Water so transparent, temperatures so warm, delicate pansy shells as far as the eye can see - it could only be Pomene.
However, the most beautiful aspect wasn't the scenery – it was the people.
The soulful civilians are the true bearers of the Mozambican magic that leaves us humbled and inspired every time.
Our eyes sparkling with ambition and hearts beating the drum of conservation, we and good ol’ Kili set off eager to spread our love and admiration of nature with more young, fiery souls.
Every hour spent traveling melted away when we hopped out into the most enchanting place on earth - Pomene.
The journey was not smooth, nor was it quick, but it was the most incredible adventure – buying ingredients in the bustling streets of Massinga, stumbling through Portuguese and Shangan just enough to get our point across and crack a smile or two, buying mounds of fresh fruit from helping hands.
It seemed like we drove through an untouched blanket of green for hours on end, reveling in the warmth of humanity at every stop.
With the language barrier being our biggest worry, we threw ourselves into our first batch of lessons - what we didn't anticipate was how much we ended up treasuring our differences in language.
We learned the beauty of communication without words – an entire marine syllabus taught through connection and a deeper understanding.
The coming together of an estuary-mangrove-beach playground at our fingertips, lively team members, inspired children, and activities that united these pillars built the bridge between our differences in dialect.
"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart." - Nelson Mandela
There are few feelings that compare to seeing the children sparkle with understanding as they gaze unwaveringly at our spectacular translator, Rosende.
Not long afterward, the eagerly awaited excursion put our conservational practice into play – we explored magical mangroves, all the while filling numerous bags with litter as we made our way along the exquisite estuary.
We learned to communicate in the most beautiful ways: touching each other's hearts through racing from tree to tree, trading carefully collected seashells and splashing along in crystal clear water.
We all worked together digging up litter stuck deep in the sand, taking breaks for piggybacks from bank to bank, high fives, and hugs – the bond formed with the special children of Pomene left us emotional, humbled, and inspired.
With heavy hearts and misty eyes, we climbed back into Kili after bittersweet goodbyes.
Mozambique - with stomachs sore from laughing and hearts overflowing with passion - cannot wait to see you again.
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