We hung around the bus station in Pemba waiting for the bus driver to arrive to open the door so we could get in the bus. Just before 5am we queued up at the door and then the locals went crazy pushing and shoving people although there were enough seats for everyone and each person had been given a seat number. It was crazy!
The conductress wanted the same price as we had paid for a seat for our bags and based on what we had paid on other journeys it was double the rate so John protested and refused to pay it. In no time the locals in the bus were discussing 'the Mazungus' who wouldn't pay for their bags. It gave them something to talk about most of the journey. So often we are charged for bags and it goes in the conductors' pocket and so we have asked for a ticket or docket so it goes back to the bus company.
Once we got to the town centre the bus turned back to the bus depot and there they discovered one of the back tyres had been leaking due to a huge dent in the rim. An hour later we had a new rim and headed off again.
The houses in the rural areas were in varying stages of reroofing with thatch. The rainy season is approaching so it is the best time to do such tasks. We were told that the palm thatch can last for 8 years until it needs replacing.
We got off with all the locals at Mocimboa in the early afternoon. A Landcruiser approached us with two Swedish girls and some locals on the back. They wanted to take us on to the border but we decided to spend the night in the village before taking the long difficult ride over the border to Tanzania.
The guesthouse was a short stroll from the bus stop. We had a basic clean room with mosquito nets. There were about 12 rooms altogether and only a couple of other local guests. The shower was a concrete room in the back yard with no roof and consisted of a bucket with a small cup. There was a hole in the floor where the water ran out. The toilet was next door and it was also roofless. The toilet was an oval shaped hole set into a raised concrete step and there was another bucket full of water and a cup to use for flushing.
In the middle of the backyard was a covered well with a container tied to a rope that was lowered to get water. On one side of the yard was a small shelter where the pots, pans and kitchen things were kept. A small charcoal cooker sat under the shelf where the dishes drained.
The family members seemed to spend most of their time in a house 2 doors down the street and the children would run back and forth looking at us, shaking our hands, and then running off.
We strolled around the town and found a local place where we could eat in the evening. The local young men were playing soccer in the sand by the water. There was a quite a bit of construction of new accommodation buildings along the waterfront. There was a huge cement and tiled monument in the city centre to commemorate Independence Day.
The guesthouse owner informed us he had found us a Landcruiser to go in to the border and it would pick us up at 3.00am.
In the evening we discovered that there was no electricity although the house had wiring and electric lights.
At 3am we piled into the back of a Landcruiser along with a few locals and the driver made me sit on the spare tyre. In no time I had to share that with 2 other bums and 2 others standing on it holding onto the rail by the cab. My feet were jammed in between the feet of another man who was sitting on the side rail facing me. We drove around a few streets and through the market until we were full and then headed off. Luckily there was a roof rack to hold bags so that made it easier to fit more people in. John sat above the wheel arch and bounced about a lot.
We were 22 people altogether heading for the border. The first part of the road was sealed but the rest was a sandy track. At Palma da Praia a few people got off and then we continued. A rather large lady started shouting, then screaming, and began wailing loudly. The other women tried to calm her and stopped the Landcruiser. I thought she had hurt herself when we went over a bump. She went and sat inside the cab with the driver. When I asked a lady who spoke English she told me the lady saw someone had loaded some containers of alcohol on the back so being a strict Muslim she was protesting about having to sit near it. I think she knew there was a space in front and decided she wanted to sit there rather than be bounced about in the back.
About 7 kms from the border we got bogged in a river crossing. The Landcruiser 4 wheel drive systems didn't work so all the guys got out and after an hour of jamming branches and stones under the wheels, and much pushing and shoving, and lots of discussion we were out of the river.
This young mum was one of the passengersAfter we got out of the bog we headed for the border and passed a group of about 30-40 Somalis heading for Mocimboa on foot, and with very little baggage. Jezeltina, a Tanzanian lady, who spoke very good English told us that the Somalis are not well liked by the Mozambicans but the government encourages them to enter the country. Eventually they will try to get to South Africa.
At the border, we were stamped out and had to open our bags for the customs officer. We have not had to do that before. Once we were done and on the back of the Landcruiser again a local told us the police wanted to see John. When John got into the policeman's office he took John's passport and told him they were very poor and would he give him some money. John said "My government told me not to do this." The policeman said OK and gave him back his passport and we headed off. John had thought that if he had still persisted he would have said 'Give me your name and number and I will check if the NZ Government has changed its policy".
We continued on the Landcruiser for a few more metres and then had to get onto a boat to cross the river that marks the border. Jezeltina had told us how much to pay but the 'boat mafia' wanted double. When Jezeltina asked why they said we were white and had lots of money so we should pay double. She was embarrassed by the Muslim boat men as she was a Christian. I was angry because 'white countries' give so much aid to these countries to help the poor but it is the business men with money and power who are greedy and want the money for themselves.
The boat was leaking badly and the wooden plank had already been patched with fibreglass and other sealants. The man bending over is sticking his finger in the hole. There were about 5 or 6 hippos in the water as well! As the water level was low we had to cross two stretches of water and take a second boat.
We were met on the sand bank on the other side by a minivan. We drove in this to the Tanzanian immigration post where we had to buy a visa for $50 US each. No sooner were we processed then we were surrounded by the money changers. We only wanted to change our leftover Metacals but none of the 6 money changers could work out how much we should get as they only changed in set multiples of Tanzanian Shillings.
Checked into a newish guesthouse near the market and bus depot in Mtwara. Got some money from an ATM and found a place to eat some Indian curries, and bought a ticket for a morning bus out of the place to Dar es Salaam
