Portuguese Flavor, African Beat- Praia, Cape Verde
Cape Verdean culture is a unique mixture of European and African elements. National identity is rather fragmented, mainly as a result of the geographical division of the islands. Cape Verde is a mestizo society. Seventy-eight percent of the population is Creole, that is, of mixed African and European blood. Of the remainder, 28 percent is black African, and 1 percent is white.
April 14, 2014
Praia, Praia, Cape Verde
Praia is one of the ten (10) islands in Cape Verde. It was added to our itinerary after our port stops in Banjul, Gambia and Dakar, Senegal were cancelled due to Ebola viral disease concern.
What is it like in Praia? It has a lot of historical importance since it was discovered by the Portuguese and used as one of the port stops for shipping slaves.
Today as we set out to go to the old fort, we were distracted by the bustling scene in the public market. Walking vendors carry most of their wares on their heads. A woman selling cheap sandals has a bunch of sandals on top of her head. Another woman selling vegetables has a big basin full of various vegetables. One wonders if she is selling salad!
A girl in front of the market gates, has a basket full of colorful socks and girls underwear. Inside the market, there is a rhythm. It is like a perfect choreography of colors and sights. A mother with her baby on her back reached out for three papayas and handed her escudos to the vendor. In front of me, a woman with a bunch of ripe bananas on her head is striding fast another woman with a small can of cooking oil on top of her head. A younger man is just about to put a big plastic basin full of fish on his head. It is common to put anything and everything on top of their head.
They speak Portuguese but their looks, and their clothes is African making it an extraordinary scene. It looks like I'm somewhere in Africa. They smiled when I asked for their photographs. The woman with a bunch of sandals on her head asked to check her picture. I showed it to her and she burst into laughter. Then the other vendors near me, also wanted their photos taken. They resumed selling after I showed them their photos.
At a small plaza near our shuttle drop off point, there are four boys and girls, they all posed for photographs for us. They are wide -eyed and grinning, girls with tiny colorful beads on their hair and boys with cheap sandals.
“Obrigado!” they all said after I handed them some chocolates and the ship's lapel pins.
“I'm nine-years-old,” said one of the girls after we asked her.
“And my brother is seven-years-old,” she continued.
Our friend, Mr. Wonderful, gave them US dollar bills and their eyes got wider and they said thank you again before we walked away.
Our lunch was the best grilled tuna steak and the best prawn crepes we ever tasted. It was matched by refreshingly good caipirinha followed by strong Portuguese style coffee. Before heading back to the port, we stopped at Sucupira handicraft market. Once again, we immersed ourselves in the culture and its traditions talking to the locals, taking their photographs and buying a few African style shirts and blouses.
P.S. We are having technical difficulties with our computer hence our blog update are delayed. We apologize for the delay.
Comment
Beautiful photos and a nice story, thank you. From Kim L., on May 5, 2014 at 06:01 a.m