Misfits Mid Life Crisis Adventures in ………….. Mozambique.

Week 17, Saturday 11 to Friday 17 October 2014.

This week I have mainly been listening to….. First Aid Kit, The Divine Comedy, LCD Sound system, Deee-Lite “Groove is in the heart”, Lana Del Ray, The Divine Comedy.

And have been watching…. Ella Enchanted. Sleepy Hollow (season 1 ep 1 to 6), Doctor Who “Mummy on the Orient Express” (ep 8 season 8/34), The Heat, Top Gear USA, Cats and Dogs, The Graham Norton Show.

Saturday was a day off; I took Tank to the beach for a walk and a paddle. The sky was cloudy some of them appeared quite dark the sun wanted to make an appearance but the clouds were too thick. This didn’t stop Tank and I having a good time walking on the sand. I recharged my internet dongle today then spent the rest of the day at home I felt tired so had a nap and watched TV on my computer. The power has been going on and off all evening the lights going off for a few seconds the TV turning off just as the programme your watching gets to the best bit……… the power cuts out, very annoying, but this is Africa it cant be helped.

Sunday, it was another cloudy but humid day here in Tofo, the wind and waves are due to get stronger and bigger from tomorrow for a few days. I spent today looking after shop, spending time with the lovely Alice Cooper such a great way to spend a Sunday. I have written a second draft of “Alice the Little Lost Humpback” made a few changes. I have story boarded the drawings but want to work on them, I need paper and pencils and other art stuff, don’t imagine that I can get any of them here in Tofo. I don’t know if they’re going to be drawn or painted or a different style of pics. It’s a good idea (of course I would say that) I will have to dry run it with my nephews and nieces. I also did a little more work on my sci-fi shit list it’s nearly completed. Had the most amazing fish meal, Barracuda from the market today, sometimes its chicken (or a chickens foot, I give them to Louis) or beef, but today it was fish. I could have just eaten a couple of those huge cuda stakes. Skyped with Hel this evening and saw new Who during the episode SAZ called me by Skype, had a lovely conversation with Anaia as well as her showing me her scooter, so sweet.

Monday was a wet day, started out on a double tank to Salon to carry on mapping with Anna. Emmmmmm, what can I say we got lost; ok I was responsible I know and I take the blame, we lost the reef and just didn’t find it. But we ended up having a lovely 37 min dive just the 2 of us during which I saw a lovely Moray. Then during the surface interval between the dives we were treated to a up close and personal mum and baby humpy action, both whales were waving there incredibly large fins in the air and then slapping them in to the water. The Humpbacks will soon be leaving mozzibeak waters to head south to Antarctica, it will be sad not to see and hear (under the water) these gentle giants around. I hope I get to spend time with them again in the future. The second dive was to the wonderful Mikes Cupboard, love this site, saw a blue spotted rays and a beautiful cowfish (got to love a thick horned Cowfish), lots of lovely reef fish including plenty of Nemo’s relatives. I do think of Nemo and friends when I’m diving on the reefs (yes I’m sad). Once we got back on dry land we were told that there was an ocean safari straight away (it wasn’t booked when we left to dive). Anna and I with the punters spent the next couple of hours out on the sea looking for giants, we only saw Humpy (which is always good, mums and babies) but we didn’t see mantas or whale sharks etc. Still had a good time, we ended the safari with a snorkel at Clownfish reef the viz was beautiful you really could see reef life. Once back at shop I had another fish meal from Veronica in the market, with rice and matapa (she really missed Louis today) worked on another draft of my story draft adding a manta and a whale shark to the adventure. Got some shopping and went home to spend the eve with T&T. The wind is picking up tonight I can really hear it sitting in the house.

Tuesday, there were Manta’s on scuba and Humpbacks during a training rescue dive, however I wasn’t on any of these dives but the footage of the manta’s is amazing. Today was a shop day, which meant I spent time with Alice Cooper and Bundo and Boobies the dogs. Cindy (the boss of Liquid) played some old school Ska which livened up the place I haven’t heard some of those track’s in a long time. Highlight of the day for me was riding Nadia’s quad bike with Cindy on the back, love a quad so much fun speeding along the bumpy sand roads of Tofo. I made a couple of changes to my story and then started doing slightly more detailed drawings of what I think the pictures should look like. I did get bored and started to draw what I could see across the road at one point. I will have to test the story on some kids a little like a focus group I suppose, but the drawings are going to take a while. Went for a great and actually a fast run this afternoon (running is never easy or really fun to be totally honest). There was a lot of high fiveing with the kids along the route. PIGWATCH is back (for now) I saw the pig in the field; yes I am saddo but it was nice to see that fat tummy again lying in the sun. Tomorrow is general election day here in Mozambique, for the last few month everywhere you look there are political poster, in fact if something stands still for long enough it gets a poster (such as trees and road signs). It seems that some foreign governments have been saying that people shouldn’t come to Mozambique during this period, ‘I’ve been here a few months now and really can’t see that there has been any problems. Though I did hear that a van load of ballet papers have gone missing…. who will win, the people will decide (hopefully).

Wednesday, started with a wonderful dive to a site I hadn’t been to before “Simons Town”, which I think it should have been called “Nemo’s City”. This site was full of amazing reef life, it really could have been a scene from “Finding Nemo” and yes I saw plenty of Clownfish. The reef has these huge areas that I can only call bowls of coral with nooks and crannies and swim thru’s. I was on the reel so I didn’t get in to most of the nooks and crannies and the swim thru’s. When you’re on the reel you’re at the back of the group holding on to the line that has a buoy on the surface so that boat captain knows where the group is. Anyway I loved Simons Town lots and really want to go back again soon. On the dive saw a great crocodile fish and a sleeping turtle in a cave. Yes I think I have a new fave shallow site. The dive shop is soon to be under new management and today they the new bosses walked us though some of their plans for the new dive shop. It all sounds so exciting and am excited that I will be here to help and see the new place come to life. I did a doodle of my view across the road yesterday, I have been asked to do one looking towards the dive shop to help the new bosses with planning things, so will start that soon. The rest of the afternoon was spent with Anna and Louis and Alice Cooper at the shop. Alice really doesn’t like to be handled or picked up (most cats Ive known haven’t minded being picked up) he makes a lot of complaining noises and struggles to get out of your grip asap. He comes to us for the food, the stroking and love, but deffo not to be picked up.

Thursday, woke up at early briefly at 5am the fan had died another power cut, by the time I’d gone to the dive shop there was still no power. Stepped out of the door and found it had been raining, all day the sky was cloudy and it looked like it was going to rain (The forecast for Friday is a LOT of rain). My dive today was to Giants Castle, I dropped with the reel and guess what there were 2 giant Manta’s on the cleaning station. They didn’t stay long and by the time the rest of the group arrived they had gone. Nice drift dive at 29 metres saw a large Marble Ray partly buried in the sand on the ocean floor. The rest of the day I was on shop, spent time on my computer, reading and listening to music what a great life. At the end of the day it was mentioned that the boat needed testing as a new gearbox had been installed during the afternoon. Louis and I got in to our very WETsuits and travelled to the beach on the boat (which is not how we normally get there, we walk to the beach as the boat is pulled by the tractor). Once on the beach we helped Pedro and Parra launch the boat, we then got to speed around the bay a little to test the new gearbox. Louis shouted to me “you’re loving this”, it was so true I had a huge grin on my face as I held on to the rope on the side of the inflatable pontoon. Really loved this unexpected trip, it was also nice to help Pedro and Parra, they work so hard so it was nice to be helping them.

Friday, was woken up at 5am by a huge thunder and lighten storm, oh the electrics out again. So I stood at the window and watched the sky light up and a number of lightning strikes, snaking down to the ground. I was tempted to try and get pics but didn’t bother. At about 7am I was up and walked Tank to Peri Peri, then walked through the market before my run. While walking up the main road I passed a fisherman holding by its tail a foot and a half (maybe 2 feet long) Hammerhead shark, so sad to see this little beauty being handle this way. I have seen Hammerheads on Scuba in Egypt, but over here I recently saw a small one just under the surface while travelling on the boat (I hope it’s a different Hammerhead). The run was good (Mum and Hel, I saw the PIG), the rain was not too bad, however at the petrol station it really started to tip it down. As I ran back to Tofo the rain got heavier and heavier, there were little rumbles of thunder every now and then. After a shower and change of clothes I took Tank to the beach (yes in the rain) and Casa Barry to check on my future accommodation, all looks good. Tank and I had a little paddle and run on the wet beach then went in to the market to buy some Castle Lite and Sprite, its Friday after all. Spent the rest of the day out of the rain (it stopped mid afternoon). Skyped with mum who’s bday it is today had a little chat, my prezzies I sent from SA in early September have never arrived….. Bugger. Oh the lovely Chris (who really looks like Kurt Cobain) has brought me some paper and watercolours (for my story) I will pay him back, i have no excuse now. This evening the TV stopped working like before, the wind and the rain has moved the satellite dish, good thing I have loads on my computer box.

It’s been a week of dodgy weather lots of cloud and buckets rain (today), the power going in and out (as I write this I’m in sitting the dark as the powers not working) but Tofo is still beautiful and the diving is amazing. I walk through Tofo every day to get to the dive centre and I realise what a wonderful place it is, am very lucky.