Santiago, Cape Verde Islands
During breakfast we arrived at Santiago Island, one of the nine inhabited islands of Cape Verde which, since 1975 has become and independent African republic. The Endeavour tied up at the pier in Praia, the capital of Cape Verde. It is a city of 80,000 inhabitants, established by the Portuguese in 1712 after the plundering, by the French, of Ribeira Grande the main city at the time. Cape Verde is considered a western extension of the Sahara Desert. Its name “Green Cape” doesn’t refer to the nonexistent lush vegetation of the archipelago, but to the cape of the same name in Senegal. The history of this archipelago is one of hardship and endurance by the many Africans brought here to work at the sugar and cotton plantations, later sold as slaves to Portuguese and Spanish colonies in the Americas.
Those of us on the all day tour of Santiago boarded our bus for the drive north to Tarrafal, where sandy beaches attract the few tourists that visit this island. On the way, as we climbed the inland mountains crossing the heart of Santiago, we stopped at the small botanical garden near the picturesque town of Picos. We reached Tarrafal by midday, just in time to enjoy the box lunches brought from the ship. A few of us chose a refreshing swim after lunch before continuing our adventure now driving south on the coastal road back to Praia.
The morning tour had a cultural focus. We visited the main points of interest in Praia, the market being one of the highlights. Here many women, with every shade of skin, sold their goods such as cassava, a variety of fruits, beans and fish. After a short drive we arrived at Ribeira Grande, now called Cidade Velha (Old Town). We visited Sao Felipe Fort built with bricks brought from Lisbon, after Sir Francis Drake had attacked the island in 1585. Cidade Velha is now a sleepy fishing village and only the ruin of the old cathedral and the fort stand as reminders of when it was a pivot of the Portuguese Empire. After lunch on board we drove inland along the cobble stone roads. These were built by hand by the men, women and children, who during one of the many droughts that plagued these islands, were employed by the Portuguese to undertake such an incredible task. Our vans took us to Sao Domingos, a pretty place in the mountains where we visited the craft center looking for panos, woven cloth produced in Cape Verde, which was in great demand in the 17th century among upper classes along the Rivers of Guinea and as far as Brazil.
At cocktail hour a local band, Vulcao de Fogo, came on board to entertain us and share a bit of the rich musical culture of Cape Verde.
During breakfast we arrived at Santiago Island, one of the nine inhabited islands of Cape Verde which, since 1975 has become and independent African republic. The Endeavour tied up at the pier in Praia, the capital of Cape Verde. It is a city of 80,000 inhabitants, established by the Portuguese in 1712 after the plundering, by the French, of Ribeira Grande the main city at the time. Cape Verde is considered a western extension of the Sahara Desert. Its name “Green Cape” doesn’t refer to the nonexistent lush vegetation of the archipelago, but to the cape of the same name in Senegal. The history of this archipelago is one of hardship and endurance by the many Africans brought here to work at the sugar and cotton plantations, later sold as slaves to Portuguese and Spanish colonies in the Americas.
Those of us on the all day tour of Santiago boarded our bus for the drive north to Tarrafal, where sandy beaches attract the few tourists that visit this island. On the way, as we climbed the inland mountains crossing the heart of Santiago, we stopped at the small botanical garden near the picturesque town of Picos. We reached Tarrafal by midday, just in time to enjoy the box lunches brought from the ship. A few of us chose a refreshing swim after lunch before continuing our adventure now driving south on the coastal road back to Praia.
The morning tour had a cultural focus. We visited the main points of interest in Praia, the market being one of the highlights. Here many women, with every shade of skin, sold their goods such as cassava, a variety of fruits, beans and fish. After a short drive we arrived at Ribeira Grande, now called Cidade Velha (Old Town). We visited Sao Felipe Fort built with bricks brought from Lisbon, after Sir Francis Drake had attacked the island in 1585. Cidade Velha is now a sleepy fishing village and only the ruin of the old cathedral and the fort stand as reminders of when it was a pivot of the Portuguese Empire. After lunch on board we drove inland along the cobble stone roads. These were built by hand by the men, women and children, who during one of the many droughts that plagued these islands, were employed by the Portuguese to undertake such an incredible task. Our vans took us to Sao Domingos, a pretty place in the mountains where we visited the craft center looking for panos, woven cloth produced in Cape Verde, which was in great demand in the 17th century among upper classes along the Rivers of Guinea and as far as Brazil.
At cocktail hour a local band, Vulcao de Fogo, came on board to entertain us and share a bit of the rich musical culture of Cape Verde.
