The mountainous land of Sao Antao

Early on Tuesday morning we got the ferry across to Sao Antoa , the biggest and most lush of the Cape Verde Islands. We were met by several busses which ignored all the safety features that the western world has developed as not only did they not have seatbelts but they didn’t have headrests or anything like that. We wound our way up a cobbled road overlooking huge valleys and craters with lots of trees, which was a change from anything we have seen for a long time.

We reached the highest point of the island where we looked down into a crater which was covered in green land used for growing crops and keeping animals with a few houses. I was surprised to learn that the island has no natural wildlife and they cannot kill their cows, horses or any animals for meat, as they would go extinct. Our guide also told us their rainy season is from August to November, which is the longest rainy season of any of the islands. We continued down the road where we stopped at various points to admire the breathtaking scenery. There were mountains with huge slabs of rock and the valleys filled in by trees and there was a mist circulating around the valley, which created a magical atmosphere. It reminded me of something out of Lord of the Rings.

We stopped at a distillery where they produce a rum type drink with sugar. They showed us how it was made and let us taste three variations of the drink, all with different percentages of alcohol. One of them had around 43% alcohol which was extremely bitter and although the others were less they were pretty strong especially for 11 o’clock in the morning!! We then began our walk up the ‘greenest valley of Cape Verde’ at around midday when the heat was strongest! As someone in the group pointed out, they first got everyone drunk and then marched them through the mid day heat! However, the walk was worth it as we arrived at a little hut like building which had tables laid out with wooden boards of local produce and flowers which was very nice. I cannot comment on the different pastes as I have no idea what they were but they certainly tasted good!

At the end of our day there was just a little organisational hiccup as the ferry that was to take us back decided it was not going to come. This was when we were extremely glad we had gone as part of a tour as it would have been a very long night in the ferry terminal of Soa Antoa if our guides had not changed our tickets to another ferry- something we would never have been able to do!

It was interesting to see the island and made me appreciate how difficult life must be. Despite this I was impressed with the rate of children going to school as around 95% of children make it to high school and they have around 7 universities, 1 of which is free. Overall, it was a great day with some fantastic scenery and it gave us an insight into island life.

We set off tomorrow for our final leg. I must say I do feel a sense of relief that this is the final push and then we have done it. I feel that there will be challenges and I will find it hard but I do recognise that it is something I will never forget and something I am so lucky to be able to do. Anyway, a challenge can only make someone a better person! I also hope that we will get some good sailing and that it will be good fun!