Despite the onset of the warmer weather in Jozi, the lack of rain always makes the city feel a bit dirty and depressing. During my few days off, I have been “looking back” at the past year and came across some pics on my phone from December 2015 in Mozambique, promoting this “throw back Thursday travel” post.
On a spur of the moment decision, Sean booked us a four-night pre-Christmas break at one of my ‘bucket list’ destinations (as a rule, I pretty much hate the term bucket list but I do have a mental list of places I want to see, experience, stay at or eat at…) – the White Pearl Resort in Ponte Mamoli. Last minute decisions like this, meant that I did not have the time to do my usual travel fretting and in less than two weeks after booking, we packed the car early one morning and made our way north to the border.
Sean had absolutely insisted that we experience the chopper flight from the Maputo airport to the lodge, and since the prices of Joburg-Maputo flights were (are) ludicrous, we chose to make the drive through to Maputo: it was an easy, well-paved five hour drive.
Arriving – basically on the shores – of Ponte Mamoli was one of those moments that encapsulates all your senses: the smell of wild African veld, tingling with fresh sea breezes and an untamed ocean roaring ahead of us. For me, there is hardly anything as beautiful as the rugged African coastline and the sound of crashing waves on a shoreline – it is always a reminder that we find ourselves in one of the most exquisite of locations in the world.
Our beach pool villa (large, crisp and fresh tones of white and turquoise) was exactly what the doctor had ordered after a hectic few months back at the grind after returning from Greece. A slip way straight onto the beach – with a private pool – is, and will always be, my idea of heaven. There is nothing quite like being able to relax – glass of champagne in hand, butler on speed dial – on a sun lounger, book in hand, while tanning in private! As Ilaria so aptly called it: “living the best life”.
As much as I love doing nothing but reading and relaxing, the highlight of the holiday had to be the “Ocean Safari”. A few hardcore divers and us two snorklers (and me not a very good one at that) piled into a sea rubber-ducky before being off-loaded into the sea to swim alongside Bottlenose Dolphins! Even though I am skittish around any fish variety (especially the larger kind) this was the top experience of our holiday; absolutely amazing and humbling to see these dolphins in their natural habitat and be treated with all the respect they deserve. To top it off, our go-pro footage actually managed to pick up the dolphins communicating with each other in the water – make sure you do watch this clip!
This break gave me the chance to experience Mozambique the way I have always wanted to (i.e. with air conditioning and a decent wine selection) and at a place that ticks all the relevant boxes of how I prefer to holiday: small, service-oriented, luxurious and private.
My photos unfortunately do little justice to this magnificent spot (I seriously need to up my photography game) so I would recommend checking out Brandslut’s review of the resort and her breathtaking pics. The lodge runs some incredible specials from time-to-time so it is worth signing up for their newsletter.
It is hard to believe this holiday was nine months ago – it came and went so quickly I don’t think I even had a chance to think about blogging about it before! Now, I am completely lusting after another chance to visit the White Pearl, its long stretches of white beach, dazzling sea vistas and its home-made morning yogurt! 🙂