MORE SANTIAGO

 26th -28th Oct 2024

Map of Santiago (click on to enlarge). Very basic but the best on offer.

We, myself and my host Tatiana, set off early for a drive up to the area of Santa Cruz (mid-east on map) to meet Tatiana's ANAS colleagues who were on a social day out trekking. The main roads were surprisingly good and with little traffic.

We met them, a party of about 25, walking up a road towards where I don't know, but it followed a small stream which actually had some water in it (we drove!)

The rainy season had finished early this year and the crops and vegetation, bright green earlier, were just beginning to dry, turn brown and wither. By January the countryside woud be a dull arid brown.

Right: They all gathered at a small dam for a rest and a bit of refreshing bathing.

Left: We passed a few isolated hamlets and it was not good to notice the amount of waste, plastic bottles and rubbish, dumped outside the houses. 

At about mid-day they all piled into minibuses and we arrived at a group of houses (barely a village) which had a basic restaurant inside a wattle shack. A very hearty meal had been prepared.

It consisted of a lot of fruits (bananas, papayas, melons), sausages, eggs, coffee, tea and juices etc. Plus masses of this stuff (left) 'Kachupa' which is a staple meal for Cape Verdians. It is basically a soggy mash of maize, not unpleasant, with a bland taste. You need to put some sauce on it. 

A bottle of 'grogue' was being passed around. This is a powerful local sugar cane spirit and one can never be certain of its provenance. I resisted. I was told some brews can cause casualties.

So far I haven't seen many Cape Verde flags, but noticed this plastic one (right) above the WC. This flag was only adopted in 1992 (they had a different one on gaining independence). The ten stars represent the ten islands, one of which is very small and uninhabited. The colours represent the sky (blue), effort (red) and peace (white) or somesuch.

This meal went on for at least a couple of hours and all seemed to be enjoying it immensely. A very jolly gathering!

After this we drove on and Tatiana (my host) took me on a long journey up through the centre of the island and then down south again. Due to her job she knows the island very well. I got rather disorientated but if was interesting to see the very rugged and rocky countryside. I show below a series of 'landscapes' which should give you some idea. I think we went past Flemengo, Assomada, Sāo Salvadore, Picos, Sāo Domingos (you might be able to see them on the map above).

Right: This tall 'spire' was quite impressive and had two pointy peaks better seen from the side. I think it was near Picos.

We stopped at a large dam somewhere which, apparently, was not holding enough water for this time of year. All the larger crops (maize, corn etc.) were beginning to die off.

Left: There were numerous little villages up in the hills. The ones we passed looked entirely remote and the locals very poor. They must live a very hand to mouth existence. All their houses were made out of breeze blocks.

Even the larger towns we passed through looked rather ramshackle and, again, breeze block houses predominated. There were few shops of any size and certaily no 'smart' ones. I thought it all looked a bit down at heel and the population somewhat listless. I'm not sure how many of them earn a living frankly. Maybe they don't.

....and below, just a few more views of the countryside. The only 'constructions' which appeared well made and in good condition were the main roads.

We stopped at a small town near Sāo Lourenco where they hold a 'pork' festival. There was an open air café where the locals were all heartily tucking in to pork meals.

Then on to stop at Tatiana's female cousin at a most extraordinary 'eco' complex in the middle of nowhere. This lady ran a combination of a zoo, garden centre with acres of exotic plants and a restaurant. It must take considerable time and effort just to water the plants. She has a bore hole to supply the water.

Many miles were covered that day and we got back home early evening.

The next day, on the road again. Right: I was taken to a beach at Praia Baixo (south east coast) for lunch. Not a particularly inspiring beach but come lunchtime many 'tourists' of the Western variety arrived.

Left: This was because there is a well known and popular restaurant at the northern end of the beach called Big Lanche. 

Right: They specialise in seafood, but have good steaks, and after some sort of shellfish starter I enjoyed a plate of enormous fried prawns, followed by a lemon cheesecake with raspberry sauce. The restaurant was indeed busy.

Incidently, Tatiana told me that it is now very difficult to find good staff at these places and, indeed, at most other places of employment in Cape Verde. The food was good but the service here was distinctly lacking as most of the table staff were new and untrained. The older guy in charge had his work cut out, and the chef must have been skilled. The reason for this is that an increasing number of young Cape Verdians are emigrating to places like Portugal to earn a better living. It does not bode well for the Islands and their tourist industry.

After lunch I was taken to a beach at Praia Sāu Francisco. Forgot to get a photo.  This is a pretty white sandy beach and is a favourite for swimming by Tatiana and her husband. The sea is much clearer and almost blue! There are no facilities on the beach and people bring picnics. One thing of note was a caged area containing smaller cages and I hadn't a clue what it was. Apparently this beach sees the arrival of thousands of turtles and they lay their eggs there. Eggs that are laid too near the water get swept away, so voluteers (I suppose) take the eggs at risk and put them inside the smaller cages for them to hatch out. Apparently it works.

I was then shown a most extraordinary, and large, housing estate built on a plateau high above the beach, with no easy access. It is called the Sambala Estate and investment in this, over 20 years ago, was by a British Company. Rumour has it that it was a means of laundering dirty money. Anyway the British company either went bust or was forced to pull out to avoid prosecution and subsequently another, German, organisation got involved. There must be well over a hundred quite high-spec houses with (empty) swimming pools. The problem is that there are next to no inhabitants and much of the building work on the houses has yet to be completed. People were persuaded to buy (invest!) many years ago and still no completed house! One is led to believe the whole long-ongoing project was and is a bit of a scam.

The next day I spent wandering around Praia and even wrote some post-cards. It will be interesting to see if any ever arrive. Incidently the cost of a stamp to UK was about 60p, somewhat cheaper than sending them from UK. Anyway, they may not get delivered.

That will do for now!

TO CAPE VERDE

 24th - 26th Oct 2024

The nine inhabited islands which are well spread out.

The journey to Cape Verde (or Cabo Verde as it is known there) involved a 2.5hr flight from London Heathrow to Lisbon, Portugal, and then, after a 3 hour stop-over, a further 4hr flight on to Praia, the capital city on the main island of Santiago, whose airport is, rather worryingly, named after Nelson Mandela. Both flights (travelling economy with no cabin baggage extra charges) were with the Portugese airline TAP and were most efficient, hassle-free and with delightful cabin crew. The 4 hour flight included a rather good supper and as much free (Portuguese?) wine as you wanted! We landed at 11.20pm local time (1.20am GMT; they are, were, two hours behind UK).

These volcanic islands are in the Atlantic about 380 miles off the coast of Senegal, West Africa, and 985 miles south of the Canaries. They are spread out over about 300 miles. The climate can be hot, sometimes wet during the 'wet season' ending in October (except during a drought) and windy. They have an interesting history which, if you are interested, you can look up. It was a Portugese colony until 1975 when they gained their independence and now, the Republic of Cape Verde, have a democratically elected government. The islands have been subject in the past to several serious droughts and famines which resulted in catastrophic fatalities. Their water supplies and agriculture are now better managed, but for the most part they are still very 'basic' agrarian with a reasonable fishing industry. Their water supply is still an ongoing problem. I gather that the Chinese, as with many other African countries, have 'lent' them money and resources under their 'Belt and Road Initiative', ie. they are now 'in hock' to the Chinese! As have the USA and the EU etc. They have rather depended on these hand-outs.

I had been generously invited to stay in the house of a previous colleague of mine who is presently working in Fiji. His charming wife met me at the airport and drove me to their large, sumptuous and well appointed house in the residential Palmajero district in the south-west of Praia. She works as a senior hydrographic technician in their Angencie Nationale Agua y Sanientamo (ANAS, a most important department dealing with the often critical water situation and sanitation). I was given a most luxurious apartment to myself on the 2nd floor. She had her own accommodation on the 3rd floor and there was a splendid roof-top terrace. I am not accustomed to staying in such luxury on my travels!

I only had a vague plan on what I was going to do and where to go. So, the next day I decided to go to the 'Plateau' which is towards the city centre and is the nearest Praia gets to a 'tourist' area. It is a relatively clean grassy park area with several bars, cafés, the main Post Office, a large noisy indoor market and various official buildings. Having read a guide book previously I had a few clues of what to expect.

Left: An open area on Plateau with outside bars and shops along parallel streets.

There were various things which became apparent on day 1.

1. Travelling any distance around town is only viable by taxi. They are not expensive and there are many of them. Most local journeys cost in the region of CVE 200 to 300 Escudos (£2). I tend to be allergic to taxis but those here seem honest. So far.

2. Tourist information bureaux or desks are few and far between, and/or closed, or useless. I suspect the island of Santiago is not geared up for tourists unlike the surfing and beach resorts on Sal and Boa Vista to the north.

3. Decent (full) maps of the towns or island are non-existant which is a confounded inconvenience if you want to go for a wander...and get lost and not internet connected on your phone.

4. There are a lot of beggars and hawkers on the streets who tend to target tourists as they sit outside at bars or cafés. They are a real pest.

5. Not many of the population speak English. Although Portuguese is the official language they communicate, speaking rapidly, in a local bastardisation of this called 'Creole'. It is entirely incomprehensible to the untrained ear.

6. Cape Verde is not covered by my phone's 'roaming' system and, unless you buy a new sim card, making phone calls or using the internet on the phone is very expensive. WiFi is reasonably available in some places, but many bars and cafés are not connected.

Right: The southern end of Plateau. Not sure about the statue.

Left: Part of the humming indoor market (on two floors) on Plateau.

Right: The frontage of the Palacio de Governo below Plateau.

That will do for now and merely an 'intro' to my Cape Verde experience. My host (a bit rude to call her my hostess I think) has offered to take me on a drive tomorrow to the centre of the island where she is due to meet up with a group of her ANAS colleagues for a 'social' trek in the hills.