When it comes to holidays, nine times out of ten, I plan in advance. I save up bit by bit, book the annual leave, and then spend a few months fleetingly anxious about the flight and the prospect of turbulence, lol. This time, I half did that - my brothers and I had planned to do a 2024 trip together, but we left it to five weeks out to book and impromptu chose Cape Verde. This destination hadn't been on my radar before, and a fair few people to whom I mentioned our trip also hadn't heard of the islands, set around 900 kilometres west of Senegal. I've probably said this in various previous blog posts, but it has been one of my favourite places to visit thus far.
In the build up to this trip, my brothers and I have had various stressors - this trip was definitely needed. Travel has long been my therapy of choice: away from my onslaught of responsibilities and different roles in life, I always reset, focus on myself, and gain perspective. Cape Verde is a great place to do that.
Choice of island
Cape Verde is home to 10 islands, nine of which are inhabited. Santiago is where the country’s capital city lies, while a lot of people holiday in Sal and Boa Vista. We opted for the latter; the more laid-back island, defined by its beautiful beaches and desert landscape.
Cape Verde’s motto is “no stress”, and it is repeated by locals, tour guides, hotel workers, and everyone we crossed paths with, really. This vibe permeated from the moment we landed; Boa Vista’s airport is mostly outdoors! I felt like I was at a holiday resort already as the sun filled the shaded-but-outdoor passport control line, and we could hear the birds and see a beach bar-style spot in another part of the airport through the dividing glass.
Hotel resort life
The resort we stayed at was a huge castle-like structure. The architecture is a combination of Portuguese and styles from mainland Africa. It's all clean lines and symmetry. I'm a sucker for pretty architecture and cool buildings, so was snapping away all around the hotel.
While there were a fair few people staying at the resort, the humongous pool was pretty empty - especially at the beginning of the week. This was the first holiday in my life where I could swim; learning to swim at age 30 is one of my proudest achievements thus far, battling a mental block I've had for 20+ years, and it is honestly a game changer. Every day in Boa Vista, I swam at least 30 laps; swimming has done wonders for my mental and physical health over the last 9 months, and here, my progress increased ten-fold too. Hey, at home, I only go swimming once a week, for 45 minutes, but I was in the water daily for hours on this trip. I finally faced my fear of swimming ‘in the deep end’, and swimming on my back. There is something about facing your fears, and doing something you've tried and failed at previously, this time succeeding, that gives you a real high, and almost makes you feel invincible. Oh, and it was great to really use the swim-up bar as was intended - hello, Bloody Marys and sangrias.
Speaking of the refreshments, I seriously enjoyed the food. Some resorts can have a pretty naff offering when producing en mass; here, the food was delicious, and well seasoned. At its core, it was rice, pulses, and seafood. I ate my favourite mussels nearly every night, and was in my element.
My partner always tells me sport is a good way to alleviate stress. Alongside daily laps in the pool, there were plenty sports activities to get involved in at our hotel. My activity of choice was aqua gym - and despite its reputation for being for old biddies, some sections were decently challenging. My brothers opted for water polo and beach volleyball.
Speaking of sport, we were in Cape Verde for the quarter finals of AFCON. I’m not usually a football fan, but it was pretty exciting cheering along a team on a huge screen surrounded by everyone rooting for Cape Verde. Given it was a holiday crowd, it was less rowdy than the usual footie crowds, which give me the ick. Sadly, Cape Verde lost on penalties, but it was still a fun start to the evening.
Local life
So, before COVID, I’d never stayed at an all-inclusive resort. I felt you couldn't class it as properly visiting a country, and understanding its way of life, as you barely saw the ‘real’ thing. Well, since then, I have converted - a bit. While I now embrace the utter luxury of chilling at an all-inclusive resort every so often, I still think it's important to get out of the hotel and see at least some of the area you're visiting. We opted away from the standard TUI tour on this occasion, and instead booked a local vendor.
Feeling the wind whip my face as we sped along on the back of the 4x4, looking out over the vast landscapes, driving some road, some rocky dirt paths, and some dunes, felt so freeing. This kind of thing really puts life into perspective: there is so much more out there than work, washing up, and worrying. No looking forward or back, just simply being in the now.
The tour took us through the island’s main town of Rabil which, with its colourful houses and music playing in the street, kind of gave me Cuba vibes. We stopped at the local pottery shop, the one from which all local pottery on the island comes from.
Next, we visited the sand dunes, speeding over the ascents and descents - something I'd normally hate, but here, I embraced the speed and turbulent-like feeling. Again, I was pleased with myself for challenging fears; that invincible rush was back. The seemingly endless sand dunes in Boa Vista are like nothing I've ever seen. I literally felt like I was on another planet. Hello, lunar landscape! I visited sand dunes in Port Stephens, Australia, but the vastness and seemingly untouched nature of Boa Vista’s sand dunes felt different. It was mind-blowing.
We also spent time in a local fishing town on this tour, strolling through the market and chatting to locals who left us with a smile, even when we weren't buying anything. We visited churches (one built as recently as 2015) and a shipwreck from the 60s, which will soon be totally gone.
As I always joke, my English heritage comes out on holiday; my arms burn with too much sun, and as such, on the way back, I sat inside the 4x4 rather on the back in the open air. It afforded me some time to chat with our tour guide one on one, where we spoke what life is truly like as a local, good and bad. The main issue is lack of infrastructure - something that hopefully more money from the recent increase in tourism will bring - and as with UK, the cost of living increase. This made me think about all the things I take for granted at home when I'm worrying about X, Y, Z… again, another perspective builder; something in recent months I've lacked a little.
Me time
I am blessed with great family, partner, and friends; however, sometimes, me time is what's needed when life gets a little stressful. Funnily enough, as an overthinker and a realist, I can sometimes get in my head too much, but drop in a likkle sun, and a likkle sightseeing, and it's the perfect mix. I regularly solo travel for that very reason.
I travelled to Cape Verde with my brothers, and our trip consisted of doing our own thing for a good portion of the day, but sharing dinner, some activities, and an evening swim (I relished finally being able to join swimming races, even though I lost each time, haha). It was a great balance.
While I wholly enjoyed my solo laps in the pool, and reading chick lits by the pool, my favourite bit of me time was strolling along the beach. Stepping on the wet, spongy, pristine sand when the waves have just gone over it is so centreing. I didn't care what I looked like as the waves splashed, the wind blew, and the oceanic desert was stretched in front of me, the stretch of my smile rivalling it. The twinge of the sun burn on my head was the only thing that sent me back to my sun lounger by the pool.
Another thing I've taken up doing on holiday in the last few years is heading to the spa - boujie, I know. I opted for the rather reasonably priced ‘after sun’ treatment and back massage. I'll admit, the back massage was a little too ‘deep tissue’ for me, but the after sun treatment was blissful. Every time I go to a spa abroad, I resolve I will book myself in for monthly massages back home… I never do. Maybe that's why I get stressed in the UK, eh?
To summise, a break in Boa Vista was just what the doctor ordered - and an impromptu gem; I would return in a heartbeat. I'm returning home feeling far less stressed, and with a game plan for any troubles - or simply letting it go. As Cape Verdians say “no stress, no stress.”