Cape Verde. Part II. Cities

February 21–23, 2014

Let’s take a trip through the cities.

Praia

The capital.

It doesn’t feel anything like Africa.

Europe.

With an African vibe.

Half the photos in the first part of this story were taken in Praia.

Assomada

The city is situated in a very picturesque spot.

Street sellers.

Well-preserved traces of Art Deco.

A street.

The main square has a tree with solar panels. It seems like this installation powers the square at night.

Tarrafal

Here come the mountains.

And fog.

A tired dumpster leaning against the wall.

A street.

Hefty fences enclose scraggly front gardens.

A man practically climbing through a window and a schoolboy kicking his half-deflated ball home.

Time has no power over this town, because time is simply something painted on the wall.

Cidade Velha

A town with pretensions to historical authenticity. That’s why it has wooden trash cans instead of the standard plastic ones.

And there’s no need to spend money on chairs—tourists will dig the tree stumps.

A cozy place.

The fishermen’s corner.

Mindelo

The voice of Cesária Évora, a former seaport prostitute, leaves few people indifferent. She really does have an unbelievable voice. In fact, most people in the world first learned about the existence of Cape Verde because of her. So naming the airport in her hometown after her is really the least her fellow countrymen could do.

The waterfront.

A street.

An intersection.

Old houses.

Private transport.

A public bus.

Corner protection.

The sea is the city’s livelihood.