartens. The children and teachers are so amazing and so grateful to have us help out. After a long and somewhat uncomfortable trip to school on the local 'chappa' we are always greeted with huge smiles and hugs from the children. Sian and Ryan are helping to build a vegetable garden at their kindergarten and Helena, Sophie and I have been busy at our placement teaching English to the teacher and taking the kids for swimming lessons. Our kindergarten is seriously under-resourced and a huge part of our job is creating a fun, comfortable environment for the kids to play and learn.

It is really important that we are involved in the social and marine projects on a long-term scale as we will be able to see the full effect of our work. This week we will be continuing at the kindergartens as well as visiting another primary school. Quite a few whale sharks and mantas have been spotted so hopefully we will come across them this week on our dives and ocean safaris.

We'll keep you posted!

Mixing volunteering with adventure in Southern Africa

COUNTRY: Southern Africa (Swaziland, Mozambique & South Africa)
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Elise Dean-Jones

It has come to the point where we are 2 months into our placement, and the final weeks are creeping up on us. I don't think any of us want to leave- Africa has treated us so well!

Once the weekend at the Bushfire festival ended we returned to Lidwala and commenced our final week of volunteering at our NCPs. It felt really strange that this would be our last week teaching in Swaziland, so we tried to take full advantage of our limited time. However, there was some sort of contagious cold going around the volunteers so we endured quite a struggle that week!

During the week we all had individual school sport days where volunteers and staff would conduct some games and exercises with the kids which we could all participate in. This also took the load off our shoulders, as the kids respond much better to the staff than us. For Rosie and I at Mlindazwe, our class was certainly more challenging than previously as we were informed that our teacher had her baby (who she had named the siSwati word for 'God's Plan'), so we were left on our own to manage the kids for the rest of the week. Some days we didn't have the keys unless a cooking lady arrived, so we had to spend the majority of our time outside playing educational games. Rosie and I had made some worksheets to put in exercises books, and bought stationary for the school, as well as a ball to play with outside.

Compared to our mischievous kids, the students at Laura's school in Ezulwini seemed very well behaved and got along very well with the volunteers, who found it much easier to teach them. They brought in some products for the school, like a broom, mop, floor cleaning products, toilet paper and stationary.

Lydia's school in Ekuzukekeni had 57 or so kids, so those volunteers found it very difficult to manage them. The volunteers brought a first aid kit, toiletries and some stationary. At Josh's school in Bethany, the kids were energetic and enthusiastic as always! He bought a first aid kit and some swings as the swings they previously had had broken off the set, so they were immensely happy with that. He also got them a few soccer balls, and instantly became massive supporters of Arsenal, although it may be a few more years before any of them make the team.

As Friday was our last day, we all brought in a few things to have a party for our schools, like cupcakes, biscuits, lollies (which in hindsight gave the kids way too much energy) and other treats they normally didn't get. We also brought things like balloons and bubbles, which brought with it a ton of laughter and fun for the kids. I don't think some of them even realised we were leaving - as they waved goodbye it was like we'd be back after the weekend. We really miss those kids! As naughty as some of them were, they will always remain in our hearts.

The week after, we went on a trip with some of the other volunteers to Victoria Falls. At first we were hesitant to go and miss out on a week of volunteering, but we realised that when in Africa, we have to go all-out and make the most of it! Rosie, Laura and one of the other volunteers went on a mad rush through Mbabane and ended up getting lost in Manzini attempting to get their last minute vaccinations before heading off on the trip.

We went with our guides Bob and Mpho, and it took about two days to drive there, going through South Africa and Botswana until we arrived in Zimbabwe. On the way we managed to see cows, goats, baboons, elephants and ostriches meandering near the side of the road. For the next few nights we stayed in Shoestrings Lodge in the town of Victoria Falls. We visited the Devils Pools in Zambia, where we got to swim right by the edge of the waterfall- an amazing experience. The next day the five of us all went on a Gorge Swing over the Zambezi River, where we jumped off the edge of a cliff, free fell for four seconds and swung over the water. Rosie, Lydia and I went in tandem jumps while Laura and Josh went on their own - Josh even did a handstand and went headfirst! No regrets. We're all glad we did this, as it would prepare us for bungee jumping later on in our trip! That afternoon we visited the falls, and thank god we hired some full-length rain jackets as the mist from the falls made us thoroughly drenched! It took a couple of days for our shoes to dry after that! On our last day in Vic Falls we went white water rafting in the Zambezi River. The hike down the steep mountain was enough to put us off considering how challenging it was not to fall, but we all had a great time going through the rapids. The boat that Rosie, Lydia and Josh was on managed to tip over in the waves, which actually looked like so much fun! We may have been a little envious. Until another boat decided to attack us and try to throw us into the water!

The next two days we drove back to Swaziland, stopping at the Blyde River Canyon in South Africa, the third largest Canyon in the world. Soon we arrived back in Swaziland and got ready for our next adventure down the coast to Cape Town. But we'll save that for the next blog entry!

Until next time,

Elise, Laura, Josh, Rosie and Lydia

Reliving some African Adventures

COUNTRY: Southern Africa (Swaziland, Mozambique & South Africa)
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Elise Dean-Jones

So our African adventure may have ended in real time, and some have already arrived safely home, but we still have many more stories to tell!

Following our trip to Victoria Falls, we spent another day or so in Swaziland before the 5 of us (plus Dutch volunteer Ingrid) set off for our 10 day road trip down the east coast to Cape Town, with our guide Mpho, who had also accompanied us to Victoria Falls. The first stop was St Lucia, where we went on a river boat cruise spotting hippos and crocodiles, then onto Durban, where we thoroughly enjoyed the beach scene & shopping and spent one of our days there at uShaka Marine World, a combined aquarium and water park, which our inner children really enjoyed!

During our stop in the Wild Coast we had the opportunity to meet and pat two male cheetahs- one was quite inquisitive and starting licking our legs! Laura, Josh, Ingrid and I went quad biking through the reserve, unfortunately spotting no animals. We were mainly focusing on trying to keep up with each other after numerous road incidents; Laura nearly ran into a tree at one point, and my bike decided to stop working halfway up a hill – needless to say I was gripping on the brakes for dear life to stop rolling backwards! Josh, of course, seemed to know what he was doing, and made the rest of us feel inadequate.

Our next ports of call were Port Elizabeth and then Tsitsikamma, where we bravely embarked on the world’s highest bungee bridge jump! We all knew it was coming up on our journey, but no idea that it would be today until Mpho told us during a very filling breakfast, which was a smart move, otherwise we may not have eaten that day! We arrived at Bloukrans Bridge, where we all prepared for the most frightening moment of our lives. I was chosen to go first, so I didn’t really have time to chicken out, and just jumped off! For sure it was scary, but by the time I reached the top I was jumping for joy, so proud of our achievements! Everyone went down one by one, and all bought videos/photos to show you when we get home – just in case you didn’t believe us!

The next day we went zip lining over some waterfalls, which was stunning, and Rosie, Lydia and Laura went on a Segway tour through the small town in Tsitsikamma where we were staying; despite the rain they said it was money well spent and lots of fun! The following day we finally reached Cape Town.

Hout Bay, Cape Town, would be our home for the next month as we continued with our volunteer work. During our first week we were introduced to our ‘crèches’ – similar to the NCPs we worked at in Swaziland. Lydia and Rosie were placed in Hangberg, whilst the rest of us were at schools in the Imizamo Yethu township. Unlike Swaziland, where ‘kombis’ were the primary source of public transport, in Hout Bay they had ‘cockroaches’, which were generally old, beat-up cars that took us to our schools everyday. Sometimes you couldn’t tell the difference between a cockroach and a regular car, Rosie and Lydia certainly figured that out when a stranger they had hailed down offered to give them a lift anyway!

When we first arrived at our crèches the kids instantly surrounded us, trying to grab hold of our legs in obvious excitement. Siyazama is the biggest of the 3 preschools, with over 70 kids and a large building with 3 classrooms and an outside playground. It had originally been created by the government, and it has only just been returned to the people of Imizamo Yethu. Laura and Ingrid are working at quite a small preschool, as Sophie (pronounced So-fi-ya) the principal, runs it out of her own home, and is jam packed with kids squeezed into the small rooms of her house. Lydia and Rosie's placement has no electricity, meaning no light when it is cold and dark during the winter mornings in Cape Town.

Initially we settled into our new home and preschools, even though it was school holidays for the next 3 weeks, many children still came to have something to do during the day. Some of us went to an after-school care program (more like a holiday program right now) called Ikhaya le Themb to spend time with the kids there, doing craft activities or playing netball or soccer outside.

That weekend we visited the Bay Harbour Markets, a very popular tourist spot in Hout Bay, as well as the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town. The markets had amazing stalls and delicious food- I think we visited there every weekend! That's all for now- I’ll save the final 3 weeks’ adventures for the next blog!

5 Antips volunteers, 4 NCP's, 3 meals a day (not really), 2 kombi rides and one week in Mozambique!

COUNTRY: Southern Africa (Swaziland, Mozambique & South Africa)
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Elise, Laura, Rosie, Lydia and Josh

The past 3 weeks since the last blog post have been so jam-packed and busy that it's been hard to find time to write another one!

After returning from Kruger we dove straight into our NCP (Neighbourhood Care Point) projects across Swaziland, where we would be for 2 weeks. Every morning we catch kombi buses to our individual NCPs, which usually cost around 4 rand per trip (40c) and stay there for a few hours before heading back to our backpacker lodge, Lidwala.

Laura and Dutch volunteer Ingrid have been at Ezulwini NCP, Josh at Bethany NCP, and Lydia and Belgian volunteer Mimi at Ekuzukekeni NCP (where they have to take care of over 50 kids!).
Rosie and I were sent to Mlindazwe school, one of the smallest and most rural (even though it's about 20 minutes drive away) of the NCPs. It had been an amazing yet extremely challenging experience trying to teach the children when they hardly know any English. The teachers always worked very well to support us in controlling the kids and translating when we taught the children new subjects, like animals, shapes, colours, basic Maths etc. Our teacher at Mlindazwe just had a baby last week so sometimes she wasn't around to help us so it definitely proved to be a more difficult challenge! Every morning the children would pray before class and before breakfast, so all of the volunteers quickly learnt the "I am the winner" song that that kids were very enthusiastic to sing! Play time was always filled with screams of "Teacher, teacher push!"(on the swings) or "Teacher ngitsatse!" (which means pick me up) so it was obvious that the kids loved having us around to play, and most of the time we really enjoyed spending time playing games with the kids and hearing their adorable laughter.

It was hard sometimes for us to get into teacher mode, as the kids still saw us as playmates and treated us just the same as all the other children, most of the time quite aggressively, so we assume they experience a lot of violence/abuse at home. We also didn't quite realise how difficult it would be to communicate to them in English when they hardly know any. The Siswati words for 'stop', 'listen' and 'quiet' definitely came in handy!
We also have some sports volunteers working with All Out Africa that come to our NCPs once a week to play games with the kids. The first one that Rosie and I participated in we got to take some of the kids to swim teaching in the hot springs pool down the road. The children were absolutely terrified but it was so enjoyable to see them warming up to the water and playing with us.

Every afternoon after teaching we would be sent off to do other activities - i.e. Visiting the hospital and the orphanage. At Raleigh Fitkin Memorial Hospital we would visit the children's ward and play with the sick/injured children. Most of them went crazy over the balloons but we found it quite hard to put a smile on their faces since they didn't understand much English. At Hope House orphanage we had a really great time with all the kids. Some of us started up a game of hokey pokey that just grew and grew until about half the orphans had joined in! Another time I brought some craft materials to make bracelets and and the kids went so crazy for them that it became really hard to manage! However there was a really amazing group dynamic there and we all really enjoyed ourselves the times we've been there so far.

The weekend between the 2 weeks of volunteering we were taken on the Malolotja Zip-lining tour, where we visited the second largest rock in the world, Sibebe (after Uluru - Aussie pride!) and we stayed overnight in the mountains. The following day we were taken on the zip-lining tour which we all agree was so much fun and an incredible experience, it was like flying through the valley.

After 2 weeks of volunteering at our NCPs, we were taken up to Tofo Bay, Mozambique with our Kruger guide, Wawa, for a week's holiday. The white sands and crystal clear water was the perfect setting for the majority of us girls to get our tan on. However local merchants found this a great opportunity to try and sell us bracelets, fabric and coconut bread, and whilst we were adamant that we didn't want any they would ask to buy our shirts or iPod's instead! Some loved to come touch our hair and even though we all said Josh was our boyfriend they disregarded this and were very confused as to why we couldn't have another. Whilst there we had the opportunity to go snorkeling, some of us lucky enough to swim with dolphins and over a small reef filled with fish. The day after we went kayaking to the small Island of Inhambane, where we were taken on a short tour and served lunch by the chief in his restaurant. The following day Josh, Laura, Dutch volunteer Ingrid and I went scuba diving, Josh had been before so for Laura and I it was extremely nerve-wracking to say the least! However it was an amazing experience, the struggle to remember how to breathe was 'drowned' out by the beauty of the reef and enjoying the proximity between ourselves and the underwater life. Unfortunately no manta rays or whale sharks but the fact that nothing went wrong made it very enjoyable in my opinion!

On Friday we drove the 13 hour journey back to Swaziland with the Mozambique volunteer group in tow as we all were heading off to the 3 day Bushfire Festival in Swaziland which started that night. Thousands of people travel across Africa to come to the annual festival - we met multiple people in Mozambique who we ran into whilst there! The festival was incredibly rich in music, dance and art, and we all thoroughly enjoyed it.

Huge manta rays, barracuda and eels all in a days dive

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Adam Rasko

We are finally getting into the swing of things and starting to feel more Mozambican everyday. We have established a typical routine of waking up at about 7am, having breakfast at the Albatroz Restaurant and then preparing for the morning dive with the Peri Peri dive shop. After the dive we have an early lunch and then chill in the afternoon by either watching movies, going to the beach, surfing, shopping to the market or walking to get internet.

However, a couple experiences this week have been anything but typical. One dive especially comes to mind, when we went to Manta Reef on a 40 degree day. We begun the dive with the usual boat entry of pushing the boat from the sand into the water and then we started our 30 minute boat ride to the dive site. The water was crystal clear and we could see the bottom of the 30 meter reef from the boat. We had high hopes of seeing loads of animals as the day before the dive centre saw a few Manta Rays and a Whale Shark in the area. As soon as we got down we saw a huge Reef Manta circling around us and then before long we saw a Giant Manta and a few more Reef Mantas!

The dive also saw us get up close to massive schools of Yellow Snapper and Barracuda, a few Honeycomb Moray Eels, a White Mouth Eel, two massive Potato Groupers and much more. I also got attacked by a playful blue trigger fish who thought I was a predator! When we reached the surface we were all content with an awesome dive, however it was just the beginning of what we would see that day. On the boat trip back we firstly came across a small pod of the rare humpback dolphins and circled them for a while. Then a few minutes later, just after the skipper gave the radio call that we where about to head back to land, we found a Whale Shark!!

It was an awesome experience and we snorkelled with it for about 30 minutes as it effortlessly glided through the water. On the boat we all thought it was massive however according to the dive instructor on board it was only 6 meters long. This seemed huge to us, but it was small in comparison to the 15m that the adults grow to. It was an awesome dive. The best I have ever been on!!!

In the past week we have done quite a lot of social work which involved a mixture of looking after local children at the kindergarten, teaching English at the local SOS orphanage and providing swimming lessons to the children from the orphanage here at the Albatroz swimming pool. To get to the kindergarten, we typically go down to the market at 8am and find a Chapa (local taxi) to take us on the 15 minute journey to the petrol station. From there, it is a five minute walk to the kindergarten.

A Chapa ride is normally an interesting experience as the drivers attempt to squish up to 30 people into a small travel wagon. At the kindergarden we either help out with building works or we look after the kids and help prepare their meals. When we go to the SOS orphanage (about a 30 minute Chapa ride) we normally play with the kids for 10 minutes before we start helping out with English lessons or being involved in some sort of other activity with the children. The swimming lessons usually involve helping Messias (Volunteering Leader) teach and making sure all the kids are safe. Despite being very tiring, we all agree that the volunteer work is a rewarding experience.

Some of the other international volunteers have left us in the past week and, of course, we have to celebrate all their last nights in Tofo. This usually involved going out to dinner at our favourite local Italian restaurant called 'What-U-Want' before heading to play pool and chill at a local bar - Fatima’s. Then if we have enough energy we head to a beach club called Dino’s! Every Wednesday we also have movie night at a restaurant/bar about 30minutes walk from our house called Mozam-Beats.

Next week, as its the beginning of the month, there is supposed to be 6 new volunteers, so we are all expecting to have a fun week!

We are all having an awesome time and can't believe we have only got 2 weeks left.
Adam

Diving, Swim Lessons & Sunburnt Feet

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Adam Rasko

Hello All,

The past week has been filled with a combination of boat dives, volunteer work and sunburned feet.

Anthony and myself successfully completed our Open Water Diving Certificate, diving at Clownfish Reef and Salon’s Reef. The 60 fish we had to learn can be spotted all around the reef, flitting in between the branching corals and hollow caves that scatter the reef. Two octopi were spotted at Salon reef, changing colours as the group of divers came closer. Apparently they turn dark when fearing danger, resorting to their ability to blend into the surrounding reef to hide from predators.

We also saw two moray eels poking their gaping jaws from within the rocky reef surface. Note to all you readers out there, the lollipop rewards after you have finished a dive are to die for! The weather has been choppy the past week. Spots of rain have scattered the sandy roads outside our house, however the water remains crystal clear.

Each dive we have done so far starts off with a short briefing explaining where we are about to head out to. We make our way down the stairs of death and along the beach to where the boats are dragged onto the sand. Everyone slides, (or more like wrenches themselves) into their wetsuits and hops on either side of the boat. Girls hop on first followed by the guys. Most of the dive instructors have a boat license. The boats drive straight onto the beach, a rush any day of the week.

The time flies, already two weeks in and it feels as if we have been here for only a few days. Messias arrives every two days or so with a group of kids from the local orphanage or school. The swimming lessons run for a couple hours, however the small pool and large number of kids mean that most of the time is spent laughing and messing around with the kids. However basic skills such as floating, blowing bubbles and learning to familiarise themselves with the water are taught.

On Wednesday all four of us were driven to the local kindergarten where we built brick walls to make a new kitchen so that the children can have lunch each day. According to the boys my wall was liable to fall over any second but it's still standing! The roof was thatched out of palm tree leaves and held together through bands of string. A group of about 6 boys and girls were standing around the yard sweeping the sandy ground. Apparently they were being punished for trying to break into the kindergarten and steal a handful of toys.

The turtle walk were we supposed to do on Friday evening was cancelled due to the rain. No whale sharks have been sighted of yet but fingers crossed!

The markets provide us with fresh fruit and even a sneaky chocolate snack for the hungry patrons returning from their daily dive adventures. The local bread is only 10 Mets! Every Saturday has turned in BBQ night. The bus or local chappas take us to Inhambane and cash money to purchase meat from town. However this week, the meat shop was closed so we decided to have a seafood BBQ which involved freshly caught Spanish Mackerel and King fish. It was awesome!

Thats it for this week :)

Julia

Mozambique - Mother Nautre's Greatest Gift

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Adam Rasko

Hello All,

I’m currently typing this blog in the Albatroz lodge, a straw thatched beach house located 50m from the pristine Tofo beach near Inhambane, Mozambique. My name is Adam Rasko, I live in Sydney, Australia and I’m on the Antipodeans GapBreak/UniBreak Program. There are currently eight people living in the Albatroz lodge. In the Antipodeans group there is Olly from Sydney, Julia from Byron Bay and Anthony from Brisbane. There are also other independent volunteers from around the world including including Malaysia, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Norway.

This program works through a link with a local organisation. The organisation supports the local environment through marine research on whale sharks, manta rays and turtles. The research, data and photographic evidence, gathered through ID tagging and photographing, is sent to local universities and the regional government to help sustain the marine life for future years.

Us volunteers also have the option to take cameras out on our weekly dives to record the patterns of each animal. This allows researchers to collaborate the data and estimate the thriving populations of the marine life. Weekly talks are given to educate us on the marine life in the Tofo area.

The talks allow us to add to the sustainability of the surrounding marine life by helping us identify various species underwater and record the number of female/male whale sharks in the area. The researchers were particularly excited this week as about 70 Leatherback Turtles, which are critically endangered, hatched from a nest located near us.

We have also learned that Asian fisheries have contributed greatly to the endangerment of manta rays and sharks – they have a superstitious belief that their gills can filter human blood.

The weekdays are planned with dives, ocean safari snorkels and participating in community projects with local children.

The first week, all of us volunteers were busy completing our respective Padi diving course. Julia and Anthony are midway through completing their Padi Open Water Dive course, which involves dive theory, a pool dive and multiple boat dives. Olly and I are completing our advanced course because we are already have our open water qualifications. We've been on a couple deep dives (30ish meters) so far at local reefs including Salon, Outback, Giants and Sherwood Forrest. They have all been awesome fun and we've seen lots of cool things including Honeycomb Moray Eels, Potato Groupers, Turtles, Dolphins, Giant Frog Fish, Mobula Rays, Blotched Fantail Rays, Humpback Snappers, Morish Idols and loads more!

The community projects haven't really started yet however today a few of the volunteers helped teach 20 kids how to swim in the pool near our house. They were all really cute and keen to learn how to swim. Next week we will all be participating in building a kindergarten and more swimming classes.

The weekends are completely free, with no real plans or rules enforced so we decided to hire a local sailboat in Inhambane. Our tour guides sailed us to Survivor Island. The trip consisted of fresh breakfast with mouth-watering fresh bread and hand picked fruit. The water is warmer than anywhere on the Australian east coast, crystal clear and teeming with local marine life.

We were able to snorkel off the side of the boat, witnessing an array of sea slugs, giant crabs, lobsters and a vibrant array of small fish. The island was welcoming and the younger children played on a set of makeshift drums, flaunting their hardened feet in the sand. We were shown around the villages, witnessing baby geese cracking out of their fresh shells. We visited the primitive local hospital, school and church ground. The lunch was cooked fresh with all the local herbs and seafood. The organisation also dedicated half the cost of the sailing trip to the local island allowing them to widen and hopefully add to their collection of books, school tables and educational equipment.

That night we decided to have a BBQ with the 12 other volunteers and a couple other stragglers who wanted a good feed. We caught a chappa (a local taxi) for 20 mets each to the city of Inhambane to buy supplies. We ended up buying Boerwurst (South African sausages), steak and ribs. In typical African style, the eating only begun at 9:30 but it was worth the wait. After we played card games a few went out to the two local bars, Dinos and Fatimas where they stayed long into the night.

The beach is a two-minute walk down the “stairs of death” (don’t fret, their not as bad as they’re made out to be). The weather is humid but with the beach nearby and our shady cottage and three freshly served meals a day, its absolute bliss.

The market encroaches onto the beach and all our local supplies can be purchased for a fifth of the usual Australian prices. Including tasty mangos for about AU$0.30. The local language is Portuguese, however many of the locals can speak passable English, as well as French and a few local dialects.

We have all had an awesome first week. Stay tuned for more news from Tofo beach.

Mozambique Team :)

Mozambique chapter begins for Gappers on the African Combo

COUNTRY: Southern Africa (Swaziland, Mozambique & South Africa)
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Teaching & Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Monique Bedwell

Heading to Mozambique everyone was excited and had been looking forward to this chapter of our trip since we got to Swaziland. Even though we have only been here a short period of time we all felt that we were in need of a holiday. It was the first time we had to completely pack our bags since settling into our rooms. Packing our small backpacks for Mozambique was the easy part, trying to pack away everything else, not so easy! The weather was in our favour for the trip; in other words we didn't have to sit in the car sharing leg sweat with the seat and each other. We had a long drive ahead of us and were all eager to get going. Wawa was our driver, which proved to be a good choice. The border crossing was easier than others we'd had so we were able to hit the road again quickly. About 30 minutes after crossing the border it was time to exchange our money. We all felt like we were working in the shadows when we pulled to the side of the road and a guy jumped in. One by one we handed our rand to the walking ATM to have it changed to Meticash. We all kept a close eye on the man as he ever so casually pulled out rolls of money from his pocket. It was a sight I'm sure all of us had never seen and within 20 minutes he was gone and we were back on the road.

Once we arrived at Casa Lisa, our accommodation for the night, everyone was just happy to be out of the car and moving our legs. To pass the time people either showered, played cards, kicked around the soccer ball or even climbed trees in Fe's case! For a while we were observed by two Border Collie dogs before they gradually came closer. It didn't take long for us to realise they wanted to play with the soccer ball. To our surprise they could dribble and header the ball back to us which thoroughly entertained a group of us for a while. A small game of 2V2 was started between Harry and Fe VS Mon and Kirsten. It was a quick game after half of us wound up on the floor covered in black sand. Dinner was quick and everyone hit the sack early for the last drive in the morning.

The last leg of the drive was long and tiresome, but we finally made it to Bamboozi Backpackers Lodge at Tofo beach. We were all in awe as we had not been to a beach in a while and it was overwhelming beautiful. Our accommodation was nice; it was basically a large beach shack with tables in the centre and beds spaced out along the walls with mosquito nets hanging above them. Within moments of settling in and being shown the basic surroundings, Liam, Mikaela and Simone from the Mozambique Antipodeans group walked through the lodge from the beach. It was good to have a quick catch up with them and organise a time and place to catch up over a few drinks and a game of pool.

Wawa took a small group of us on a walk along the beach to point out where the markets were and how to get around town. Conveniently, everything we needed was within walking distance and we had no real need to go anywhere other than the beach. Dinner was nice and easy, and we eagerly headed out to Fatima's beach bar for drinks. Once getting there we all got to catch up with Orietta from the Kruger trip.

The next morning was early as we were headed out on our Ocean Safari in hope of seeing some beautiful Whale Sharks. Peter was our guide for the trip and he gave us a run down of safety procedures and prepped us for the morning before we headed out. The trip out into the water was amusing as we had to ride out against the waves. This made it more like a carnival ride than anything else which resulted in a lot of screams and laughs. Looking for the Whale Sharks is actually a long and enduring task. When our hopes began to drop, people were getting cold and were ready to head back into land when a hump back whale was spotted! Within minutes we were informed that our boat was in the middle of a large group of about 30 hump back whales. This was the largest hump back whale sighting in more then 10 years of doing the ocean safari tours. Before heading into land we were given the opportunity to go snorkelling over a reef just off the shores. Unfortunately Zoe and Madi were both stung by blue bottles; we soon returned to the beach after this. The rest of the day consisted of chilling by the beach or checking out the markets in town. Haggling with the locals over anything of interest became almost a game for most of us and we almost did it for a source of entertainment. That night was Orietta's last night in Mozambique so we had spoken to her and arranged to meet that night after dinner at a place called MozamBeats. Unluckily for us it was on the far opposite side of town to where Bamboozi was but things improved when Wawa was nice enough to decide that he wouldn't drink and would drive us all to MozamBeats.

We were all shocked when we arrived at MozamBeats. We were not expecting such an outstanding pub/bar. It stood two stories tall and had a pool with lights changed colours. The surroundings were filled with multiple pool chairs and mini hammocks hung off trees. The upstairs area was filled with oversized couches and more hammocks, which we soon claimed as our hang out. After saying our goodbyes to Orietta and a few drinks, everyone headed home at around12.30am.

Our second full day in Mozambique was a canoeing day. It was yet another early morning that most of us were not too thrilled about, but off we were again at 8am to be at Liquid Adventures - the company through which all of our water activities were booked. Peter was again our guide for the day, which was good to have an English speaking guide throughout the day. Our mode of transport to the area where we would be canoeing, was sitting in the back tray of a dump truck.

Once we arrived we were left to sit on the beach until the truck came back with the canoes. Alice was thoroughly entertaining creating a voice over for individuals in our group based off our personalities. When the canoes arrived we all paired up and headed out onto the water. The weather was perfect and the water was clear blue. At the half way point we pulled up on a sand bank to rest. One of the highlights was the Pansy Shells that we were able to collect within the shores. These shells were flat with what looked like a fossil of a pansy! This half way point was also the beginning of a race that was started between team Alice and Madi VS team Harry and Louisa. Both canoes headed out on the water with great determination and speed, the remaining canoes cruised along with casual conversations while we watched events take place ahead. The best way of describing the events that took place between the two teams was a scene from Pirates of the Caribbean. Harry tackled Alice in the shallows and Madi ran ahead pulling the canoe away from the scene just like a cowering Jack Sparrow would flee from the fight to the treasure. In this case the treasure was making it to solid land first. Louisa played the perfect Elizabeth Swan, throwing a fit because no one would give her attention which in turn resulted in Harry telling her she could swim to the shore. In the end team Alice and Madi were victorious!

Once on land we were given a tour of the island. The children were hanging off our arms and they didn't speak English or Portuguese; they had their own native language of which we could not make out a single word. Once we were back to the main part of town we were served lunch by the chief who had taken a strong liking to Zoe. He served her personally then gave her a free drink to top it off. The traditional dishes were generally seafood consisting of crabs, prawns and mussels (which were all fresh from the sea), as well as various noodles, breads, chips, and salad. It didn't take us long to completely demolish and polish off all the dishes. We headed out to the sea and were on our sailing boat back to the truck which would take us home. The long day took its toll on everyone, especially the long hours spent in the sun on the open water. Everyone was left with a pink colour tone over their skin.Tonight was yet again another night down at Fatima's as it was now Patrik's last night in Mozambique. Everyone had a good night of drinks, laughs, pool games, singing and all together just enjoying themselves. It was a late night for all, this was probably due to the fact that there was no activity planned for the morning which meant SLEEP INS!!!!!!!

The next day was free for all and everyone spent it how they wished, mostly haggling with the locals for more goodies and buying the local rum Tipo Tinto. That night only a few people had decided to go out again but before heading out the group had decided to play a game of Truth or Dare. Tash was first up and she was dared to take a tray of goodies to the nearest door and say "room service" in an accent. Lucky for her, no one was home. Next was Alice, her dare was by far the best. She had to take a kettle of water over to a near by fire pit and try to boil the water over it in front of complete strangers who were getting a briefing from their tour guide. She appeared as a crazy lady, and all the people had to say about it was "well that was weird". Next was Zoe, she was dared to pour water over Madi who was sleeping. This soon saw the end of Truth or Dare and those who were going out headed off whilst the others headed straight to bed.

Our last day in Mozambique consisted of us packing and preparing for the long trip ahead the next day. The group had collectively decided that we would go out and party at Dino's bar for our last night in Mozambique and Wawa had agreed to drive past at 2am, pick us all up to begin our very long drive all the way home to Swaziland.
T
he car was packed early and we were all rather excited about our plans to have a very good night out together as a whole group. Tarun surprised us all and showed us all how much fun he could be on the dance floor when he whipped out some dance moves consisting of the sprinkler, the running man, the shopping trolley, and all the clichéd party fist pumping and single person moshing (jumping up and down by himself). The other Mozambique based volunteers had joined us for drinks and partied on into the early hours of the morning with us. We made friends with locals and shared lots of laughs. Half the group began to grow tired as the night dragged on and Dino's became more and more packed. Wawa came early and by the time he had collected us all we were on the road at 2am. The idea of leaving straight from the bar was tactical as everyone was silent and slept most of the way. We arrived home at Lidwala at around 1pm. Everyone was grateful and glad to be home.

The most amazing creatures on the planet

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Simone Herrmannsen

Sitting in a boat knowing I'm seeing the most amazing things on the planet is a strange feeling. Looking down and witnessing a truly majestic creature, a whale shark five times larger than yourself, swimming beneath you is life changing, and that was only the start of it. Life for a volunteer is extreme, from walking through villages knee deep in sand to teach, to hopping in a boat and diving 30 meters with sharks. Watching kids faces light up as you pick them up and swing them around like little dolls, then going to an estuary in search of sea horses, it's the best of both worlds.

It's easy to see why the communities here need volunteers, with a lack of power and running water, education easily slips their minds as purely living is of the utmost importance. Understanding that English is a commodity in this country encourages me, as well as the other volunteers, to teach and know this is enriching their future. Teaching at a school and seeing progress is also rewarding, seeing the kids thrive under positive feedback (and a few encouraging lollipops) makes the journey to the schools worth it. Whilst teaching, you also learn more about the communities and the locals way of life.

You go out on weekends with them, enjoy the local night life and best of all, you feel like a local yourself. Their happiness spreads to you, their open friendliness changes your own way of life, becoming more welcoming to strangers. Life as a volunteer is full of surprises, learning about new cultures from here, as well as from the other house mates. On top of the social adventure, there is a new exploration of the deep.

Seeing mantas on reefs, whales on the surface and a whole array of alien like sea creatures. Swimming with turtles, dolphins and sharks alike, you really get a feel of what lies beneath, and though the thought is terrifying to some, swimming with a school of 20 hammerhead sharks in like a dream come true, decreasing your fear yet increasing your respect.

The life I have lived in Mozambique has been one I will never forget, and hope to continue in my future, where time means nothing and adventure is key.

I will always consider this place my second home.

Welcome to Tofo Bay, Mozambique! Say hi to a humpback whale.

COUNTRY: Mozambique
PROGRAM: GapBreak
PROJECT: Marine Conservation and Care Work
WRITTEN BY: Michaela Neunborn

There’s nothing that quite says ‘Welcome to Africa’ like landing on Mozambican soil, going a bit faster than the small plane looks like it can handle, stepping out into dry heat and being greeted by an airport no bigger than your average school hall. The first thing we see is not signs directing us to our luggage or reminding you to clear customs, but instead a chilled out bunch of people drinking beer and watching the planes land as though it was the day-time soap. Looking out the windows of the bus, as we drove down the only road there seems to be to Tofo Bay, we saw what can only be described as a vast amount of tropical looking rural area (i.e. countless palm trees, scattered grass huts and the occasional goat). The road narrowed and turned to sand as we neared the bay, and so the quaint little town of Tofo was revealed to us. It’s the kind of unavoidably loveable and beautiful place where things just happen in their own sweet time, seemingly regardless of your plans. Right by the beach in the centre of it all is the small but bustling market place, surrounded by uniquely rustic bars and restaurants-not such a bad place to call home for 2 months in our opinion.

The next day was our first trip into Inhambane, the nearest ‘big city’ and coincidentally our first ride in what they call here ‘chappas’ (which is a bus/taxi that seems to have the ability to fit an infinite amount of people into it…perhaps a bit like Mary Poppins bag), which was quite an experience. After completing some boring but necessary tasks (drawing money, getting SIM cards ect) we ate at a local restaurant tucked away in the central markets but by far the highlight was sitting on the side of the road drinking out of fresh coconuts.

I won’t bore you too much with the details of the theory sections of the PADI dive course which occupied the following days, I will say however that it was totally worth it when on Friday we had our first dive! The water was a bit choppy as we traveled the dive location, but it doesn't seem to matter under the surface (prepare yourself for this corny and cliché description) because it’s honestly a different world down there, being suspended in serene blueness. We were so close to the humpback whales that through the silence we could hear them (Dory from ‘Finding Nemo’ does a pretty good impression of whales, in case you needed a reference point). Such an awesome experience! Although it was quite tiring, so sadly there are no interesting Friday night tales as we all crashed into our mosquito-netted beds pretty early.

Feeling like very confident travelers on the weekend we attempted a trip to Inhambane…only to find that not a lot is open on Saturdays (excluding the local supermarket, so don’t worry- we were able to acquire chocolate). On Saturday night we made a trip to the infamous Dino’s bar, which is the closest thing to club here in Tofo and on Sunday a few of the volunteers went to Yoga followed by breakfast and a swim at ‘Mozambeats’ (which also hosts ‘Wednesday movie nights’, free movie and free popcorn…fair to say we love this place). First week has been incredible, and next week we begin the social project, so it can only go up from here!
Stay tuned :D'