Cabo Verde
The Republic of Cabo Verde (formerly known as Cape Verde) is an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, 460 kilometers off the coast of Senegal. The island nation is an independent democratic republic with over 522,000 inhabitants and consists of ten islands: Santo Antão, São Vicente, Santa Luzia, São Nicolau, Sal, Boavista, Maio, Santiago, Fogo, and Brava. The islands of Sal and Boavista are flat and known for their beaches and resorts. The other islands are dry and mountainous. In Cabo Verde rainfall is low, and temperatures are almost always pleasant.
Itinerary
Mindelo (São Vicente) – Ponta do Sol (Santo Antão) – Ribeira do Paúl (Santo Antão) – Mindelo (São Vicente)
The islands were “discovered” by European explorers in the mid-fifteenth century, and in 1462 the Portuguese began colonizing Cabo Verde. The islands were primarily used to produce food (using slaves brought from Africa) to supply passing ships. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Cabo Verde was a transit point for the international slave trade. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the islands continued to benefit from their strategic location, but subsequently fell victim to the conflicts between European powers. Cape Verde also regularly suffered from severe droughts, failed harvests, and famine, even well into the first half of the twentieth century. Tens of thousands of inhabitants left the islands to escape poverty.
Poverty and the feeling that Portugal was neglecting the islands and their people fueled the desire of a growing number of Cabo Verdeans for independence from European colonizers. On July 5, 1975, Cabo Verde declared independence. Since independence, things have gradually improved in Cabo Verde. Gross domestic product and life expectancy have increased, while unemployment and poverty have decreased. Tourism has become a major source of income (now accounting for about a quarter of the gross domestic product), although the country still depends on foreign aid and money sent back to their homeland by Cabo Verdeans living elsewhere.
The population of the islands (which were uninhabited until the fifteenth century) is predominantly Creole, largely the descendants of Portuguese male colonists and African women. Although Portuguese is the official language, everyone speaks Kriolu or Creole, a blend of Portuguese and various West African languages. Cabo Verde’s culture revolves around Kriolu, music, and food, along with friendliness, hospitality, and an easygoing attitude.
Anyone who knows Traveling Dutchie knows that I’m not usually found in tourist resorts. This trip was no exception, so I won’t be visiting Sal or Boavista. I have a week to spare, and I’m using it to explore the islands of São Vicente and Santo Antão.
São Vicente
São Vicente is located in the northwest of Cabo Verde. The island has approximately 80,000 inhabitants, most of whom live in the town of Mindelo. The rest of the island is extremely dry, rugged, and mountainous (with the 750-meter-high Monte Verde as its highest point). Mindelo, often referred to as the “cultural capital” of Cabo Verde, is located on the north side of the island, on a crescent-shaped bay. In the nineteenth century, this bay formed a natural harbor where ships docked to replenish their coal supplies. The downside was that Mindelo was a town of sailors, alcohol, prostitution, and gambling. In the early twentieth century, Mindelo lost its port function, the town fell into disrepair, and many workers left for other Portuguese colonies. Today, Mindelo is once again a lively town. The town center consists of an attractive mix of colonial buildings along cobblestone streets and many cafés and restaurants.
After a flight of just over six hours, I arrived Thursday afternoon at the tiny Cesária Évora Airport, on the southwest side of São Vicente. From the plane, I already saw how dry and arid the island is. As I step off the plane, the wind is blowing hard, and it will remain so for the rest of my stay. It’s sunny, though, and around 23°C. In the small airport terminal, the line for passport control moves slowly; two customs officers is not enough to check all the passengers from two simultaneously arriving flights. Once through passport control, the taxi driver arranged by my guesthouse is already waiting. Fifteen minutes later, I’m in Mindelo.
The next day, I explore Mindelo. Near my guesthouse (which is just outside Mindelo’s center, but Mindelo is compact enough to explore on foot), is a small square with the Escola Jorge Barbosa. Built in 1859, the building now houses a language school, but in the past it also served as army barracks, the office of the Portuguese governor, and a military hospital. A little further along is the striking (because it’s bright pink) Palácio do Povo, the “presidential palace” (also called Palácio do Mindelo), which served as a venue for official events during the colonial era. The ground floor was built in 1873, and the second floor was added in the 1930s. The palace now houses the Supreme Court of Cabo Verde.
Opposite the Palácio de Povo, Rua Libertadores d’Africa begins, which leads to Avenida Marginal, which runs along the bay. The gray plastered façade on Rua Libertadores d’Africa is the Mercado Municipal, a covered market hall, originally built in 1784 and expanded in the first half of the twentieth century. The building is still in use as a market hall; Mindelo residents buy their fresh fruit and vegetables there. Behind the Mercado Municipal is the Praçinha de Igreja, a small square with palm trees, a small church, and the Câmera Municipal, Mindelo’s town hall, built between 1850 and 1873.
From the Praçinha de Igreja, it’s a short walk south to Praça Estrela. This square houses a permanent “African market” (where mainly t-shirts and souvenirs are sold). The ends of the rows of market stalls are adorned with a tile tableau depicting scenes from Mindelo’s history as a bustling port city. Several murals adorn the walls along Rua do Coco, which runs alongside Praça Estrela.
From Praça Estrela, I walk towards the water. Local women sell vegetables and fish on rugs in the street. At the end of the street, I arrive at the Torre de Belém. This tower was built in 1921, modeled after the tower of the same name in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon. In the 1920s, it housed the Portuguese governor of Cabo Verde. Next to the Torre de Belém is the Mercado de Peixe, the fish market. Fresh fish is brought in by small boats and taken directly from the pier to the market hall. Along the water, local men are filleting freshly caught fish, simply on a rock or a wall. A great spot for cats, which are all around.
Avenida Marginal runs along the bay, flanked on one side by colonial buildings from the heyday of shipping, and on the other side offering views of the bay and the marina. On the small beach along the bay, fishing boats lie picturesquely in the sand. I walk north along Avenida Marginal. On the corner of a small square, Praça Dom Luis, stands the bright blue colonial Miller and Corey’s building, which now houses a supermarket and a tour company. The Old Customs House, dating from 1858, now houses the Mindelo Cultural Center.
A little further north lies a square, Praça Amílcar Cabral, also known as Praça Nova. On one side of the square, which has been laid out as a small park, stands a Portuguese kiosk from the 1930s. On the other side stands the building of the Centro Nacional de Arte, Artesano e Design (CNAD), the art and design museum of Cabo Verde. The CNAD is housed in a nineteenth-century colonial building, with a colorful modern extension added behind it in 2022.
Saturday is a relaxing day. In the morning, I walk to Praia da Laginha, a beach on the north side of Mindelo, with almost white sand and azure water. I have lunch at one of the beach bars and then walk back to relax in my guesthouse for the rest of the afternoon.
Santo Antão
On Sunday morning, I walk to the harbor where I board the 9am ferry that will take me (and a few dozen others) to the island of Santo Antão. From the harbor of Mindelo, you can already see the island. There’s a strong wind, so that doesn’t bode well for the crossing. The first leg is relatively calm, but halfway through the crossing, the ferry starts to strongly bob up and down and back and forth. I do my best not to get seasick…
Santo Antão is the second-largest and most northwestern island of the Cabo Verde archipelago. The island consists of high mountains, steep cliffs, and deep valleys (‘ribeiras’), the result of volcanic activity millennia ago. Much of Santo Antão is inhospitable and undeveloped, and the island was uninhabited for a long time; only since the eighteenth century have permanent residents lived on the island (today they number around 50,000).
The ferry arrives at Porto Novo, on the south side of the island, a small town with a modern ferry terminal. The shared taxis (‘alugeres’) are already waiting; they know when the ferry will arrive. It’s easy to find an aluger to Ponta do Sol. The ride of just over an hour in a minivan costs only 500 escudos, about five euros.
The journey from Porto Novo to Ponta do Sol takes me along the spectacular coastal road, which winds past mountains and cliffs, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Around noon, I arrive in Ponta do Sol, a small village on the north side of São Antao. Ponta do Sol is much smaller and quieter than Mindelo. It has a modest main square with a town hall and a church, a small harbor with fishing boats, and a promenade along the coast with a few restaurants.
After lunch, I walk out of Ponta do Sol on the northwest side. I follow the cobblestone coastal road that winds up and down along the mountains and cliffs, with the mountainsides on my left and a view of the Atlantic Ocean on my right. The coastline on the north side of Santo Antão is stunning, with the water crashing against the rocks at the foot of the cliffs. I walk until I reach the colorful houses of the village of Fontainhas, which is built on a narrow ridge/cliff in a deep valley. The houses are close together on the narrow ridge, with the cliff dropping down hundreds of meters on either side. From Fontainhas, I walk back to Ponta do Sol, where I have the rest of the afternoon to relax after the strenuous hike.
The next day, I walk to the central square of Ponta do Sol. There, I arrange a taxi to Cova do Paúl, an ancient volcanic crater and the starting point of my hike. To reach Cova do Paúl, you have to take the old cobblestone mountain road, a drive of about fifty minutes from Ponta do Sol. From the village of Ribeira Grande, the road climbs steeply. It’s a beautiful route, between the mountains, over narrow ridges, with in some sections only a low wall between the road and the deep valleys on either side.
Santo Antão is a mountainous island in the Atlantic Ocean, which means the weather in the mountains can be very different from that on the coast. When I arrive at Cova do Paúl, at 1,100 meters above sea level, it’s cloudy, foggy, and drizzly. Either I picked the wrong day, or it’s always like this here… in any case, I see little of Cova do Paúl, as the view during the first part of the hike is practically zero. The first part of the hike circles the crater, and then the path zigzags down towards Ribeira do Paúl. The path consists of small pebbles, larger boulders, and occasional patches of dirt. It descends quite steeply and is quite slippery in places. So I walk slowly and carefully to avoid slipping.
A walk in the clouds is nice, but it’s a shame about the lack of views. Fortunately that gradually improves as I descend further into the Ribeira do Paúl. Once I’m below the clouds, the vast green valley unfolds before my eyes. A long, lush ribeira, nestled between high mountains, descending in altitude towards the coast, which you can see all the way at the end of the valley. The slopes of the valley are used by the locals to grow crops. They have built terraces against the steep mountainsides where sugarcane and vegetables are cultivated. There are also banana, papaya, orange, and coffee trees. The view during this part of the walk makes up for it: the Ribeira do Paúl is magnificent.
Here and there, a small house clings to the mountainside, and down in the valley lies a tiny village: Cha de Manuel dos Santos. My guesthouse for the next two nights is located in that village. I arrive there early in the afternoon. From my room, I look out over the Ribeira do Paúl, truly “a room with a view.” I have the rest of the afternoon to relax.
After a relaxing day on Tuesday (a short walk through the valley, lunch at a local restaurant, and relaxing with a book), I leave my guesthouse for Porto Novo on Wednesday morning at 7am on an aluguer. The ferry to São Vicente leaves at nine. Just like on the way there, the wind is strong again, and the ferry is rocking all over the place. A little over an hour later, I walk onto the dock in Mindelo, where it’s about five degrees warmer than on Santo Antão. It’s my last day in Cabo Verde, so time to relax and enjoy the weather, the food en my book. On Thursday at noon, I check out and take a taxi to the airport for my flight from São Vicente to Amsterdam, with a stopover on the island of Sal. My week in Cabo Verde is already over.
