Go-to guide
When visiting Ilha de Mocambique,
hire the knowledgeable James (AntonioJaime) as your guide. Contact him
at [email protected] or
+258 8448 19696.he ever visit (he never did). The beds are curiously far off
the ground – apparently to reflect the high breeding of
those who slept there – with a set of steps provided to
allow guests to reach the mattresses.
The adjacent maritime museum contains pieces of
old ships, ceramics, coins and gold – spoils of the many
wrecks in the area. There is a replica of the ship Vasco
da Gama first came ashore in, and outside in an open
square is a statue of the famous explorer.
Walls and all
Covering the entire northern end of the island, the
Fort of San Sebastian (also 16th Century) is a hulking
reminder of the fact that battles have always been
fought to protect locations of strategic value. It’s a
massive edifice, so big that it has literally shaped
the geomorphology of the island – the rock used to
build its walls was taken from the area where Macuti
Town now stands, resulting in parts of that area being
considerably lower than the rest of the island, with
pedestrians walking along the main road able to look
down on the roofs of the locals’ homes.
The fort is largely abandoned, with a few exceptions.
The roofs of many of the remaining buildings have had
their original design upgraded, constructed now, as
then, to catch rainwater and funnel it into huge tanks.
Elsewhere, a wing is being slowly converted into a
university and library – it’ll be an incredible environment
in which to study once that renovation is completed.
On the point closest to the open ocean is a small
building, the Chapel of Nossa Senhora de Baluarte,
erected in 1522 and considered the oldest European
building in the Southern Hemisphere. It’s essentially
a shell now, though it is lined with paving stones that
speak to its vintage and the eminent personalities buried
there, and give it a powerful sense of the past. Ironically- and tragically – the small triangle of lawn directly in
front of the chapel is not a spot for cocktails after 16th
Century weddings, but a killing field. In a wall at one
end are six rifle holes where a firing squad of soldiers
were lined up with one live bullet between them, which
would give their prisoner target a tiny chance of making
it through the experience (upon which he or she might
be sold as a slave for their troubles).
The island, which was
initially home to Swahili
settlers, became the
colonial capital of
Portuguese East Africa
after the Portuguese
settled there in 1507.17