Sao Vicente
Music and Carnaval
Apart from two extinct volcanos Monte Verde rising 774m and Topona
660m on the East Coast, Sao Vicente is a flat plain. The mountains
shield some of the island from the North-Easterly Trades. Discovered
on Saint Vincent’s Day, the 22nd January 1492, it was settled
from1838 when the British established a coaling station and later
a telegraph relay. The bars and cafes of Mindelo reflect its maritime
and British history. It is the cultural centre for music, poetry
and novels. The British introduced both cricket and golf. The fine
natural harbour in Mindelo made it a natural enclave for the British
in the years when they ruled the waves. Although once well cultivated,
farming is now failing due to drought. The golf course - the only
one so far in the islands - is on baked mud with browns instead
of greens. A lot of English words have made it into the local version
of criolu.
Once a regular port of call for ocean liners, it now sees only
a few passing yachts and the Onboard Sailing race of Farr 60s to
Barbados each November. The city has a pretty colonial air, with
some fine buildings. Time has passed it by. But there are plenty
of restaurants and bars and many think that it is the most attractive
town in the Cape Verdes. The hinterland is quite empty, but ideal
for walking or riding around.
Mindelo the most sophisticated town in the Cape Verdes
Cape Verde’s second largest town, Mindelo, is a port where most
people live here.The streets have many colonial British and Portuguese
houses and gardens.In the evening, Mindelo's bars and discotheques
come alive with the swaying rhythmic music and dancing. Most places
have live bands which play and bars have live groups of guitarists
and violinists who play traditional Moura music. This is particularly
good at the yacht club or Club Nautico, where you can listen under
billowing jibs, which form sunshades. S from Lancs comments
"Sao Vicente was beautiful I hired a taxi driver and he took
me all over the island for €30, not bad hey. But all those
half built properties just left there. But in the town of Mindelo
it is lovely. I went down a quiet road just off the main area to
be suddenly followed by two men so before anything could happen
I turned round towards them and walked past them unharmed. But if
I`d carried on down this dark road looking for a restaurant I am
sure my purse would have been robbed."
N from Arizona found it so different from Boa Vista
"Mindelo is easy to get lost in, not just literally, but figuratively
as well. This city is so alive and you will hear many people tell
you that Mindelo is the smallest big city in the world. Everyone
knows each other, but it's big enough that if you want to avoid
someone, you can. The grocery stores are virtually unlimited and
(gasp!) even open on Sundays! I can't tell you the exact population,
but it's fairly large and just so alive. The change from Boa Vista
is like night and day. . I chose Mindelo because I had been here
once before (last February for Mardi Gras)and loved the feel and
ambiance of the place. It's large, but it's not Praia which I find
too large. Here I can still walk anywhere within a maximum of fifteen
minutes and the stores are plentiful and cheap."
Laginha
The white, sandy beach of Laginha is where Chez Loutcha, a local restaurant
offers beach barbecues on Sundays.
Baia das Gatas
An hour from Mindelo, on the North Coast at Baia das Gatas, sand and
shingle form a long beach with a shallow paddling lagoon no more than
1m deep. There are a couple of traditional Portuguese-style restaurants,
near the beach. In August it hosts the famous festival of tropical
music from all over the world.
Sao Pedro
A small fishing village, 10 km from Mindelo beside the airport runway
is famous for its beach where a wind funnel offers ideal conditions
for surfing. The Foya Branca Hotel is on this windy spot and the sea
has large breakers at most seasons.
Monte Verde
Monte Verde is the highest point of Sao Vicente. In sharp contrast
to the surrounding flatlands, rising 774m above the plain and with
views of Sao Nicolau and the bird island of Santa Luzia. F from Portugal
admired the view
"There was a band playing 'Mornas' during dinner which was around
the hotel's swimming-pool. Afterwards the guests went out to Mindelo's
night clubs to dance African rhythms in the Sirius Discotheque.
Then we looked for other places but Monday wasn't a good day and
by 17:00 we were back at the Foya Branca. Next day, we drove up
to Monte Verde from where the view over Mindelo and Baia das Gatas
is astonishing. We drove to Calhau at the end of the island to have
lunch in 'Chez Loutcha' but it was closed. Back to Mindelo to snack
on Azores cheese. That evening we listened to 'Mornas' live and
to Discotheque Pimm's and then to Histep, the 'working' disco. At
05:30 we were pushing our Suzuki Vitara without fuel back to the
hotel. By 06:00 we were dozing only to get up half an hour later
to catch the boat to Santo Antao."
Calhau
On the East Coast, a small fishing village, reached by a tortuous
road passing between the peaks of extinct volcanoes. This is the place
to eat fish and visit the Caves of Topim.
