World Cruise Day 63/152 - Mindelo, São Vicente, Cape Verde Islands - Land Ho!

Cruise day: 63/152

Ports days: 19
Sea days: 44
Countries: 7
Continents: 3
Ports: 12

Woo hoo!  I finally get to up the count for ports, countries, and continents!  Welcome to Mindelo, São Vicente, Cape Verde Islands.  Huh?  Where?

The Cape Verde Islands are made up of several larger and smaller islands located roughly 350-550 miles off the west coast of Africa, most closely to Senegal. 

Specifically, we were docked in Mindelo, on the island of São Vicente. You can see the semi-circular volcanic bay at the northwest section of the island.

Until 1975, Cape Verde Islands were claimed and governed by Portugal.  In 1975, they became an independent nation and joined the African Union.  Geographically, the islands are linked to the African continent.

The view from our balcony this morning.

This was a very dim, but functioning lighthouse on a rock in the harbor

They started bunkering (gassing up) early this morning.  After a nine-day run, we needed some fuel.  At least here, they have it directly available, unlike Montevideo where they had to deliver by tanker truck.

With dry weather, clear skies, and temps in the mid-70s, it was a perfect day to tour.  We boarded our tour bus and headed out.  After a brief ride through downtown Mindelo, we headed up - way up.  São Vicente is a volcanic island with peaks that hit over 2,000 feet.  The landscape is mostly barren, but surprisingly, there were trees in spots, providing a little green landscaping where you wouldn't expect it.

Speaking of unexpected, houses would pop up during our climb in the most unexpected places.

The crazy switchback cobblestone road that we took up the hill

If you look above the right side of my hat, you can just make out the Viking Star

Another look without our faces distracting you

There it is!

Windfarm

The view from the top

A female sparrow

The male, looking angry

The upright stalks are from a century plant - these stalks typically grow at about ten years and then the plant dies - they were all over the hill including the side of the hill

A look at the road up and down and a tour bus making the journey

At the very top of the hill, all of the island's communication antennae make up a huge cluster of tech

What looked like an egret, perhaps a cattle egret, at the top

The cobblestone road was not wide, and when two vehicles met, they would have to move to the side to allow each other to pass

After coming back down, we toured the rest of the island, stopping to check out different villages

The volcanic landscape is stunning

These sand dunes are not local sand - this is sand that was carried by the wind from the Sahara Desert and deposited here

The sand is quite fine and is easily carried by the wind

More of the volcanic landscape

We made another stop at a turtle rescue where they rehabilitate injured turtles

The volcanic rocks lined the waterfront

Someone on the bus spotted a "shark" but upon closer examination with a zoom lens, it turned out to just be a buoy

One of the turtles being rehabilitated was a big one - perhaps two feet across

Arlona, seeking shells - one of her favorite things to do

More of the volcanic rocks

Back at the ship for lunch

We were allowed to explore the town on our own, so after lunch, we ventured out.  We took a shuttle to the town center and started wandering.  This marked our bus stop.

Some of the African influence included several women carrying loads on their heads

The marina, including our ship in the background

Our ship in the distance

An artists' area in town

Mindelo has lovely views, even in town

Mindelo Palace - the former Governor's palace and now a museum

Even in town, you can find cobblestone streets

We got back to the ship and got ready to head back out for the planned beach party that Captain Olav and General Manager Johann were hosting at a restaurant in town.  Not long before we were ready to head out, we received a message that the health minister for the island got paranoid about it and revoked their permission to hold it.  This pulled our departure time from about 8PM up to 6PM.  This created an issue as people were exploring on their own and had no way to know.  They blasted the ship's horn two different times as a means to alert shoreside passengers that we were preparing to leave.  We were still short a few people. Lucky for us, this is a small island, and a few phone calls turned up the final missing passengers and we set sail just after 6PM.

As we sat out back on the Aquavit Terrace, we watched as the island faded away and the sun said farewell for another day.

So, farewell to the Cape Verde Islands - it was a terrific visit, canceled party notwithstanding.  

We had another enjoyable dinner with friends, Jim & Lynn - once again, the best part of the cruise.  We opted to watch ventriloquist Don Bryan's show on our TV tonight - still enjoyable.

Now, onward with three more days at sea before we arrive at Maderia (Funchal), Portugal, still on the African continent.