Never Mind The Riots- Bring The Prawns!

Never mind the riots, bring on the prawns…

by SHARON VAN WYK on 20. SEP, 2010 in TRAVELNOISE




Somewhere in downtown Maputo: If there’s any unrest in Mozambique, there’s no obvious sign of it here in Maputo, where apart from policemen persistently asking you to show them your passport if you look slightly paler than the bloke next to you, life seems to be going on as usual. Which, if you’re a fourth generation Greek settler like Emmanuel G Petrakakis, means “more prawns”!

Manny owns and runs the Costa do Sol restaurant which sits on the beachfront a short distance from Maputo central.

His forebears started the eaterie in 1938 to great acclaim and it’s still pumping, even on a nondescript Wednesday night, a mere week or so after the locals were hurling rocks and verbal abuse to all and sundry in protest of the high cost of living. All is calm now, thanks to reintroduced subsidies, and the beachfront is buzzing, alive with people dressed to the nines gyrating to thumping rhythms played on car stereo systems and broadcast to the world at large.

I’m sitting in Costa do Sol with other members of the South African media, courtesy of 1time which has just launched its Johannesburg to Maputo route. Further down the table, 1time CEO Rodney James is laughing with his fellow staff members and treating the gathered throng to a suitably prawn-laden slap-up meal in honour of another huge leap forward by this onward and upward low cost carrier, which has recently announced an increase in revenue of 11% for the period which ended on June 30 this year.

It’s another indication to me that Erik Venter, Comair joint chief executive, talked absolute khazi when he addressed the Aviation Outlook conference in Cape Town recently, telling the world that the low cost carrier model does not work in Africa. Zat so, Erik? Then how come 1time is doing OK? And still expanding? Perhaps the big cheese ouens at Comair should take a leaf out of Rodney James’s book and climb down from their ivory towers to mix with the normal folk for a while in order to see that if you get your prices and your service right, Mr and Mrs Joe Q Public just lurve to fly.

1time is living proof that low cost carriers work, and work well, especially when you don’t have executives with their heads up their rear ends, or other people’s rear ends for that matter.

Being here in Maputo is actually a double whammy for us media ouens, because not only do we get to try out 1time’s new route, but we are getting to stay at the (almost) finished and lavishly refurbished Polana Serena Hotel, whose soft opening coincides with 1time’s route launch.

We’re the first to sleep on the brand new mattresses and the first to try out the brand new pool. The first, too, to tread on the new marble floors and soak up the atmosphere the new-look bars, restaurants and terraces. And the first to critique her new, ample curves.

I must say that notwithstanding the usual soft opening teething problems, the Polana is looking absolutely ravishing, and as the grand old lady of Maputo (she started life here in the early 1920s) she has most definitely been given a new lease of life.

The Polana’s extreme makeover has cost more than a few million US dollars, but it seems to have been money well spent, as the unveiling reveals sumptuous silks from India, fabulous hand-carved hardwoods from Kenya and a lavish blend of African, Asian and authentic Portuguese cultures.

And, for all you marvelous events, conference and weddings-type folk out there, she has a ballroom “to absolutely die for”, as they say on Top Billing and other saccharin-coated lifestyle shows. I’ll stick my neck out and say that combined with 1time’s cheap and cheerful 40-odd minute flight, the Polana has the potential to grab a fair-sized slice of the local events market. Her venues are great, the equipment top-notch and her staff ready, willing and able to meet the needs of the most discerning PCO or wedding planner.

Indeed, the only problems I have with the old gal is that she isn’t exactly keeping step with the carbon conscious. Her footprint is currently a little on the heavy side, so I look forward to seeing what offsets Serena has in store. And the refurbishment sadly missed a golden opportunity to provide adequate access for the disabled. If you’re in a wheelchair, forget it, unless you love elevated views of swimming pools you can’t get to because of thousands of steps and no ramps. But as weekend or midweek leisure breaks go, you could do far worse than choosing the Polana as your stopover of choice.

And, as good old Manny at Costa do Sol would surely agree, when everything looks like going for a ball of smelly stuff, just smile and say “bring on the prawns”. Why go to Ocean Basket when you can come here and eat em fresh?


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Sharon van Wyk wrote 47 articles on this blog.
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