Satartday

Gisela and I hung out for most of the day, exploring some nooks of Maputo. The best find was a bar on the platform of the very pretty Maputo Railway Station, which is run by CFM (Caminhos de Ferro de Moçambique - Railways of Mozambique). The CFM name crops up in various corners of the country, indicating that Mozambique’s rail network was once more extensive, even though there are several cargo lines still operating. A few slow passenger services exist with almost negligible fares. The departure times are almost all inconvenient according to the timetable displayed, but I will make it a future obscure weekend excursion to ride the train somewhere.

We visited the Museu Nacional de Arte (National Art Museum) for a glimpse of some Mozambican works and later trundled to FEIMA (Feira de Artesanato, Flores e Gastronomia - Handicrafts, Flowers and Food Fair) where there was a music event and a sociable crowd. I was introduced to a Spanish guy speaking Portuguese too fast, and Gisela and he chatted and remarked that they ‘sometimes just go solo and hang out at these events and see who’s around,’ to which everyone nodded in agreement. Except me, in the middle of an introverted moment, which happens 50% of the time when I’m unexpectedly thrust into a crowd. After some grub at one of the FEIMA food stalls, I went back to my place to pop my next antibiotic pill.