Praia, Santiago

Today has been hot. 28° at midday, and quite humid. Luckily our excursion left at 8.30 am.
We travelled in a somewhat ramshackle old 24 seater bus, the windows wide open to provide air conditioning, no seat belts or headroom.
We were moored some 3-4 km from the town of Praia and had an excellent walking tour once we arrived. Praia Is the political and economic capital of Cape Verde. First mentioned around 1615 it was an important port of call for ships sailing from Portugal to Portuguese colonies in Africa and South America. It has suffered from numerous pirate attacks between the end of the 15th and end of the 18th centuries including Francis Drake (1585) and Jaques Cassard (1712). Interesting that Drake is considered a pirate, we don't think of him in that way but he did plunder the churches here of gold and other treasures.
This is an amazing place and I have a very large bank of photos on my cameras showing the elegant colonial buildings whose facades hide the tale of the poverty within. The town squares are elegant, equipped with wi-fi so that students can study and have some beautiful trees.
The market was fantastic. Crowded with ( only) women preparing and selling food it has two levels; vegetables and an eating area on the lower floor and fruit and spices above; fish and meat on the extremities. Young children with their working mothers and old ladies falling asleep, most people are dressed in very colourful clothes. There is a general hustle and bustle throughout. One of the most interesting markets we have seen.
We took a 25 Min journey up into the barren hills, once heavily forested, to the ' old town'. Citade Velha is the site of the fortress built to withstand marauding pirates. It stands on a rock above the old town which was the slave market of the island. There are artifacts related to the slave trade dotted around and the original church where slaves were baptised and worshipped is still in use. We were entertained with some singing and dancing like slaves once amused themselves with whilst we had a local beer. Susan bought some local cloth in the market there, haggling in French.
Nearly had a row with a few people at the back of the bus who wanted to cut our 4 hour trip short - no way! We stated that we were not returning to the bus until the appointed time - so there!! I wonder how we will be referred to from now on.
We've taken our first anti- malarial tablets tonight and are waiting for any side effects. Tired after a very enjoyable day.Read more