Taka Taka Frango

The first few days have passed here and things are all good. My first experience of take-out here was at Taka Taka Frango. I was somewhat surprised by a lack of street vendors of hot food in my area, and I was equally surprised by the small number of taxis that I have seen about town. These are a few immediate reactions when I compare my arrival in Mozambique to my last African experience many thousands of miles away in Accra, Ghana.

So it is two days now that I have made the trek up to Taka Taka Frango. I enjoy the food, although it’s a bit of a junk food binge: Chicken (Frango) and French Fries with cabbage salad. I always request the Piri Piri hot sauce as well. I thought it would be even hotter, so that makes me either daring or silly (as I am still getting used to the local variety of micro-organisms). Thank goodness for Dukoral vaccines!

Yesterday after two days of work and getting settled with some basic appliances (coffee grinder, bodum and pots and pans) I was able to have a look around for some fresh produce. Carrots, onions, and beans are readily accessible, and I did a bit of shopping yesterday morning. I delight in the small things, getting my bearings, being able to ask for anything that I need in the vicinity. My Portuguese is slowly improving and I am glad that I have no trouble getting by.

I have to admit, I was not fully prepared for the early closure of all stores on Saturday at 13:00h. I realized in hindsight that I should have taken advantage of the morning to get some basic necessities such as pillowcases and blankets for the house (yes it is cold enough for blankets at night yet – but not for long). In the meantime, my landlady (Dona da Casa) has agreed to lend me some extra blankets. The Dona da Casa is Sarah Sousa. She has a very friendly, if not mildly condescending manner and when I fumbled with the lock she said “Filho! Veija acqui…” and proceeded to show me how to negotiate the locks on my house.

This brings me to the other aspect of living here… security. I feel safe enough to be able to walk about during the day without hazard. Yet, I do have to keep the locks on the door tight, especially at night. There is an outer gate with a padlock so that it cannot be opened by someone catching me unawares. This gate opens into a small garden area, which has flowers that I have identified as peace lilies. There are also hanging baskets of some sort which are watered regularly by the neighbour employed also by the Dona da Casa. The second gate then opens onto the front terrace which is caged in also by welded iron and has a second padlock which must be unlocked. Finally the house door has two locks, which must be simultaneously turned with two different keys in order to open the house door. All of the windows have wrought iron bars to provide a further measure of security. In all respects, I think it is best that I take security rather seriously. I’m sure, at any rate, Maputo cannot be worse for crime than Johannesburg!

Well that’s all for now. I’m experiencing my first thunderstorm here now, and glad to be warm in the house.