Hoosier Cruiser

cabo verde

April 18-19, 2026

After a long stretch of sea days, we made port at Praia, Ihla de Santiago in the Cabo Verdes. The Portuguese arrived in the late 15th CE. Praia, the capital of Cabo Verde, was founded in 1615. On our tour of the island we visited Cidade Velha which was the actual first settlement founded in 1462 and the site of a large fortress. In the town square, there is a pillory (or whipping post), a cruel reminder of the slave trade that flourished alongside the age of exploration. Other sights in the town included a local church built after a terrible storm in honor of Mary. There are also the ruins of the first Catholic church built outside of Europe by explorers. En route back to the Viking Sky, we made a brief visit to the Plateau or old town of Praia. Strolled their version of a pedestrian mall and dropped in on a very old produce market.

The following day, we arrived at Sao Vicente and the port city of Mindelo. Like its sister island, it is quite mountainous and arid. The literal highlight of our tour was Monte Verde at 750 meters. I know that doesn’t sound like much to folks living in Colorado, but the bone- jarring ride to the top (and back down) was equal parts scary and physically exhausting. At the summit, we sampled some of the local spirits. The remainder of our tour was to some local beaches where the sandy parts are actually courtesy of the winds from the Sahara Desert since the Cabo Verdes are all volcanic in origin.

Ilha de Santiago gallery