Friday 13th January - Mindelo, Sao Vicente, Cape Verde Islands

The ship was docked when we woke this morning.  Through the port holes we could see the rocky mountains that surround the bay, the blue, blue water of the sea and the bright sky under an even brighter sun.  Mindela looked beautiful.

Looking over the Marina at Mindelo

Last night we'd been surprised to find we'd been selected for tour escorting duties this afternoon, but this morning we had time to look around the city.

I loved the colours of the clothes, beautiful patterns and colours everywhere

We've been several times before, and to be honest, we've seen everything the town has to offer, but it's always good to go ashore and stretch your legs.  Peter wanted to get photographs of fishing boats on the beach for a few paintings he was thinking of, and I still had me head full of the stuff I'd learnt in the photography lectures, so we set off, cameras at the ready. It turns out we haven't already seen everything the town has to offer, I'd never been in the little church before, or the vegetable market.

Many of the buildings have this rather enchanting worn look

We had to get back to the ship so that we could grab a bit of lunch and be ready for our tour at 12.30.  I was escorting the first of three buses. It was as I was taking the tickets from the 12th and 13th passengers that I asked if they were superstitious, since they were getting on bus number 13.  That's when I found out today was Friday 13th. I knew then that it was going to be a good afternoon.

And it was.  Our guide, Willy, was excellent.  He got the passengers singing to him and provided just the right amount of information at the right time to educate us.  The only thing any of us wished to be different was the road. There doesn't appear to be much tarmac on the island, and the narrow roads that wind their way up and down the hills are made from a sort of uneven stone blocking.  And I mean VERY uneven.  It got to the point where I was glad that I still had me own teeth, as I'm sure they would've otherwise fallen out as we bounced and rattled along.  Women on the bus secured their busts up in their arms and all wished for the same thing.  A sports bra!

But it was worth it for the photo stops at Pik a Zua and Mont Verde. The trip ended in a tourist complex near to the ships berth, where we were entertained by what seemed to be the local dance teachers and their pupils.  The kids were wonderful, and you could see how proud the teachers were.  The people of Sao Vicente and Mindelo are very poor, but hopefully a little less so after the Marco Polo passengers gladly gave large tips to both the dancers and our guide.

I think the boy has caught the pigeon for food.

So we've had an excellent day, probably the best so far.  As we looked around Mindelo, we could see the changes that tourism is bringing.  The infrastructure is improving, the city is cleaner and a lot of money is going into policing the streets, which probably accounts for the reduction of beggars.  Sadly, the population is still very poor.  Here's hoping that tourism on the island continues to increase and that the locals are included in the profits.

At last but not least, I have to mention the evening's entertainment in the show lounge.  David Huband is a comedian, and he kept us laughing for the whole 45 minutes of his show.  OK, so quite a few of the jokes were well used, but that didn't stop us enjoying them. A really good evening.

Tomorrow we start across the rest of the Atlantic Ocean.  It will be 5 days until we get off the ship again and we'll have to keep ourselves occupied in the meantime.  Looks like I'll be attending a few more photography lectures then, dunnit?