Cape Verde: a little bit Africa, a little bit Portugal

In mid-January we were in Las Palmas pondering where to go next. A jet passed overhead. As we often do, we tracked it on FlightAware. It was enroute from Praia to Lisbon. We had to Google Praia to find out where it is. It’s in Cape Verde (officially Cabo Verde), a former Portuguese colony 600 km off the coast of West Africa. Its tourism website boasted of its fascinating history and culture; amazing beaches; and its year-round tropical climate with temperatures averaging between 24C and 30C, lots of sunshine and best of all low humidity. We were sold. We arrived there in early February.

CV is an archipelago made up of ten volcanic islands. The country only gained its independence in 1975. The population of 566,000 is a mix of European and West African, many of whom are descendants of slaves brought over by the Portuguese. We visited four of the islands: Sal, São Vicente, Santo Antão and Santiago. Despite being part of the same archipelago, the islands could not be more different – the terrain and topography, economic situation, even the temperament of the people. We were glad we didn’t confine ourselves to just one island.

Sal

Sal is known for its miles of white sandy beaches and world-class kite surfing. We usually aren’t into laying around on beaches and definitely don’t kite surf. We had to make our own fun.

The island is just 30 km long by 12 km wide. It is dead flat except for a few dormant volcanoes which can be seen across the island, the highest being Monte Grande at 406m. There are only 33 km of paved road and a few hundred kilometers of dirt tracks. Nothing much grows on the island as it has no top soil, just rock and dust. We rented an ATV and roared along the dirt tracks circling the island. Quading was a fun way to see the island, though by day’s end we were covered with orange volcanic dust.

We were based in the laid-back town of Santa Maria. It attracts flocks of tourists to its beaches and hotels. The fishing boats come in each morning to its wooden jetty. Fish are dispersed in wheelbarrows and sold around town to hotels, restaurants and locals. A short distance outside town is Kite Beach. The north-east tradewinds constantly blow, with wind gusts of +/- 45 kmh. That, combined with monster Atlantic waves, attracts kite surfers from all over Europe. It is dazzling to watch the skills of some of the experienced surfers as they maneuver through the high winds and waves.

The nearby tiny hamlet of Pedra de Lume has the remains of old salt beds in the crater of a dormant volcano. Seawater infiltrates from the nearby ocean and evaporates in salt basins. The adjacent port has the derelict remains of the salt sheds. An unemployed oldtimer gave us a “tour” of the ruins, and advice on how we could drive around on our quad to avoid paying the €5 fee to get into the salt mine. We tipped him €5 for his “tour”, then paid to get into the salt mine anyway. Freely floating in the saline waters with warm geothermal heat bubbling up from below makes for a very relaxing time. Close by is Shark Bay. For a fee to the land-based sharks supervising the beach, you can wade into the shark-infested waters and watch these creatures swim around your legs. Okay, the sharks are only about 2 feet long, but we did see fins from larger sharks in the deeper waters.

São Vicente

A short 45 minute flight from Sal and you’re landing in Sao Vicente. Our guidebook said Mindelo was the most cosmopolitan city in Cape Verde. Everything is relative. While it has a beautiful beach and colonial-era buildings, it is mainly a port city. Mindelo suffered from the economic downturn from Covid. There are a lot of half-built hotels just resuming construction. The few tourists who stay in Mindelo mainly just stay overnight to catch the morning ferry to Santo Antao. Hopefully the new hotels will turn things around. The islands that welcome tourists clearly have a higher standard of living and less unemployment.

Early mornings the shoreline and fish market are hubs of activity as the overnight catch arrives in brightly painted fish boats. Much of the catch is cleaned on the shoreline and sold by women lining the streets. Many stray cats and dogs line up for the fish entrails. Nothing goes to waste. The better fish go to the official market. All the market stalls are managed by women in brightly coloured dresses, wheeling and dealing their inventory. Further along is the open market, lots of colour but not as intense as the fish market.

We rented a Fiat 500 to tour the island, easily done in one day. There are only a handful of towns to visit. Sao Pedro and Calhua are small fishing villages with colourful painted fishing boats. The highest point on the island is Monte Verde. It’s reached by a steep, winding, narrow, and mostly cobble-stoned road. Not for the faint of heart. The guard rails are missing in sections, with several hundred metres of fresh air between you and a hard landing. The pay-off at the top is a 360 degree view of the island.

Santo Antão

As flat as Sal is, Santo Antão is vertical. Its steep mountains plunge into the Atlantic. The island has two sides. The leeward side is moonscape – just volcanic rock. The windward side gets all the rain. It has lovely green gorges. Every flat piece of soil is used to grow myriad crops to feed the islands.

Santo Antão is a dream for hikers. There are numerous hikes to choose from, most with spectacular views. We hired a local guide for two days to guide us on two totally different hikes. We’ve never used a hiking guide before but the mountainous trails are not well marked. Some are goat paths that have been in existence hundreds of years, but only locals know where they lead. Plus, hiring a guide gives employment to a local and you get to hear about the local culture.

We also rented a car to drive a now decommissioned cobbled road over the mountains. The road snakes along the ridges of the mountains with sheer drops on both sides. Occasional tiny pull-outs allowed us to cool the brakes and steady our nerves for the next sheer drop.

Our village was full of friendly stray dogs. Good times were spent wandering the street feeding them. They all appreciated getting free meals. One little guy became a ghost that appeared everywhere we went. He even appeared out of nowhere 12 km up a mountain trail we were hiking. He happily joined us for the return hike to town. We never figured out how he got there or how he found us. (He probably thought the same about us – “How did those crazy tourists get up here?”).

Click the link for a couple of minute video of the hair-raising thrill of driving on Santo Antão. The Drive from Porto Novo to Ribeira Grande.

Santiago

Santiago is the largest island, located in the southern part of the archipelago. The capital of Cape Verde is Praia, where the government offices and embassies are located. Praia has a hectic market and old colonial buildings, but a day there is enough to see all the sites. A short trip to Ribeira Grande (Cidade Velha) to visit its UNESCO-protected centre and Citadel is a sad history lesson on the islands and the slave trade in the 15^th and 16^th centuries.

We rented a car to drive the cobblestone road to Tarrafal at the opposite end of the island. Our stop at the frenetic, noisy, crowded market at Assomada was an eye-opener. Everything and anything was on offer. Tarrafal is more tranquil, a fishing town with a vibrant town centre and busy horseshoe-shaped beach. We relaxed at a nice resort and did some hiking.

Nearby is the village of Chão Bom, home to what was known as the Tarrafal Concentration Camp. It was operational from 1936 to 1974. The camp held political prisoners opposing the Salazar regime in Portugal, then later independence fighters from Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde. It was sobering to visit, especially given the current events in Europe. On the return trip to Praia we drove down the opposite coast past small towns and villages where time stands still and everyone is on island time.

Fish and Beans

Most meals were whatever the catch of the day was, from the ocean to the wheelbarrow to the restaurants. Otherwise the food is pretty basic, rooted in West African cuisine. Cape Verde’s staple is cachupa, its national dish. Cachupa is a stew of beans, corn, sweet potatoes and whatever fish, meat or morcilla is available.