SUNDAY, MAY 2ND--MINDELO, ST VINCENT (CAPE VERDE)

I think today was the most beautiful day we have had on the cruise. The humidity is very low and temperature in low 70’s with lots of sun. From our balcony we have an incredible view of the picturesque city on Mindelo. This morning we had a 4 hour tour of the town with some dramatic views of it from the side of the 2500 foot high Monte Verde mountain. We were impressed with this very colorful and super clean town. It was Sunday morning so very few of the locals were out on the streets yet which was an eerie feeling. The Portuguese claimed the 10 islands that form Cape Verde back in 1460 and was a hub for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. It gained its independence from Portugal in 1975. St Vincent is a very arid island so there is little agriculture here. Fishing, shipping, boating, and tourism form its economic backbone these days. The islands were formed from volcanoes millions of years ago and it is now very rocky with little plant life on its arid mountains. The streets and sidewalks in town were mostly cobblestone. So with the cobblestone streets and different colors of houses and buildings, it is really quite beautiful here. It is a place I would not mind coming back to for sure. It has a new airport with air service to Portugal. As with Portugal and Brazil, Mindelo is known for its Carnival celebration and associated dances. We were scheduled to depart here at 2pm but Captain Mario said they were still pumping fuel onboard so our new departure time would be 5pm. We will have 4 days at sea before arriving in Barbados. The ocean smoothed out last night so we are hoping that will continue as we head further across the Atlantic Ocean. Our interdenominational church service will be at 5pm. There is a pre-dinner show at 6pm and we will be meeting 2 other couples at 7pm in the Observation Lounge for cocktails and then dinner. The chef is preparing veal parmesan for us again tonight. Yummy! Ok, I have the photos I took here today already on the blog.