Africa Snapshots: A Moment in Maputo, Mozambique

It felt like I was walking through potato soup.

The heavy air simmering under the 100°F sun clung to my skin. It filled my lungs, making the downhill walk uncharacteristically challenging. My eyes furiously spooned through it, not wanting to miss a single detail. After all, when else would I be in Maptuo, Mozambique?

There was an interesting juxtaposition of dilapidated buildings with bar-cladded windows next to ultra modern apartment complexes. Every now and then I’d walk past a trendy café packed with tourists and ex-pats. There seemed to be a bank on every block (I stopped into quite a few inquiring about currency exchange… none would do it if I didn’t have an account). A few brave souls were selling lottery tickets and fresh fruit on the street. Pretty hard to hustle when surrounded by potato soup.

I heard singing in the distance. Following the sound led me to a haven of shaded greenery—the botanic gardens. The scene was something special:

Dozens of different wedding celebrations with hundreds of people dressed to the 9s.

There were beautiful brides adorned in lavish white ballgowns. Handsome grooms wearing suave suits. Decked out bridesmaids with pristine make up and gorgeous long dresses. White sneakers were quite a popular choice for groomsmen—a trend that’s common in the US too. One squad of men were wearing turtle necks under their suits. It looked quite dapper, but I’m not sure how they weren’t collapsing from potato-soup-air induced heat stroke.

Attending wedding guests were dressed accordingly well. Women in dresses, some traditional some modern, and men in suits.

The different parties paraded around the park singing and dancing with unbridled joy.

There didn’t seem to be any dramas over who was standing next to who. I didn’t spy any bridezilla throwing a tantrum. I can’t imagine anyone was gossiping about, “ Well I had filet mignon at my wedding….”

Mozambique is ranked the 7^th poorest country in the world and 64.6% of the population lives below the international poverty line ($2.15USD per day per person) . There are much bigger problems to worry about than centerpieces and finger foods.

I sat on a bench under a tree taking in the scene.

I had potato soup air coating my skin, heavy legs, and a smile on my face. It was a special moment in Maputo that I felt lucky to witness, and another Africa snapshot added to the collection.

Liked this Africa Snapshot? Check out one from Zanzibar HERE!