Intermission: Beers of Mozambique

I thought this would be an appropriate time to address those of you who have expressed an interest in the beer selections available in Mozambique. While the variety is not as diverse as one who likes beer would hope, what they've got ain't bad.
Find them listed below in order of my preference:

1. Laurentina Preta
This unique, easy drinking dark lager was my favorite. It had more flavor, courtesy of the combination of the three malts and a toasted black malt & caramel, than any of the other beers we tasted. I would drink this beer anywhere I could find it in the world. I would drink it with seafood and spicy food. Good stuff. The beer, as are most of the beers in Mozambique, is 5% alcohol.

2. 2M (Duas M, for you locals)
Duas M, from Mac-Mahon Brewery, is a very standard African Lager. It's great for those hot, humid days, when the water can't be trusted and there's no more work to do. The two barley malt varieties - Boortmalt and Soufflet - give 2M a crisp, slightly bitter flavor.


3. Manica
Manica is my beer of choice whilst sitting on the beach contemplating what it means to have just swam with whale sharks. Manica is a slightly hoppy, full flavored lager that, while very similar to 2M, has a distinct sweetness that makes it last a bit longer in those big 500ml bottles that all lagers are served in.


4. Laurentina Clara
An average lager beer at best, Laurentina Breweries recently sold to Mac-Mahon. Hopefully Mac-Mahon can do something with this one. Three distinct barley malts Boortmalt, Soufflet and Caramel and you'd expect to get something a little more palatable. Unfortunately, it warms right into a Maputo night like hot butter on a knish under a prime rib heat lamp.

5. Raiz
I feared to try this one. Mozambique's newest entry into the average and sub-par beer markets, Raiz struck me as akin to Steel or Cobra in the US. It was only found in the 500ml bottles in outdoor market stalls. All of the other beers are available in smaller quantity (340 ml bottle and 440 ml cans.) Raiz is not.

Multiple Entry Visas Part 2: The law of the land

We arrive in Nelspruit, South Africa around 11:00 am and 38 degrees celcius. Our plan for the day is to be let off at our accommodation (Funky Monkey Backpacker's) and immediately begin researching our game drive into Krueger National Park.
We were dropped by the Mulenga's at our digs high on Van Wijk St. and had our host begin exploring our game drive opportunities. Since we were only in South Africa for less than 2 days, our options were limited. While our hostel host was researching, E and I decided to take a walk back into town for food and drink. During our ride into town from Mozambique, I had taken note of an establishment that beckoned our patronage.

So we made a bee-line for Paddy's Tavern. It was here our follies began. We were assailed upon by Pieter, the only non-black African in the joint. He was thrilled that other white people had come in and made it known - to all the other patrons - that we were "with him."

Now, let me make this known, that I (Jeff) am a tolerant man and I always try to give others the benefit of my doubt. That being said, drunken Afrikkans men are my least favorite people to spend time with. Erin and I finished our Castle lagers, kindly excused ourselves (after exchanging all of our details with Mr. Pieter) and stepped back out into the hot. It is true, though, that cold, Castle lager beer will make you strong and impervious to mingled odors.

After touring about town for a while, we decided it would be wise to locate the Mozambican Consulate in Nelspruit. We would drop off our passports the next morning and they would arrange our visas while we were on our game drive. Or so went the plan. We stopped into the post office to ask the location of the consulate. While they couldn't tell us where it was,they could call a friend, Luis, who worked there. The post office agent handed E the phone and she had a brief conversation with Luis who said he would come find us and take us to the consulate. This type of assistance is not uncommon in southern Africa as it seems that most people have (or take) the time to be neighborly. So, Luis arrives, walks us around the block, down a street and right to the front door of the consulate. He tells us what time it opens and when to expect our visas to be complete. Great! No Worries! It couldn't cost more than $20 - 30, right? I mean, that's what the travel guide said.

Multiple Entry Visas Part 1: Entry

Please note: Africa is a continent with approximately 41 independent and distinct countries. Each country has developed governments that, inexplicably, are obsessed with paper - paper for everything. Because of this bureaucratic fervor, it can, at times, be difficult to travel between countries.

So, we met at the Mulenga household early Thursday morning, excitedly awaiting our little excursion into South Africa. Shula had an exam in Nelspruit that day, and it turns out that the other kids also had things to take care of there in preparation for the start of their new semester (all of the Mulenga children attend school in South Africa) – so it was a family affair, and we were totally tagging along. In fact, Kruger National Park has an entrance at Nelspruit, and we were dying to see some wild animals…

After lots of herding, the family of 5 (plus 2 white hitch-hikers) piled into the extended cab pick-up truck (don’t worry, the two that were riding in the “way back” had converted the covered truck bed into a rather comfy lounge, complete with mattress and lots of pillows!) and set on our way. We quickly emerged from the bustling streets of Maputo into a rather vast expanse of rural Africa. As opposed to the sort of “crusty” dry green I remember of Ghana, this landscape was more lush, with acres of tall wild grass frequently interrupted with farms of sugar cane, corn, and tea. Taking in the view, we hardly noticed that 2 hours had passed and we had reached the border…and then the fun began.

As the truck approached the uniformed official, Mumba noticed from his perch in the “way back” the impending arrival of 3 Greyhound-caliber tour buses just behind us. Without a second thought, he emerged like a big cat from his lair and quickly disappeared into the building, (which we ignorant white people eventually realized was in order to secure us a place in line before all the tourists).

So, we were blessed by the vehicle official, parked the truck, and then assumed our place in line with Mumba (just ahead of the tourists!) Even so, the line was not short, but we eventually made it to the front, filled out our forms, got some stamps, got back in the truck, and then came to the South African building. More waiting in line, more forms, more stamps, back in the truck. Wait! Everyone out to step on the magical rug which is wet with magical fluid that will keep you from bringing Mad Cow disease into South Africa. Back in the truck. Blessing by the vehicle official on the South Africa side. Ahhhh, finally, we are on our way. Mind you, “back in the truck” was not an effortless process. Imagine one of those old silent movies where everyone is moving around really fast…that is how this scene plays out in our minds when we relive it.

Almost Done and Ready to Write

Hello to all and thanks for your patience. We've been out of communication for the past ten days and have had a lot of adventure since then.

We knew coming into this trip that there would be a lot to write about, but we had no idea how difficult it would be to write in the context of a blog and within the attention span of the writers.

Our adventure here has been grand. This is an inaccurate adjective and completely understated. But given the range of our emotions and challenges to our intellect while here, it is fair to say that this was, indeed, a grand experience.

Over the next few weeks, we will be chronicaling our trip beginning with our aforementioned South African trip (to be entitled "Multiple Entry Visas") and running though some interesting experiences and observations at Kutwanana and finishing with our holiday trip to Mango Beach, Tofo, Inhambane Province in central Mozambique. We'll only say that we found ways other than cash to pay for our accomodations.

Since we are post-posting to the blog, you can challenge the accuracy of the details all you want. But, you can never challenge that these are our memories and they're probably better than whatever the accurate truth might have been on those days.

Enjoy the warm up photos!

Chau and we will see some of you on Thursday!
J and E