The National Ethnographic Museum (Museu de Etnografia) in the Platô is the main museum in Praia, covering Cape Verdean culture, traditional crafts, music, and the history of the islands. The collection includes traditional pottery, weaving, agricultural tools, and displays on the island's African and Portuguese cultural roots — a genuinely interesting survey of how a creole culture formed from scratch on islands that were uninhabited before the Portuguese arrived in the 15th century.
The museum is small by European standards but well worth an hour, especially for understanding why Cape Verde feels different from both mainland Africa and from Portugal. The exhibits on Cape Verdean music — the morna, funaná, and coladeira traditions — are a good introduction before you go hunting for live music in the evenings.