A Life of Travel: Update from the tiny African island nation of Sao Tome and Principe!

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It's Tuesday and it's time for a travel newsletter...

update

Today I write from the balcony of my Airbnb I rented for 11 days. It’s in the small town of Santana, on the island of Sao Tome, in the country of Sao Tome and Principe.

This tiny African country is home to 225,000 people. It only receives approximately 30,000 visitors per year, making it one of the least visited countries in the world.

The high temperature today will be 32C / 90F. The low will be 28C / 82F. It doesn’t change much. And right now, I’m looking straight out at the soothing blue ocean, through some bright green palm leaves, with a tiny islet in sight not far from the coast. I’m happy.

Going to a tropical island for my birthday each year is sort of ‘my thing’. It’s my time to decompress and enjoy a holiday in the kind of destination that I love. Tropical islands and me get along very well as I feel so energized, peaceful and healthy whenever I’m on one.

Tropical islands are on par with my own general approach to life - relaxed, flexible and trying to avoid unnecessary stress.

Tropical islands are the kind of places where you can stop your car in the middle of a main road to chat with friends and nobody behind will mind. They’ll wait until you’re finished. No honking horns, no shouting, no getting upset. This appeals to me.

Tropical islands are hot, and humid. I’m dripping in sweat right this moment, and it’s only 8:00am. But the extreme heat doesn’t allow anyone or anything to be rushed. You have no choice but to move slowly. In a world where everything is so fast-paced, it’s not terrible to slow down on occasion and just exist, without being online all the time, without all the marketing vying for our attention, without the noise and fear of missing out, without the need to always be doing something.

The vivid greens of the palm trees and lush jungle flora, along with the magical blues of the water and sky, the pure whites and golds of the sand and even the deep grays of rain clouds ensure that we never take for granted the awesome beauty of nature.

Tropical islands allow us to fill up on the freshest of foods, especially delicious fruits, all prepared without the need for processed ingredients. The food is often cooked cleanly and simply and the result is a feeling of good health and proper energy after each meal.

The melodic songs of the birds, the rhythmic guttural callings of the geckos, the soft ever-present breeze…it’s the only alarm clock you need in the morning. And I feel wonderful, even when I’m woken up at sunrise. (Which is no surprise as it’s well-proven that waking up to nature sounds provides many benefits.)

I absolutely love it all. I feel my absolute best in such tropical locations and such island trips really help me re-align each year.

My trip here in Sao Tome and Principe only began a couple of days ago, so there shall be more information about the country and the experiences I have here in the next newsletter!

Do you have an ideal type of destination that you simply connect with?

sao tome and principe

In case you’re looking to visit this little visited island nation, here’s some additional information:

Getting here: The only way to get here is by flight. However, the only direct flights to Sao Tome are from Portugal, Nigeria, Ghana, Angola, Togo and Gabon but the flights are not every day so you need to plan carefully. For example, I flew direct from Lisbon to Sao Tome but on the way back, I’ll fly to Accra, Ghana and then to Lisbon.

Accommodation: There are a decent amount of options but they are scattered all over the island. While it’s not a big island, it does take time to get around. You’ll find simple guesthouses and basic ecolodges in the mountains or along the coast, a few nicer guesthouses/small hotels, a couple of small 3* or 4* beach resorts and then a handful of decent Airbnbs. We rented this Airbnb in the small town of Santana. The view from the balcony alone is worth it!

Getting around: Renting a car is the way to go. It’s quite standard here - Suzuki Jimnys cost 50€ per day and larger Toyota 4×4s cost 95€ per day. Either way, you’ll need a vehicle to get around. There’s one main road that goes around the island but it doesn’t go all the way around due to the jungle interior. You could take the bright yellow shared vans that go along the main road as they are frequent and inexpensive but they won’t get you everywhere, especially if you want to visit the interior areas.

Things to do: I’ll have more to say about this once the trip is over but there are beaches, waterfalls, rainforest hikes, a national park, mangrove forests, historic plantations, coffee tasting, chocolate factories, fishing villages and more! If you have time, there’s also the island of Principe which is a 45 minute flight from Sao Tome.

any newsletter issues?

As mentioned last week, today’s newsletter is the first one I’m sending from a new email platform (Beehiiv) that I’ve switched to. The transfer seemed to go smoothly but if you notice any issues with this email, please let me know so that I can sort it out right away!

around the globe

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Secret Irish Pub
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An Intact Greek Temple
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Travel Startups
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where in the world?

A big congratulations to Rich and Steve for guessing the location of the previous photo!

The photo is of the Kamphaeng Phet ruins in central Thailand, which is home to ancient temples dating back to the 14th century when it was part of the Sukkothai Kingdom. I visited this place during my first full trip through Thailand, from south to north, way back in 2001!

This week’s photo:
It’s time to guess…where was the below photo taken?

If you have a guess (the more specific the better), click reply and let me know. Anyone who guesses correctly will be mentioned in next week's newsletter!

This newsletter is always free but it does take time and money to put together. If you wish to help support it, kindly forward it to people you know, shop for my favorite travel gear (I receive a small cut), make a donation or join one of my unique small group trips to some spectacular destinations.

Thank you so much for reading!

Derek
(my middle name is Earl)

WanderingEarl.com

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