Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
passes, Chinese porcelain and other items recovered from local shipwrecks. Behind the
gious ornaments, paintings and carvings. The museum is housed in the former hospital of
the Holy House of Mercy, a religious guild that assisted the poor and sick in several Por-
tuguese colonies from the early 1500s onwards. The ticket price includes entry to all three
museums and an English-speaking guide.
Fort of São Sebastião
(per adult/child Mtc100/50; 8am-4.30pm)
The island's northern end is dominated by
the massive Fort of São Sebastião, which is the oldest complete fort still standing in sub-
Saharan Africa. Construction began in 1558, and about 50 years later the final stones were
laid. Just beyond the fort, at the island's tip and accessed via the fort entrance, is the tiny
sidered to be the oldest European building in the southern hemisphere and one of the best
examples of Manueline vaulted architecture in Mozambique. At the southern end of the
island, overlooking Makuti Town and the fishing port, is the large (and no longer used)
Muslim and Hindu graves.
FORTRESS
A WATERLESS ISLAND
Interestingly, there are no wells on Mozambique Island; it was settled despite the lack of water sources because of
its favourable location and natural harbour. To compensate, most houses in the early days had cisterns, as did the
Fort of São Sebastião, which had three. Now, water is piped in from the mainland.
Activities
Mozambique Island is not a beach destination and strong tidal flows make it dangerous to
swim around the island's northern and southern ends. The cleanest of the island's patches
of sand is Nancaramo Beach, next to the fort. For beautiful, clean sand, head across Mos-
suril Bay to Chocas and Cabaceira Pequena, or to the beach on Goa Island. There are
