Mozambique's Northern Mozambique
Ilha de Mozambique
Probably the oldest European settlement in East Africa, the town of Moçambique is situated on the small coral island of Ilha do Moçambique. For centuries the island was an Arab and Portuguese trading post and its town the country's capital. More recently, disregard and decades of civil war have left it a hauntingly beautiful ruin, albeit one home to at least 15,000 inhabitants.
Having retained much of its original colonial architecture including the menacing ancient fortress of São Sebastio and its Church of Nossa Senhora Baluarte, as well as a twice-razed old town, containing the Jesuit College of São Paulo, an old palace and a museum of sacred art, the town of Moçambique is probably the most alluringly atmospheric destination in the country.
