Praia /Island of Boa Vista

 A stroll through the general market in downtown Praia was very interesting. Unwanted clothes and shoes from charities around the world are sent here to the Cape Verde Islands in the blue drums (below) and sold in the markets.
No shoe seemed to have a partner so I guess you had to search through to find it. By the number of shoes it would be a pretty difficult task.

 Even some colourful furniture on sale.

 Further along on our walk we came across these males cooking fish and chicken on their BBQ. A lot of  the cooking in residences seems to be done on the sidewalk even in the country areas.

 This was a small family cornmeal business set up in a container. The lady below was packaging the flour into bags.

 That afternoon we were taken on an excursion driving through the volcanic rural mountains to the town of Assomada and the Tabanka Museum.
The remote countryside provided a relatively safe haven for runaway slaves in the 18th century and becoming the birthplace of the Tabanka cultural movement.

 Once banned by the Portuguese government Tabankan musical and dance ceremonies have been preserved and the people living around the museum regularly perform for visitors who visit the museum.

 It was very spirited, extremely moving, loud and lively. Most of the music came from drums, shells, trumpet and whistles.

 Neighbours and families all watched on with interest.
The people are very poor but all looked healthy and well clothed. I really loved it that they all wear very bright clothing.  It was the same in all four islands that we visited.

Cape Verde Islands / Praia

 It has been so refreshing to get to the islands in Cape Verde after the heat and humidity of Brazil. With a daily temperature of 21-23 degC and a cool sea breeze we now have renewed energy and able to walk around with a purpose again although still having to be aware that the sun burns your skin very quickly.  But the best is no mosquitos. Yay.
The first island we stopped in was Santiago, the capital being Praia which is an island in the Atlantic Ocean west of Senegal.
In the city centre the Military Barracks  had a soldier on guard duty in a fairly basic sentry shelter. (above) A bit of a contrast to the soldier on duty guarding the presidential palace just around the corner who had a much more elaborate box to stand by. (third photo)

 This school were finishing up for Easter break and had installed some basic fairground rides for the children. There was very much excitement and the children were very well disciplined standing in line waiting their turn.

 The front entrance of the Presidential Palace

 The town square was quite basic but a popular place for families to spend time during weekends and holidays. The huge round balls of cacti were pretty impressive.

 The main pedestrian mall that lead us to the Municipal produce market, below and one of the most colourful markets I have ever been to.

 The market was pretty much run by females. I guess the males are all back on the farms making it happen! Although judging by the number of males that congregate in groups around the streets doing nothing at all Im not so sure.

 No modern scales here. These would have been passed down over the years and similar were used in most of the stalls we saw.

 Richard decided to take a five minute break on a free chair and this lovely lady was only to happy to loan it to him. Most of the people are very wary of tourists but if you went out of your way to try and engage them in conversation they were very warm and happy to exchange pleasantries with you even though they couldn't speak English.

 The pedestrian mall from the other end.

 The Ethnographic Muesum housed in a 19th century colonial building, where there were mainly old cooking and produce exhibits displayed. A very small museum but the building inside and out was lovely including the interesting shaped window from inside, where I spotted another school group  on an end of term outing.

 The same group of school children on their way again.

Locals sitting in doorways or hanging out windows is a common sight.

Natal. Goodbye to Brazil

 Natal is known as the City of Dunes. It is a major shipping port and known for its extensive coastal towering sand dunes and cultivation of cashew nuts. The largest cashew tree in the world is located near the coast on the south side of the city
The fishing industry is strong with shark cartilage being a major export to Japan.

 We sailed under the massive bridge over the Potengi River.

 Remnants of many old fishing boats have been left lying rusting on the lagoon shore which sort of had a beauty of their own but its quite typical of Brazil where things unused are just left to rot. Such a shame.

 A lone fisherman spear fishing in the mud flats.

 Located within 5 degrees south of the equator is the beautiful Ponta Negra beach. It was very hot and humid creating high demand for the beach umbrellas and busy trade for the drink and snack vendors.

 The spectacular high sand dunes were amazing. Miles and miles of pure white sand stretching along the coast. It is a very popular destination for taking roller coaster rides on the dunes in four wheel buggies and also growing in popularity is sand surfing.

 And then its goodbye to Brazil as we cruise out to another beautiful sunset on our four day voyage to Cape Verde and its islands.  Looking forward to the next adventure.