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9th of July, 1522

[9 July: Victoria anchores in the port of Ribeira Grande on the Cape Verde island of Santiago. Between Timor and Cape Verde fifteen Europeans and ten Indonesians have died aboard the Victoria.]

[15 July: Victoria departs hastily from the Cape Verde islands. Thirteen members of the crew are detained by the Portuguese authorities.]

[28 July: Tenerife of the Canary Islands is sighted.]

[7 August: The volcanic island of Pico in the Azores was sighted.]

[21 August: Victoria heads for Cape St Vincent and arrives there 4 September.]

[13 July: 15- Cape Verde Islands – Sanlucar de Barrameda
Departure on July 13, 1522- Arrival on September 6, 1522. 55-day journey.]

Corrimos, en seguida, hacia el noroeste durante dos meses enteros, sin reposamos jamás, perdiendo en este intervalo veintiún hombres, entre cristianos e indios. Al arrojarlos al mar, notamos una cosa curiosa, y fue que los cadáveres de los cristianos quedaban siempre con el rostro vuelto hacia el cielo, y los de los indios con la cara sumergida en el mar.

Carecíamos totalmente de víveres, y si el cielo no nos hubiese acordado un tiempo favorable, habríamos todos muerto de hambre. El 9 de julio, día miércoles, descubrimos la isla de Cabo Verde, yendo a fondear a la llamada Santiago.

Sabiendo que nos hallábamos en tierra enemiga y que se abrigarían sospechas de nosotros, tuvimos la precaución de hacer decir a los hombres de la chalupa que enviamos a tierra a hacer provisión de víveres, que pasábamos al puerto porque habiéndose quebrado el palo trinquete al doblar la línea equinoccial, gastamos mucho tiempo en acomodarlo, y que el comandante en jefe, con otras dos naves, había continuado su derrota a España.

Les hablamos de manera de hacerles creer que veníamos de las costas de América y no del Cabo de Buena Esperanza. Prestóse fe a nuestras palabras y por dos veces recibimos la chalupa llena de arroz a cambio de nuestras mercaderías. Para ver si nuestros diarios habían sido llevados con exactitud, hicimos preguntar en tierra que qué día de la semana era. Se nos respondió que era jueves, lo que nos sorprendió, porque según nuestros diarios sólo estábamos a miércoles, y a mí, sobre todo, porque habiendo estado bien de salud para llevar mi diario, marcaba sin interrupción los días de la semana y los del mes. Después supimos que no existía error en nuestro cálculo, porque navegando siempre hacia el oeste, siguiendo el curso del sol y habiendo regresado al mismo punto, debíamos ganar veinticuatro horas sobre los que permanecían en el mismo sitio; y basta reflexionar para convencerse de ello.

Habiendo por tercera vez regresado la chalupa a tierra con trece hombres, notamos que se la retenía, pudiendo además sospechar por el movimiento que se observaba en algunas carabelas, que querían también apoderarse de nuestra nave, lo que nos determinó a partir en el acto. Supimos después que nuestra chalupa había sido detenida porque uno de los marineros reveló nuestro secreto, diciendo que el comandante en jefe era muerto y que nuestra nave era la única de la escuadra de Magallanes que regresaba a Europa.

[203] Then we sailed north-west for two months continually, with- out taking on any fresh food or water. Twenty-one men died during that short time: when we cast them into the sea, the Christians went to the bottom face upward, while the Indians always went down face downward. Had not God given us good weather we would all have starved to death. Finally, constrained by our great distress, we went to the islands of Cape Verde.

[204] Wednesday, 9 July, we reached one of those islands called Santiago, and immediately sent the boat ashore for food, with the story for the Portuguese that we had lost our foremast under the equinoctial line (although we had lost it upon the Cape of Good Hope), and when we were re-stepping it, our captain-general had gone to Spain with the other two ships. With those good words, and with our merchandise, we got two boatloads of rice. We charged our men when they went ashore in the boat to ask what day it was. They told us that it was Thursday for the Portuguese: we were greatly surprised for it was Wednesday for us, and we could not see how we had made a mistake. For since I had always been healthy, I had written down every day without any interruption. However, as was told us later, it was no error, but as the voyage had been made continually toward the west and we had returned to the same place as does the sun, we had made that gain of twenty-four hours, as is clearly seen. The boat having returned to the shore again for rice, thirteen men and the boat were detained, because one of them, as we learned afterward in Spain, told the Portuguese that our captain was dead, as well as others, and that we were not going to Spain. Fearing lest we also be taken prisoners by certain caravels, we hastily departed.

Pagkatapos ay naglayag kami pahilagang-kanluran nang dalawang buwan nang hindi nagsasakay ng kahit anong sariwang pagkain o tubig. Dalawampu at isang tauhan ang namatay sa loob ng maiksing panahong iyon. Noong inihagis namin silá sa dagat, lumubog na nakaharap sa langit ang mga Kristiyano, samantalang laging lumulubog na nakataob ang mga Indio. Namatay na kaming lahat sa gutom kung hindi kami binigyan ng Panginoon ng magandang panahon. Sa wakas, pagkatapos mapilitan ng aming napakatinding pangangailangan, tumúngo kami sa mga isla ng Capo Verde.

Noong araw ng Miyerkoles, ikasiyam ng Hulyo, naratíng namin ang isa sa mga naturang isla na tinatawag na Sancto Jacobo, at kaagad ipinadalá ang bangka sa baybay para sa pagkain, na may daláng kuwento para sa mga Portuges na nawala namin ang aming foremast sa ilalim ng linyang equinoctial (kahit nawala namin ito sa Tangos ng Bonna Speranza), at noong ikinakabit muli namin ito, pumunta sa España ang aming kapitán-heneral kasáma ng dalawa pa naming barko. Nakakuha kami ng dalawang bangkang punô ng bigas dahil sa mabubuting salitâng iyon at dahil sa aming mga kalakal. Inutos namin sa mga tauhan namin na tanungin kung anong araw na noon pagpunta nilá sa baybay sakay ng bangka, at sinabi nilá sa aming Huwebes na noon sa mga Portuges. Labis namin itong ikinagulat dahil Miyerkoles sa amin, at hindi namin makita kung paano kami nagkamali; sapagkat lagi namang maayos ang aking pagtatalâ, nailista ko ang bawat araw nang walang antala. Subalit, ayon sa nasabi sa amin pagkaraan, hindi iyon pagkakamali, dahil patuloy na ginawa ang paglalakbay patúngo sa kanluran at nakabalik na kami sa parehong lugar katulad ng araw, kung kayâ nakadagdag kami ng dalawampu at apat na oras, na siyáng malinaw. Pagbalik sa dalampasigan ng bangka para sa bigas, dinakip ang labintatlong tauhan at ang bangka, sapagkat sinabi sa mga Portuges ng isa sa kanilá, na nabatid namin pagkaraan sa España, na patay na ang aming kapitán, kabílang ang ibá pa, at na hindi kami magtutúngo sa España. Dalî-dalî kaming lumisan sa pangambang dadakpin din kami bílang mga bilanggo ng ilang caravel.