Sal Rei Favorites

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Favorite thing: We paid a short visit to Sal Rei's main school as part of a day trip to the island's capital. It was the school that our guide (the very knowledgable and friendly Tinh) had attended as a child, and I got the impression that he included a visit in all his city tours.

Hundreds of children in neatly pressed sky blue shirts and shorts were playing in the square outside the school as we arrived. Some were climbing up the signposts and walls, some were playing games of chase and others were using an empty water bottle as a makeshift football and a doorway as a makeshift goal. Others were encouraging us to take their photos.

We had read beforehand that the local children are grateful of any toys, pens and similar items that visitors bring with them, so Emma had taken along a bag full of rubber bouncy balls. The first one was gratefully received by a smiling little girl, but then word soon got out and Emma was mobbed by dozens of children desperately trying to get into her bag to get one of the prized possessions. Children descended upon her from all four corners of the playground! I was unsure whether to try to help disperse the children, or take lots of photos as Emma battled to distribute the colourful balls as best as she could. Needless to say, I opted for the latter! ;-) Our guide intervened and the swarm of children parted.

If you intend to take small gifts for the children, it is probably wise to hand them to the teacher to distribute amongst the children.

We were shown inside the classroom (it could have been a primary school classroom anywhere in the world, with children sitting obediently at their desks, colourful pencil cases in front of them and lots of their artwork hanging on the walls) as our guide told us a little about the school. The children seemed to be used to welcoming visitors and our visit didn't appear to cause too much disruption to their lessons.

Our short visit provided an interesting insight into the lives of Boa Vista's locals.