11 July, 2015
Mozambique to ????
We need to cross the border somewhere & since we don't want to go back via Ponta do Ouora & will be doing Komatiepoort in a few weeks time we decided to do a 2 night stopover in Swaziland. Off we go clutching a hand drawn
map of how to circumnavigate Maputo using the old roads, detours & some of the new roads. It was easier than coming up but still a challenge. We crossed into Swaziland at Naamacha which is a faded Portugese frontier town. The process was ok, interesting that as when we arrived in Mozambique our fingerprints were taken electronically then matched as we left *** trap for the unwary - u arrive at the border, a cool young man opens ur car door, shows u where to go then 'guards' ur car. After a pleasant if uninterested exchange at immigration & customs we are told we can go BUT as we approach our car our young man advises that customs wants to inspect (and a dude smoking slopes around) but he has told him that we have so much stuff/ take too long / etc that if we gave him lunch money we could go ... We ignored him and drove off !!! What a scam!!*****
Swaziland side was uneventful & we paid Rand50 for the car and off we went.
Swaziland is bushveld. Typical African bush with homes dotted around the place. They have speed signs up but don't need speed cameras because they have vicious speed humps that will rip the bottom off your vehicle. Ouch as we hit one too hard ... Pumba growled at us !!!!
We found our accommodation at River Bird Chalets near Malkerns.. A beautiful spot overlooking a dam and prolific bird activity. The owners are delightful & have many doggies who love you to death. They are not allowed inside our A frame chalet but arrive for pats & cuddles. We were met by a permanent tenant who is a pilot & quadcopter enthusiast so R & him spent a great deal
of time flying & chatting.
We visited the local night spot for dinner - well, let's just say it was an interesting night full of people watching, speculation & hunger !!! After 2 hours of waiting for our pork chop & salad, and just as we had decided we were going to leave, it finally arrived... The local mafioso had arrived in a huge group and had eaten & were playing pool by the time we ate!!!!
However, it's all part of the experience and we slept well.