My favorite exhibit - life-sized, no less! - at The Natural History Museum here in Maputo seems to suggest that the biggest threat to African wildlife is not man but the animals' willingness to drink from fluorescent-green watering holes (see photo above).
While I certainly haven't come close to seeing everything the city has to offer, this museum is one of my favorite destinations. The colonial/gothic archictecture, lush grounds, and grand interior staircase are reminiscent of a bygone era. It's nice to have a visual reminder of Maputo's heyday, particularly given the fact that daily rainstorms for the last two weeks have left washed-up piles of trash everywhere else in town.
It costs 50 metical to enter (approximately $1.50) and it's worth every penny. The exhibits are unbelievable and, in some cases, unintentionally funny. Since there is no such thing as central heat/air in Mozambique, the windows are always open, thus many of the featured attractions look a little grimy and worse for the wear. Unlike museums in the States, no one cares if you use flash photography. And there seems to be an equally lackadaisical attitude towards the fact that most of the formaldehyde has leaked out of jars containing specimens in the reptile room.
Some of the taxidermy is quite graphic - lots of guts, gore, and disemboweling. Definitely not suitable for the typical American elementary school field trip! If I saw stuff like this at age 9, I'd still be having nightmares.
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The exception are the grinning hippos, who look positively tickled to be standing next to the rhinos. Either that, or they were the ones that double-dog dared all the other animals in the central exhibit to try the green water. ("...Go on! I hear it tastes like Midori...")
I wanted to believe I was the kind of person who respected rare artifacts. But, seriously, if there was no glassed-in case, no roped-off area, and no guard on duty, could you resist the temptation to pet a two-headed goat? I think not! Especially when it is the only mammal placed in the aquarium room.
I have not decided if the wall of elephant fetuses is interesting or just plain creepy.
Probably the latter.
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