The 1st Breakdown
KERIN - Did I jinx it? Because just this morning, after a pre-dawn departure, before the sun had woken up, I was wondering when we would have our 1st breakdown. And on a year-long trip through Africa it's not 'if' but 'when'. That day was today, the 17th March 2021. If there's such a thing as a good place to break down, we at least ticked that box. A few km's north of the Zambezi River. Expat, Ant & Pat White from Mphingwe Lodge, 30km south of Caia, have been in Mozambique for 30 years, pre-war days and were so kind as to personally assist & organise additional towing back to their lodge that we had left the day before.
Lesson 1 when paying for a service: negotiate the price up-front. So for 4000 MT (R850), Pat drives a hard bargain, she organised a local to have the trailer towed. She towed the vehicle & the trailer was towed separately back to Mphingwe which we reached at 12 noon exactly, after 3 & a half hours on the roadside. 5 minutes later 2 ice-cold beers were delivered to our door. Typical Mozambican hospitality. The problem-solving & diagnosis would have to wait until tomorrow. Because who can stop at one beer?
OLGIERD - I like my cars like I like my women - 22 years old and with issues. And so it came to pass that the car developed, erm, issues.
We started the day after a pleasant interview for a job in Sena on the Zambezi River. The road back to the main artery was over a rather rough road. We crossed the Zambezi on a mirror smooth road and suddenly the car died. A quick roadside check of the usual suspects had me stumped. Luckily we were about 40kms from our previous hosts and they towed us back to Mphingwe Lodge. Our hosts bent over backwards to help us and the next day I had a telephonic consultation with a Landcruiser whizz. Meanwhile, transport was organised to Beira. Sadly the consultation came to nought and the car needed to be shipped. And here I realised how tough it is to freight goods in Mozambique. The nearest proper mechanic is 330km away, 70km closer than Beira, so that's nice. The truck was small, I had to remove a running board so that it could be loaded onto the bed. The truck had no load ramp but happily there was one at Mphingwe.
To cover the 330kms, took 10 hours. It was Sunday when we arrived so overnighted close to the workshop and on Monday we offloaded via a ramp at the workshop. The car was fixed by the afternoon, which says everything about my spannering skills. NERD ALERT: one of the many previous owners removed part of the EGR system and in the process, probably didn't fasten the vacuum operated anti-shudder valve correctly. This then slipped its moorings and the valve stayed closed. Result: no throttle and no idle, but an enticing start-up and run for 1 second. Easy fix but what a palaver. To compound matters, this delay meant extending our visas, an operation all on its own.
KERIN - I have done some scary things in my life. Rap-jumped off Musgrave Centre, abseiled and rock climbed the cliff faces at Monteseel. Sailed through a 3-day storm gusting 65 knots, with no engine or Sat-nav. But the trip on the back of the truck was far scarier. I was reduced to a clawing, dribbling wreck. 10 hours to drive 330 excruciating kilometers from Mphingwe to Chimoio. Ride along for a few seconds in the videos above.
Everything in Africa is possible for a fee. So, we apparently went to Zimbabwe for the day & came back into Mozambique, giving us another 30 days. Despite the extension we are still going to press through to Tanzania. Both Malawi & Zimbabwe's borders are closed to tourists and if the same happens in Tanzania we will be forced to return to SA. Not an option.
On the trip back to Mphingwe we found the army stops & searches more thorough and vigilant than previously. Only once back at the Lodge did Pat tell us that that day there had been fresh attacks in Palma, northern Mozambique. The army throughout the country are on high alert. These insurgent attacks have been going on for approximately 3 years but have escalated in the past year which is why we had to avoid Cabo Delgado and follow a westerly route up through Mocuba, Cuamba, Lichinga & into Tanzania. The attacks are very localised and we are a 1000 kilometers away, hoping to cross into Tanzania on Thursday.
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