Salty captures

Back from vacations and straight to a busy work week, with Christmas in between, I barely had time to check the holiday photos. But actually got to sort them all out now! (and writing this I realise that I still have to finish doing it on my PREVIOUS vacations in September - master procrastinator!).

Cabo Verde is definitely a place I want to return; not necessarily to this island, Sal, given that other islands on the archipelago combine the clear waters and good weather with other attractives, such as vegetation and hiking trails. But Sal does have the bonus of a lot more choice in accomodation and social life.

As for the views, here are some of my highlights after this week:

Salt flats

As the island name implies, there's no shortage of salt or salt flats here.

Salt does seem to be harvested in a traditional way, although the ladies in traditional attire are obviously here just for the tourists, since these flats are almost mandatory stops in the various island tours.

These salt flats are just a few dozens meters away from Santa Maria, the closest town to the island's south shore and also the most touristic town of the island.

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Nevertheless, the most famous salt flats are in Pedra de Lume.

These salt flats are in the crater of an extinct volcano, so the surround views are beautiful!

The strange constructions were remnants of the transport system to carry the salt from the flats to the nearby shore.

The water in the flats has 26 times more salt than the sea water! That makes entering the waters a really great experience: I've never floated this easily, it's basically impossible to sink! You just have to be careful of not letting water get to your eyes (don't event think about diving!!), or you'll have to rush out and rinse your burning eyes!

I'm not sure if salt is being extracted from here nowadays, or if it just serves as a floating and sightseeing experience for tourism; nevertheless, it's worth the visit even for the sights alone.

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The beaches

One of the things that stand out when you get to the beach, is the crystal clear waters! The temperature is not that bad too, around 24-26ºC according to my dive computer.

This is the main beach in Santa Maria, and from here it streches for kms; most of the hotels face this huge stripe of sand. Wind can be a nuisance for the beach lovers, especially in some times of the year. This part of the beach is probably the most protected one.

A little further west, there's not that much protection from the winds, and the sea is a bit rougher too. Wind is also the reason why some people choose Cabo Verde, since it provides awesome conditions to the pratice of watersports such as kitesurf and windsurf; wingfoil is also increasingly praticed.

Another highlight of the island?

Underwater life!

I borrowed an action cam from my brother-in-law, and was eager to try some underwater photography. The visibility was decent enough, and although a rather crappy camera, I still managed to get some decent photos, despite most of my attempts being blurry or too dark/with little detail. But those will deserve a post on their one, and I'll try to identify some of the creatures I've seen as well.

May 2023 bring everyone amazing travels and awesome experiences!

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