Principe is the smaller of the two main islands, some 90 kilometers apart, that comprises this small country. Uninhabited before the Portuguese claimed it on St Anthony’s Day in 1472, the island is now home to some five thousand souls. The Portuguese quickly transferred slaves from the continental mainland to work the productive volcanic soils and by the sixteenth century these islands were the world’s leading producers of sugar, a plantation crop that had given way to cocoa by the nineteenth and twentieth century. Sugar revenues were paid directly to one of the younger sons of the Portuguese royal family, and in consequence the island changed its name from Santo Antonio to Principe, the former name now used for the island’s administrative capital.
Our day started early and promisingly as we approached Islas Tinhosas, for pre-breakfast Zodiac cruises to witness some spectacular bird life: sooty terns, noddies and boobies with an occasional tropic bird. Soon, however, the birds were disturbed by an on-coming storm that lit the darkened sky with lightning. The storm quickly enveloped the Zodiac cruisers and the operation had to be abandoned.
Over breakfast we repositioned to Principe, but with strengthening gusts of wind, torrential rain and a rising swell it soon became apparent that the planned shore operations on the island were unlikely to take place, a fact that was confirmed by the port authorities later in the morning. The island was closed to shipping and would remain so for the rest of the day.
Adapting quickly, a full program of presentations was put together beginning with a talk from Patrik Svaerdmyr, our hotel manager, explaining the intricacies of the ships’ provisioning and ending with a Sao Tome chocolate tasting session. Our oceanographer, Jim Kelley, gave us a scientist’s view of winds and waves on the ocean and Mariana Carvalho gave a stimulating presentation on the rich flora and fauna of her native archipelago. Tom Ritchie brought the afternoon to a hilarious close with his light-hearted presentation on Zodiac operations, featuring some memorable moments from his illustrious career with the company, to which this morning’s operation could now be added.
