Life in Mozambique and life in Portugal: a narrative in the 1st person

Abstract

In this first person narrative I compare the culture and ways of life in Lourenço Marques - Mozambique, before April 25th 1974 and in the Portuguese town of Caldas de Vizela. I intend to make known the culture of the middle class living in Mozambique and supplement this transmission of knowledge with some notes on the national construction of the country's identity. I also intend to demystify the stereotype of the "returnees" as "colonialist exploiters of African people" and above all, transmit the culture in which I was born. This article presents: the history of Lourenço Marques, the theme of Multiculturalism, a narrative of my life in Mozambique, a brief history of Vizela, my coming to Portugal, and, finally, I establish, by way of conclusion, my integration (or not) in Portuguese society.