A Few Distinct Differences

This will probably be a list that I will continuously add to, and I don’t intend to generalize for all of Mozambique, but these are a few things (not including the obvious like speaking another language or killing your own chicken) I have observed during my few weeks here in Namaacha that are distinctly different from things seen/done in the US.

·         Trash disposal: Walking down the street, it is not uncommon to pass open, unwatched fires or to see plumes of white smoke in the distance.  These are merely trash disposal methods.  So it’s probably not the greatest for the atmosphere or the air we breathe, but you gotta do something with your trash, and there is no organized trash pickup service or dump, so the Mozambique method is simply to burn it all. 

·         Passear – Passearing, or just wandering or walking, is a favorite pastime for Mozambiquans.  But my gosh do they walk slow!  And when you think slow, think about 100 times slower than what you might consider slow.

·         Strong women – The concept of chivalry and men carrying heavier things is not commonplace here, women do considerably all the heavy lifting around the house.  And by heavy lifting, I mean carrying incredible loads on top of their heads.  It really is a miraculous thing to see, women and girls carrying bundles of wood, barrels of water, buckets, whatever on their heads walking down the street, up hills, over cobblestones with the most relaxed ease!  How these things balance on their heads and how their necks can support such incredible weights, I have no idea…

·         Cars – Here, pedestrians have the right to get out of the way of vehicles.  Cars do not slow and do not really swerve but expect you if you are walking to move out of their way.  And not only do they drive on the other side of the road here, they also sometimes drive on both sides of the road.

·         Children – Once a kid has the ability to walk, they are pretty much independent.  It is not unusal to pass a group of two or three year olds playing on the street with no adult supervision in sight.  For the little kids who can’t walk yet, mothers do not let them stop them from doing things around the house and simply tie them to their backs snugly with a capulana. 

·         Obedience – Another interesting thing regarding children is their obedience towards their parents.  Never have I heard my siblings defy my parents or ask them why they had to do something.  Sometimes I can tell that they might be upset or not want to set the table or wash the dishes that night or my sister will tell my brother to do it, but never do they say no or argue with my mae.  For instance, here is a short anecdote.  The other night for dinner, my sister made a fruit salad.  Upon seeing that she had forgotten to add oranges to the salad, my mae scolded my sister telling her she made it improperly and needed to put an orange in it.  So my sister got up and went to the market and bought an orange to add to the fruit salad.  If it had been a teenager in the US, there would inevitably have been back talk and arguing, but here my sister just sucked it up and did what she was told.  When she came back, my mae asked where she had gone and said she didn’t mean for her to go right then, but even I heard her tell her to go and I don’t know much Portuguese.