A man stands before an abandoned Colonial Roca near Praia Micondo, Sao Tome. Sao Tome and Principe. Sao Tome and Principe, are two islands of volcanic origin lying off the coast of Africa. Settled by Portuguese convicts in the late 1400s and later a centre for slaving, their independence movement culminated in a peaceful transition to self government from Portugal in 1975..(photo by Stuart Freedman/In Pictures via Getty Images)