Salvador

Since I found out that Bahia was the most African part of Brazil I have been desperate to go! Ten months later....I finally do it!

Salvador was beautiful. My favourite area was Pelourinho. It was a neighbourhood with lots of painted houses. So picturesque! Total tourist trap, but was lovely for a little wander. Like parts of Buenos Aires, it felt very typically South American.

It is where Michael Jackson filmed 'They don't care about us' so I was a lil starstruck hehe

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNJL6nfu__Q (in case you want a recap!)

The three of us took a bus tour around the city to see as much as we could quickly. Lots of fun, though very windy!

The flags of the countries in the World Cup playing in Salvador

Fallen Cross monument

We wandered around for a while, then headed down the elevator, which cost us about 4p! Why it was manned I do not know as their wages would surely not be covered by the ridiculous price (though apparently it carries 50,000 people daily, so perhaps!), but anyway....Ana was all excited and said it was really famous.....I was less  convinced hehe It links the Upper city with the Lower city, and was a nice intro to the market below where we happily wiled away a few hours looking at funny Brazilian handicrafts and then drinking wine in the sunshine!

Lacerda Elevator

What struck us most about Salvador was how beautiful some of the buildings were, yet how decrepit others were, and how the favelas were everywhere. They seemed to be throughout the city, absolutely everywhere.

Salvador is on the coast, and had some really nice beaches. It was a bit gutting to just have a weekend there and zero beach time! It had a lovely chilled out vibe (it will be so different when the football fans descend in a matter of weeks!). 

We went to see the Bonfim church which is famous for the multitude of ribbons tied around its fences.

Everywhere we went, people would give us ribbons to wear. They are meant to be tied three times, and worn until they fall off (which may take a year!), and when they fall off your three wishes (one for each knot) would be granted. The writing on them says, ”Lembrança do Senhor do Bonfim da Bahia”, or in remembrance of the savior of Bahia, or Souvenir from the God of Bahia.

The African influences was very evident in the presence of Orishá. Near the new stadium there is a big lake and recreation park called Dique do Tororo, which contains a group of orishá statues dancing in a circle on the surface of the water.  The Orishá are the deities of the Afro-Brazilian religion Candomble. They were very interesting to look at-very strange!

Ana and I sitting in the square enjoying a caiprinha!

Football Stickers

I would expect football sticker madness in school. The kids love collecting and swapping and we hear lots of Got! Got! Need!

However, I was not expecting to see literally hundreds of people (adults) on a Saturday afternoon outside MASP swapping stickers!

It was quite a sight for Emma and I as we had decided to have a bit of culture by visiting the famous museum and were surprised by the crowds and heavy police presence!

Favelas

Living in Sao Paulo we are very protected. We work in a lovely area, and live in a really nice, safe one, with great amenities. We can walk alone, even at night and really do not need to worry. It is really easy to forget that not all of the city is actually like this. In Rio, the favelas are right next to Copacabana and much more integrated into the city. However in Sao Paulo things are much more separate and it is easy to assume Sao Paulo is one well developed metropolis. 

I read an article on the BBC today about the lack of adequate housing in Sao Paulo and the growth of favelas. Driving back from a school trip recently was a bit of an eye opener, realising that when you drive in the opposite direction from school, Sao Paulo is not so swanky and modern anymore.  

This spread for miles. It is one of the biggest in the city.

Bus blur!

Brazilians continue to be so angry about the money wasted on the World Cup when housing, education and health have been so neglected. It is so easy to see why. Manaus was a very ugly run down city (except for the opera house) yet now has a swanky, expensive new stadium.