Can I go with you?

Freshly caught fish from the dam were cleaned and dried in the sun.

They were later salted to preserve them.

The first words that I learned in the local language were, “Where are you going?  Can I go with you?” I wanted to learn where people went and what they did, but primarily I wanted to understand where and how they got their food when there was not a drop of rain for agriculture. 

Packed into boxes or bags the fish is sold in Massingir or transported to Maputo where it is highly appreciated. 

In the first phase of my research, I would wake up in the morning and prepare my backpack with water, a bit of food, my notebook and my camera, and I sat next to the path that lead out of town to wait.  As soon as someone came by, I would greet them and employ my newly acquired words.  "Can I go with you?” mostly resulted in a laugh and, “sure come along.”  

Sometimes I went with my backpack just a few minutes down the path and would come back shortly after.  Sometimes the excursions were longer.  But as soon as the trick resulted in a very long, multiple day trip, I quickly learned to ask, “are you returning today?”

One of my excursions took me unexpectedly to the fishermen's camp where I learned about how fresh fish was dried, salted and packed away to be sold in markets in Maputo.