Avenida 24 de Julho is the main artery of central Maputo, running east–west through the heart of the city from the Baixa up to Polana and beyond. The street is named for the date in 1875 when Lourenço Marques became a town. It is wide, treelined for much of its length, and lined with mid-century apartment blocks and offices that show the Art Deco confidence of late colonial Maputo.
The avenue is best walked, slowly, in the late afternoon when the heat drops and the jacarandas — purple in October and November — start to throw shade. Useful landmarks along the way include the Polana Cinema, the Hotel Cardoso at the western end of Polana, and the row of restaurants and cafés around the Avenida Mao Tse Tung intersection.