Cape Verde – Country Number 50!
Cape Verde came onto my radar many years ago when I bought a CD of Cesaria Evora, “the queen” as everyone here in Cabo Verde calls her. It has now become country number 50 for me!
I am in Santa Maria on the island of Sal, a very dry, desert island, except for the town, which of course has palm trees, bougainvillea and other plants by the hotels, resorts and tourist areas. The other notable thing is that it is also very windy here, all the time, which is why it is one of the top kitesurfing places in the world, and the site of a kitesurfing competition going on right now.
It is more expensive than I had expected, and I admit this is due to a lack of research. I also admit that I had a preconception that because it was Africa, it would be cheap. A local told me that even for them, rent in Santa Maria is not cheap – it would take their entire wage if they did not share. Many live in the capital of Espargos and come to work in Santa Maria by bus.
The deals here are the lunch specials, some happy hours and the music in the evenings. I have eaten three times at Café del Mar where the lunch special is 330 CV escudos, about 3.30 euros. My first lunch was the grilled “salmon” filet that was delicious but nothing like any salmon I have ever had, and it came with fries and rice! Another day I had the tuna salad. I realized halfway through that lettuce is usually a no-no when travelling where the water is not potable, but it was good and also safe.
On my first evening, I was attracted to O Piscadero by the music, 2 guitarists performing Cape Verdean music. I had a gin and tonic (because I mistakenly thought it was only $5 CDN), a glass of Cape Verde wine (what a surprise that was!) and a huge grilled wahoo filet with banana salsa, vegetables and a side salad of beets, carrots, lettuce along with an appetizer of warm bread with 3 small bowls of olives, eggplant and tuna. With a cover charge for the music of 100 escudos, the grand total was 2400 CVE, about $30 Canadian.
At my first Café del Mar lunch, I met 3 fun teachers from Portugal who teach on San Tome &Principe and I joined them for the island tour the next day. We stopped in Murdeira for the beach view, the fishing village and port of Palmeira, the spectacular “Blue Eye” where we also swam, Salinas for the salt flat and a swim in the sea that is 20 times the normal salt concentration, a view of the mirage and then to Espargos for lunch.
Being close to the equator, the sun is very strong here, and luckily I have managed to avoid the sunburn that I see many tourists wearing. I do this by avoiding the mid-day sun.
In the morning, I go for a walk along the beach at my east end of Santa Maria, followed by a swim. Then in the afternoon, I walk through the main area and along Santa Maria Beach which stretches out to the big resorts, and swim there, too. In the evening, I go to Hotel da Luz for the happy hour to enjoy a glass of Portuguese wine for just 1 Euro!
After 2 nights in Aparthotel Santa Maria (by the beach) and one night in the lovely Hotel da Luz (where I got a great price), I am now in a studio apartment, which is how I know that even groceries are not cheap here!
On Thursday, I make a move, probably to see some of the other islands of Cabo Verde.
P.S. More pictures when I have a better internet connection!!