Yes, love at first sight exists. It happened to me when I reached in 2018 the small island nation of São Tomé & Príncipe off the Gabonese coast. The flight from Accra to São Tomé had been a bit nerve-wracking as the plane had to circle seemingly forever around the Golf of Guinea, due to a tropical thunderstorm, before it could finally touch down. Then, on Sâo Tomé, the bigger and more “energetic” of the two islands, everything was “leve-leve” (softly-softly paced).  The relaxed African-Creole-Portuguese-Brazilian-vibe caught me instantly.

We visited the “bustling” market. There was no hurry at all, but beautiful huge fish, funny market ladies and every imaginable tropical fruit, including the stinky durian. From the “capital” we moved on the only road inland, past forgotten little villages with colorful wooden houses and cheerful children, climbed through emerald rainforest, before the track ended high up in the clouds. We stayed at an abandoned  plantation house, surrounded by gardens of bougainvillea and evergreen volcanic peaks. The next day after breakfast (Jackfruit jam anyone?) we hiked through a forest of cocoa trees and washed away our sweat with a swim under the cascade of a waterfall. Down at the coast we feasted on mariscos. Crab were damn fresh. A small little beach hut at the southern tip just served octopus and cold beer. A fishermen went out in his canoe two extra times, just to satisfy my second and third octopus orders. In the East coast village of  São João dos Angolares, The locals had opened a little farm-to-table restaurant with an annnexed b&b. We were served a delicious ten-course-dinner with every ingredient the two spice islands were offering. Instead of stars awarded by Michelin testers (two at least would have been fully justified), there were a thousand stars above us in the nightly sky.  But the best was yet to come: Príncipe! Words almost fail to describe the allure of Príncipe. The beaches could rival some of the Seychelles’ and were some of the best in Africa (one was even good enough for a Bacardi spot). Spectacular monolithic peaks reminded us on our beautiful times in Rio. We stayed and dined at one of the most beautiful hideaways where we have ever been.  From there we walked along a pearl necklace  of beaches into the rainforest and were soon engulfed by mystical ruins of a bygone era. 

Caipirinhas were turned out when was sunset was turning the sky in a mix of blue and purple. Thanks to our neighbours in Nairobi who knew him from their stint in Congo, we met Claudio Corallo in his beautiful home in the center of Príncipe, a former plantation house studded by majestic rubber trees and a view over half of the pristine island. Claudio is a local institution and has for over 40 years 

pursued his passion for cocoa and chocolate, first in Congo/Zaire and later  here where he has two plantations and a factory in the capital. For the first time ever we did chocolate tasting, samplling a dozen types of chocolate Even me who actually does not like dark chocolate was rapidly converted.  In São Tomé & Príncipe, livelihood for everyone, sustainable tourism and few tourists pair with great food, immense biodiversity and beauty. The ideal country – here it exists. Will it last?