Heading north through Mozambique

Video Part 1

Video Part 2

Aaaii yaaii yaaii. Driving in Africa is not for the faint hearted. We thought that the traffic from Maputo to Vilanculous was crazy but it would prove to get a lot worse. The attached pics & videos are on the EN1 which is the main road heading north from Maputo. On day 1 we realised that you measure travelling here in time & not distance. You average approximately 50km/hour, regardless of the speed limit. It is slow going, made slower by towing. The car and trailer both take a hammering from the potholes.

The roads are the lifeblood for most locals who sell their produce and in that sense the roadside is largely inhabited and is always littered with cyclists and pedestrians. Most of whom have a hoe over their shoulder and are walking to their fields to collect today's harvest (some as young as 5 & mostly women). Products on offer include: chickens (you have a choice of live or cooked), coconuts, goats, charcoal, corn (raw or cooked), honey, guinea fowl and, sadly, duiker, which are poached in the local forests. The constant companions on the roadside also make going to the loo rather challenging. 

The police and army are very active on the road, making progress even slower. Between Vilancoulos and Gorongosa we were stopped by the army 10 times and once by police (on one day). They are generally very friendly and often ask for Agua (literal translation: water, suggestive translation: bribe). To date, we have not yet paid a bribe but this is sure to change.