Mon Reve - PART II MON REVE

Arriving in the Cape Verde Islands during the earliest morning hours was a further highlight of the ARC+ experience. For a while we were uncertain, because we did not spot the lighthouse and the fire on top of Don Louis, but then we realized that we were entering between São Vincente and Santo Antão in the very sector with no signal light. The day was slowly rising up as we crossed the finishing line around 7am, when the sky turned from blue to purple and the volcanic islands emerged from the dark. The large creature like silhouettes of the jagged mountains slowly turned into impressive landscapes and if there is such a thing as the “Smell of the Land”, then I might have caught it that very moment, when cooler and dryer air flew down from the mountains into the bay of Mindelo.

I remember how I had a fairly good dispute with my girlfriend two years ago, on whether we should be going to the Cap Verde islands for a ten days holyday trip or not. We were both throwing in arguments for several days and as usual she was the one making way more sense than I did. However we finally went to Scotland instead, visiting the Outer Hebrides of which my girlfriend is now a passionate fan. My strongest argument was, that I would not fly so many hours for a ten days visit in a Sub-Sahara African country. The culture shock, the distance, the carbon footprint and the potential danger of falling in love with the land and its people living on the archipelago. To reveal the naked truth here and now; During the whole time of our debate, I kept one secret argument in the back of my mind, which might was the core of my resistance of flying to Cap Verde. It was the idea that I dreamed of arriving one day on Cabo Verde under sails, similarly like many generations of explorers and traders did over the past centuries. Mindelo with its natural harbour in the Praia d’ Bote served all kinds of seafarers and enterprises with impact still on today’s world order.

Unspectacular to the rest of the world was our arrival that morning, unnoticed on a typical day in the 21st Century where everything is mapped out and nothing seems left to be explored, besides a few neurotransmitters and receptors in the human brain or a code for a Silicon Valley Eldorado. With the help of all sorts of satellite navigation and technology on board, fresh water luxuries, pharmaceutical tools and a ginormous 24/7 effort by our skipper Günter we arrived in Mindelo. With no thirst, no hunger and no disease to suffer from. We managed to circumnavigate from the 28th down to the 16th latitude, far-off the West Saharan and Mauritanian coast, unlike the Portuguese explorer who beryl lost eye contact with the coastline of continental Africa in the 14th and 15th century. However my reporting and writing seems shallower than Jack London writing out a check in a groceries store. My old fashioned typewriter allows me too many useless explanations that chew up valuable board electricity. The model I have is similar to the one used by Hemmingway in the African bush, only that mine has an OsX and Word installed. But the god damn thing about it is the backspace key, which makes my god damn writing as casual and blunt as the change of the status on Facebook. To be honest, everything is a little shallow these days, a little too easy, a bit too smooth sailing compared to back then. But still, we all arrived happy, save and sound in the Marina of Mindelo after seven days and seven nights at sea. It was a true pleasure to see and meet the fellow crews, the ARC+ fleet and the ARC Yellow shirts. Everyone as busy and relaxed as always, just as I have gotten to know this community twelve days ago in Las Palmas.



The moment we were all set up with the authorities I strayed into town by myself. My legs still shaky and gravity too concrete at solid ground. The whole landfall made me dizzy, together with a lack of sleep the perfect combination to just walk about and explore the town on my own. I am an offshore sailing greenhorn and therefore the feeling in my knees was a “first time” experience that I quite enjoyed. It was a Sunday afternoon, most shops were closed and the town was in all-day siesta mood.

I know life in sub-Sahara Africa, because I worked in Tanzania and other east African countries for the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute for almost two years. I was ready to hustle, ready to get in touch with it all, buy food from the streets, drink beer with the men and enjoy the crowds, the dusty squares and jammed streets. But of course, nothing like this is really there in this loosely populated archipelago, except a truly tranquil bijou of a town with most friendly and beautiful people. It was a truly lovely stay in Mindelo and I believe we all felt very welcomed.

The food was most delicious in any restaurant we visited, the marina perfectly situated, the markets were full of fresh food and most adorable sales women, no hustling, no joggling and all of it in front of an attractive but cute colonial town scenery.

The excursion to Santo Antão was terrific and made so much appetite to see more of Cabo Verde, to emerge into the many micro climates and the many interesting stories and tales these islands can tell, of pirates and slaves, explorers and naturalists, artists and farmers, making it a truly interesting and beautiful spot on the plant.

Therefore the only hope for me that remains, is that my girlfriend and I soon have to argue again about our travel destinations and that we have at least two weeks at our hands, because seeing Cap Verde in only a few days, is just not enough.