Santa Carolina
Abandoned hotel
There is a ruined hotel on the island. It was built in the 1950s by Portuguese businessman Joaquim Alves, who abandoned the hotel when Mozambique gained independence in June 1975. The hotel was made up of 10 buildings with a combined 250 rooms. Alves also built a chapel on the island.
The hotel was maintained by its staff for two decades after Alves abandoned it, and it was bought by South African developer Richard Makin in 1993, who planned to renovate and reopen the hotel. Makin's ownership of the island was disputed when he tried to sell the island in 1997.
The hotel was supposedly frequented by famous guests while it was still in use, but the reliability of these stories is uncertain. For example, several travel sites claim that Bob Dylan wrote his song Mozambique in the restaurant of the hotel, a story which conflicts with claims that the song was a competition between Dylan and co-writer Jacques Levy to rhyme as many words as possible with "Mozambique".
Gallery
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The abandoned hotel
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Inside the abandoned hotel
Appearance on Survivor
The island was used for season 3 of Survivor South Africa (titled Survivor South Africa: Santa Carolina).
References
- ^ Waldman, Amy (1994-12-18). "Four Tiny Isles Off Mozambique". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2018-01-24. Retrieved 2022-09-16.
- ^ Pinto de Sá, José (1997-03-25). "O paraíso não está à venda" (PDF). Notícias Africanas (in Portuguese). No. 161. p. 8. Retrieved 2022-09-16.
- ^ McCulloch, Alasdair (2013-11-13). "In photos: the abandoned island of Santa Carolina, Mozambique". Getaway Magazine. Retrieved 2022-09-16.
- ^ Kirell, Andrew (2016-01-31). "'Desire': Bob Dylan's Sloppiest Masterpiece Turns 40". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 2022-09-16.