Pensão das Amoreiras – If these walls could talk

 We don’t know if João de Deus, the name given to the street that leads to Pensão das Amoreiras, belongs to the poet or the saint. But if “poetry is a place of the sacred” as Ungulani ba ka Khossa once said, the border appears as tenuous as other borders of the Island of Mozambique appear: between land and sea, or the City of Macúti and Stone and Lime, or the mythical and the real, or the present and the past. The first life of Pensão das Amoreiras arrived under the sign of Slave Trade House, a place of departure and today – also because of this mercantile past – a place of entry into the stories and history of the Island. With 10 rooms, the building preserves the architecture of its first life.

The first life of Pensão das Amoreiras arrived under the sign of Slave Trade House

Outside, yellow as if reflecting the sun; inside, the stone floor and the ceiling supported by thick wood beams, the narrow corridors, the double doors, the spacious divisions, the huge windows as if they could contain all the possible horizon. It is from here that we leave to set our feet on this ground that is always sacred from the beginning, when the Island was just land and sea and then fortresses, churches, palaces and monuments were built that elevated it to this place of worship.

▶ How to go

Fly with LAM to Nampula and from there it’s a little over two hours’ drive to the Island of Mozambique.

▶ Where to eat

At the Pensão das Amoreiras restaurant, matapa de siro-siri is served. But not far away, at Restaurante da Saquina, you can eat nimino, which helps to promote the memory of the Island of Mozambique. But there is also the always diverse cuisine of several restaurants and hotels spread across the Island.

▶ What to do

The stay on the Island of Mozambique is in itself a worthwhile experience, walking through the streets, between the cities of Macúti and Stone and Lime or visiting monuments that recall other times. A boat trip to the Island of Goa and from there repeating the route of the Portuguese navigators is another itinerary that the imagination suggests. If you get there in August, you may still be lucky enough to see whales and dolphins that go by the coast, beyond the Island of Goa.

▶ Reservations

 +258 84 389 8628

Number of Nights Suggested – 3

Average rate for two people – MZN 4500*

Issue 71 Jan/Feb | Download.