Portraits of Mozambique

Some of the best moments of my trip so far were seeing peoples' surprise and excitement when I handed them pictures of themselves. I have felt conflicted about taking and sharing pictures of random people because I think that it can be objectifying - it turns people into tourist attractions, into sites.

On the other hand, talking with random people on the street is my favorite thing about traveling. I think that it is one of the most authentic ways to experience a place and a culture. I want pictures to capture some of those moments and personalities.

For the last five days that I have been Maputo, Mozambique, whenever I have taken pictures of people, I have told them - when I thought it was possible - that I would bring them a copy of the picture. I don't think that they believed me because they were shocked when I showed up today with the prints. It was so fun.

It has been easier chatting it up with strangers here than in South Africa because I feel less self-conscious being White. Mozambique does not have the same recent history of racial oppression. While the Portuguese were brutal colonial rulers, they all left over night in 1975 when Mozambique declared its independence.

Being able to speak the language of the people has also helped me to connect. I have been so happy speaking Portuguese! The accent here is really different than in Brazil, so I often have to ask people to repeat themselves, but those glorious Portuguese words are the same.

This is Dona Teresa. She has worked at the Central Market selling prawns and sardines most of her life. She said that she is going to give this picture of herself to her grandchildren.


This is Dona Mikaela. She has worked next to Dona Teresa for more than 20 years.

This is Joao. He is 28-years-old and sells shoes and phone calls on the main street in town. His friends went into hysterics when he struck this pose. When I came back with the picture, they were all jostling to look at it.

When this woman saw me taking a picture of Joao, she said that she wanted one too, and she struck a pose for me right there in the middle of the sidewalk. The guys who work on the sidewalk in that area said that they do not know her name, but they always see her walking by and they promised to give her the picture.

This is Dona Christina. She and all of her five grown children help her sell fruits and vegetables at the market. I bought a pinha from her, which is a pine fruit that I used to eat in Brazil.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to give these boys their picture because I met them on a day-trip to an island that is about two hours from Maputo. When I saw them sitting around, I walked up to them and asked them what they were doing. They said they had just finished playing soccer. I told them I was a teacher, and I started quizzing them on their multiplication facts. I had a bag of cookies in my bag, and I gave a cookie to whoever shouted out the correct answer first. The kid in the front in the plaid shirt got so many cookies that I had to encourage him to share his winnings with others.

This is Vicky. I met her at church on Sunday, and then we spent the entire afternoon together. She is 23, has been a member of the church for three years and is getting ready to go on a mission. Her father was a member of the FRELIMO party during the civil war and was assassinated in his car a few months before she was born. A few years ago, her mom died of cancer, and Vicky now lives with her three older siblings. She works as a telephone operator and goes to school to study business. She is smart and feisty, and we had an amazing day together talking about boys, our faith and our plans for the future. She is on facebook, so we will be sharing pictures that way.

The White man in this picture is an Englishman named Jerry, and these are his English students (from left to right): Maria, Tome, Isabel and Junalsa. I received Jerry's contact info from a friend of a friend, and he took me with him to his class this morning which is in a township-like/favella-like/slum-like neighborhood called Mafalala. Through a program in their community, Maria and Junalsa are training to be Mafalala tour guides. After English class, they took me around the narrow streets and corrugated houses of the town. Jerry, the teacher, lives really close to my hostel, so tonight I gave copies of the pictures to him to pass onto the students.

This is Jane, Jerry's wife. She is also English, and the two of them have lived in Maputo for fours years and have no intention of leaving. Jane gives architectural tours of the city and spent the entire afternoon showing me the abundant Art Deco designs as well as buildings by the quirky and prolific Portuguese architect Pancho Guedes. She is spry, curious and bold, and would make her way into buildings with only limited Portuguese and a smile. She is working with the city on an architectural preservation project. Before the tour, the city felt dirty and slightly decrepit to me - the sidewalks are in pieces, many buildings are burnt-out - but she helped me see the structural beauty that exists.