Barbara Mesquita and a very special Cape Verde-cruise on the CHRONOS
Sailing, music, literature - and goat's cheese
In November 2023, I had the great good fortune to attend the CHRONOS to sail for ten days between the islands of Cape Verde’s Barlavento and discover São Vicente, São Nicolau, Sal, Boa Vista and Santo Antão, all of which, apart from São Nicolau, I already knew from my first trip to Cape Verde in 2003, from the sea.
enchanted by the islands
The trip was fantastic in every respect. The beautiful ship, the experienced, relaxed crew, in whose care you felt safe from the very first moment, the loving and attentive care of the crew responsible for the passengers’ physical well-being, the knowledgeable tour guide, my friend Rolf Heinemann, and the friendly guests – all this, together with the gentle gliding on the Atlantic, provided the perfect setting to be enchanted by the barren natural beauty, the bizarre rock formations, the endless beaches and the tropical climate of the islands.
My interest in Cape Verde, which goes back to 1998, when I first came into contact with musicians and writers from the archipelago in Lisbon, where one of the largest Cape Verdean communities abroad is based, gave rise to the bilingual anthology of Cape Verdean literature that I edited and translated, published by Arachne Verlag in Bonn in 2022 The islands of music in the middle of the world. No less fascinating than the islands themselves are their rich, unique Creole culture and the many stories their people have to tell. Music and literature have a long tradition in Cape Verde and are closely linked through the setting of poetry by renowned authors and the presence of music in prose texts. Few places in the world are blessed with such a high density of gifted musicians! And since only those who immerse themselves in the culture of a country really get to know it, literature and music are the most suitable bridge for this, alongside direct exchange with the people.
a new project is born...
The two readings with texts from the book and musical interludes that I was able to organize on board the CHRONOS during the voyage were an impressive confirmation of this. To my great delight, a new project has emerged from the interest in Cape Verdean literature and music that this has awakened or deepened among our guests: Our shore excursion on Boa Vista led to Aldair Neves “Daya”, a musician friend of mine, giving a surprise concert on board. A media producer traveling with him then suggested recording a CD tailored to the anthology with his band, the young Cape Verdean music group Nôs Raíz, which rearranges traditional Cape Verdean music and presents it with virtuosity, in order to offer it together with the book in a double pack to all those who want to learn more about Cape Verde than the travel guides can convey. If the necessary funds can be raised for the musicians to travel to the studio recordings in Europe, it would be a wonderful success for cultural exchange and one more story for Cape Verde, which is so rich in stories.
And what about the goat's cheese...
And finally, there is the episode with the cheese: the large family of Cape Verde’s most famous writer, Germano Almeida, who lives in Mindelo on São Vicente, comes from the island of Boa Vista with its vast dunes of Saharan sand and countless goats. One of the author’s sisters, who still lives there, told me during the shore excursion when we met again after all these years, beaming with joy: “You’re sailing back to São Vicente. Can’t you take Germano this cheese with you?” And before I could object, he handed me a cool bag containing two kilos of goat’s cheese, which then waited in the fridge of the CHRONOS until I disembarked to be handed over to the famous writer.”
