In the city and an escape top the beach

After postponing it a week, we set off to Beira, to the city, and left the comfort and familiarity of the bush. We are dropped in the middle of the city, backpacks on our backs and left to wander in the streets. I wouldn't say that Beira has anything appealing but the it's interesting just to drift along the streets. The city is not clean, and the lack of adequate infra-structures is evident everywhere The trash-bins that there aren't anywhere, the roads full of potholes, sometimes turning in a pothole with a road on it. Or a road running through a sector where plenty of business companies have their warehouses that becomes useless when it rains, and where cars won't go, and buses and trucks can get stuck.

We go about looking curious at everything, pretty much trying to feel the pace of it, the rhythms of people. 

We walk to the main squares, the main avenues, dodging street vendors, stalls selling everything, and kids suggesting we buy SIM cards, or purchase credit tickets for mobiles. Leaving to some smaller side streets, less busy, where it's possible to appreciate the style, and state, of the buildings. Buildings usually not well kept, not unusually abandoned and crumbling. Buildings showing the presence of the Portuguese ruling in the design of buildings and houses.

We enter look the windows shops, smile the at colourful adverts and funny shop names. We enter some of the shops to check what's fashion around here, eventually in search of a good deal. We enter the central market, a small two-level building, food on the lower one, spices and all sort of local souvenirs for tourists at the top.

We stop on a local eatery for a quick snack and heading across the city again towards the sea front, motion towards the flat we will be staying. Some 6km on foot, carrying bags on our bags we decide to take a motorcycle-taxi (I'll dig the actual designation of it later!).
The day was hot, we sweat and we are getting tired. It leave us at Clube Nautico, a fancy pub by the beach ideal to have a drink in the afternoon sun, and I'd say watching the sun setting but it does so the other direction instead.

Next morning, early in the morning, we leave home to get a chapa (the local mini-bus) aiming to reach Savane, a little isolated beach at the mouth of river Savane. The guys driving a chapa between the city centre and the airport sense a opportunity for business when we ask direction, and we end up having an exclusive ride (i.e. the route centre-aiport can wait for 30minutes) to the suburb neighbourhood of Manga, where we'll get a second chapa to Savane. 

Time of departure: whenever the car is full to the top with people and luggage and goods and whatever people have to carry.

We are privileged, and are crammed with the driver and another passanger in the cab of the van.

After 90minutes of bumps and potholes, and 3 changes of position on the 40cm of seat I had we reach the end of the road, where we take a boat to Savane beach.

Savene is a stretch of sand at the mouth Savane. River on one side, sea at the other, about 200metres of sand in between. At tourist camp, with a few simple houses, huts and camping space at it's end, and a fishermen village a few kilometres upstream.

There's not much to do, there's not many tourist. In fact, we were the only ones there, though the waiter at the bar tell us that other clients are expect that very afternoon. We'll never see them, we'll never have a sign of their presence. Might be that they were really shy and quiet. We walk the beach, lay down on it catching some sun, reading or sleeping. We run to the water and jump on it to swim the waves of the Indian ocean. Then we go back, as we have to order our meals until 5pm even if dinner is just server by 7.30pm. Go figure. Anyway, since I've to wait I may as well have a drink, sit reading and looking the sun set on the opposite side of the river. Not bad, I reckon.

A decision is taken, next morning we'll get up to see the sun rise and then cross the river back to catch the chapa back into Beira at 8am. The clouds did not collaborate to get a spectacular sun rise, but we managed to get transport all the way to the centre of Beira and did not have to wait endlessly for it!

Back in Beira a second breakfast await us in the nice Riviera Café, and a second round of city wandering is ahead of us.

Another night in Beira and today we are now back in Gorongosa.