Africa Adventure

Have you ever heard of São Tomé and Principe? No? Well I didn’t think so. These are two very small islands off the coast of Equatorial Guinea, and together they form the smallest state in Africa.

The islands were originally discovered and colonized by the Portuguese is the late 15^th century. They then started using slaves to work in the sugar plantations and subsequently became one of the biggest exporters of sugar in Africa. In the 19^th century they started growing what is considered to be some of the finest coffee and cacao in the world.

Today this island has transformed itself into something truly extraordinary; paradise, untouched by the masses of tourists. Beautiful turquoise waters, unexplored jungles and some of the best coffee and chocolate in the world make this island one of the last true paradises on earth.

This island is relatively unknown so it doesn’t attract that many visitors, roughly 20 tourists go there every week. That’s right 20! What that means is you will most likely have the beach all to yourself. That sounds fantastic!

The lack of tourists does not mean there is nothing to do on the island. It is culturally and ecologically diverse. Although the island has a large jungle there aren’t any predators like lions or tigers. There are also a few night clubs and bars, for when you are tired of the sights and want to dance the night away.

Most locals on the island are very poor, and because of this do not eat luxurious food. If you don’t want to eat fruit bats with the locals do, don’t fret. The Hotel Miramar is a four star luxury hotel and has a fantastic restaurant that caters to every taste. The hotel has air-conditioned rooms with satellite TV. They also have a 10 000 square meter garden and 600 meter swimming pool.

This island then is something to treasure; a beautiful island teeming with culture and life. A perfect place if you want to escape the pressures of society and just ‘go-slow’.

You can visit the country’s official website for more information.

(This is a post by our intern Kristian Meijer)

(Image by Joao Maximo, CC by 2.0, via Flickr)