A modernist concrete monster of a hotel at the south end of Beira, built in 1955 as the most luxurious in Africa and bankrupted within a decade by its own absurd ambition. During the Mozambican civil war the empty building filled with refugees, and it has been a vertical squatter settlement ever since — around 3,500 people, three or four families per former hotel room, sharing washing lines strung across what was once the ballroom.
It is one of the strangest and most unsettling places to visit in Mozambique. Photographers come for the Soviet-Brutalist decay; activists for the social story. Visit only with a local guide who has been there before — entering uninvited is unwelcome and unsafe. The community itself can be hostile to camera-toting tourists, and asking permission to photograph is essential. Approach with respect or do not approach at all.