São Tomé & Príncipe 

Welcome to paradise 

Everything appears familiar to us. We recognise everything. Everything has a meaning: the cities, the colours, the scent, the landscape, the never ending blue of the sea…everything. It is a fascinating experience, just like from other times. It is like something previously experienced where the houses, the buildings and the streets remind us of enriching old stories, which these cities experienced in past times.

It is the wide variety of colours, the Great open spaces, where the green opens simultaneously to all the other primary shades of colour in a palette of never ending colours, and where the intensity of the changing blue of the sea is united to its own shades of colour, the rainbow circles both verdant islands, and which stirs up  our inner feelings – even those that we thought did not exist. It is in search of nature linked to a return to our roots which affects us all. It is the feeling of the deserted beaches, the magic of the forests, the gentleness of the people and of all the old memories of the cocoa and coffee plantations.

Landing on this island is like arriving at that paradise place which is spoken to us since we were very small and that we always imagine what  would be like. We feel great and like the Portuguese discoverers João de Santarém and Pedro Escobar who when arrived here for the first time, were invaded by a sense of joy and happiness, alternating with anxiety and a feeling of discovery, where we feel like the main actors in a neo-realist film.

The secret of this island is to enter it slowly, gently, which is typical of these people and who define themselves as such. It is the discovery of a disarming simplicity, and of a calm and peaceful way of being which brings us peace and completely seduces us. It is merely that “energy” which we call mother-nature, which takes us back to those paradisiacal and tropical landscapes which leave us speechless and breathless. It is great living day after day, no rush in the day to day, experiencing everything with time and allowing time to pass by. Also because this time will be sufficient, it will never end, in these moments perfection meets reality and transports us to a world which belongs only to us.

It is great living in São Tomé and Príncipe. It is great because it has a meaning. It is as if we have reached paradise.

Cocoa and Plantations
Like the tenderness of the people it is one of the places to visit in these islands. Like the gentleness of the people, the cocoa is great, it tastes great, and in some difficult times of our lives it has accompanied us, cherished us, has given us support, it has been there for us…in a chocolate bar.

 Blue Sea
It is great to lie down with the intensity of the changes in which the blue meets  its own shades, a rainbow which circles both verdant islands.

People and fishing
It is easy to build friendships in this archipelago. It is easy and great. The simplicity and the humbleness. And we accompany them in the fishing or in search of the great amount of fruit which exists in the dense jungles of these islands.

The Blue Lagoon
Wilder than Cape Verde, nearer to Europe than The Carribean, more developed than many other African nations and a close relationship with the Portuguese, this is a country waiting to be discovered. Why else is it considered the gateway to….paradise.

Pestana
THE PESTANA SÃO TOMÉ is the only 5 star hotel in São Tomé e Príncipe. With panoramic views of the sea, it has all the comfort and sophistication that one looks for in a hotel. Extensive areas, conference rooms and a wide variety of leisure options, under the internationally recognised organisation of Pestana Hotels & Resorts.

The beauty of this luxurious hotel is complemented by the luxurious condominium Pestana Vila Maria, located a few metres from the hotel, also a casino, a discotheque, outside swimming-pool, Health Club and Spa and excellent other facilities for those who are looking for an ideal place for a relaxed holiday or a business trip, in a modern and refined place.

In ochre colours, this building is not in the environment of a capital city stopped in time, but in reality it completely satisfies he designations of our own comfort. It is as if we were in paradise.

Flowers
If I say that  flowers at times smile
And if I say that the rivers sing,
It is not because that I judge that the flowers smile
And songs in the flowing of the rivers…

It is because thus I can feel more false men
The real existence of the rivers and flowers
Because I write to them so that they read me I sacrifice myself at times
To its sense of stupidity
I do not agree with myself bit I absolve myself
Because I am that serious thing, na interpreter of Nature,
Because there are men that do not understand its language
As it is no language in itself
Alberto Caeiro

HotelsBetter than feeling at home, it is in fact as if we were in our own home.

SportApart from the colour that invites us for a swim, everything else is divine.

BeachesIf there were somewhere where God really rested, that place could only have been here…

Dances with the childrenThey let go what best there is in them, leaving the old spirits take care of its gestures, of its steps and with hands held together in a sweet naivety, so typical of their young age, they dance in order to awaken energies and praise their ancestors.

SmilesIs there anything sweeter than a child´s smile?

Tropics
The clouds are sombre
But, in the south,
Some sky
Is sadly blue

So, in our thought,
With no solution,
There is something that reminds us
That a heart exists.

And it is that piece
The truth that is
Eternal beauty
Apart from what exists
 
Fernando Pessoa

Light
A ray of a thousand colours where you can see all the ends of the universe, where everything has a beginning, from form to substance, life to death, form total happiness to tears of loss…everything has a meaning.

Tropical pleasure
It is as if we were in paradise beside the beach. We are made to enjoy a number of sensations at the rhythm we wish to discover more, like effusive vegetation, interrupted by numerous flows of water and streams, as well as uneven relief/landscape of different altitude, these are all examples of magic which reigns here. This magic which, be it on land or sea, is felt with great intensity and which makes us become, ironically, slaves of the island.

Architecture
Architecturally speaking, the fortress of São Sebastião, the cathedral of Santa Sé, located next to the Presidential Palace, The Historical Public Records and many other buildings inspired by Barroque are culturally enriching places of visit.

S. Tomé
There is more, but it is up to us to discover such places…if not this would not be the gateway to paradise.