Salvador is the cultural capital of Brazil and the African capital of South America. Located in the northeastern state of Bahia, it is a city with a mix of cultures, offering the adventurous traveler an exciting experience. The first capital of the original Portuguese colony of Brazil, Salvador was the second most important city in the Portuguese Empire, second only to Lisbon itself, and is now the third largest city in the
country. Don’t get confused with San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador in Central America. Salvador da Bahia is a natural attraction to travelers: it has the combination of tropical climate, antique Baroque architecture and a music that overwhelms the senses, a combination of African and Latin rhythms. Portuguese chronicles mention that Franciscan Monks went through a big pain to build 365 churches in Salvador, one for each day of the year. I yet have to count them, as
they seem to be everywhere…
The 460 year-old city of Salvador is separated into two levels, the lower port city and the upper city reached by the Art Deco Lacerda Elevator (left.) There is a lot of African flavor in the culture due to slavery in the 18th and 19th Century. Salvador was the capital of Brazil for almost three Centuries and the most important city in the South Atlantic during that period of time. Due to the trade winds and sea currents, Salvador was a crossroad for ships from all over the world, from the Americas and Europe to China and India. However, the invention of steam ships, the opening of the Suez Canal and the transfer of the capital to Rio de Janeiro, all occurring at around the same time, stalled Salvador's growth. Gold, sugar cane and diamonds had brought tremendous wealth to Salvador and had helped finance the Industrial Revolution in Europe. Nowadays beaches are gorgeous with coconut trees and deep blue waters. People, as elsewhere in Brazil, have an extremely easy going pace.
Local cuisine is varied and one of a kind in Brazil: abará (cooked grated French beans wrapped in banana leaves,) acarajé (grated French beans fried in palm oil,) vatapá (bread, coconut oil, peanuts and smoked shrimp,) carurú (okra gambo, peanuts, cashew nuts, smoked shrimp and palm oil) and cocada (sweet coconut dessert) are very popular snacks among locals. Those are sold by women dressed in white costumes known as baianas de acarajé. Their cleanness standards and taste vary though; either abará or acarajé will cost you from R$2 to R$4 and taste a lot better if you order it filled in with vatapá and shrimp. Seafood cooked in either coconut oil (ensopado) or palm oil (muqueca) is delicious, always at very affordable prices (R$50 at max.) and huge servings that would feed the hungriest traveler; if you order a shrimp dish in restaurant Yemanjá for instance, you will get 50 to 100 medium sized shrimp per plate, accompanied by rice and farofa, a side dish made of flour. Even if you don't like beef you should not miss grill-houses called churrascarias, where the only menu item is rodízio, which means all-you-can-eat from a huge meat, seafood and salad buffet for only R$45 at the most, drinks and dessert not included; I highly recommend Churrascaria Sal & Brasa in Salvador; you would pay at least R$100 for the same type of meal in the USA or Europe. There is also comida a kilo, found in restaurants in every neighborhood and shopping mall, where you serve yourself from a large variety of dishes; you pay by the weight, prices ranging from R$14 to R$40 per Kilo. You will find cheaper places (less than R$8 per Kilo) but I would not take the risk. The best thing about these places apart from the price, is how fast you can serve yourself, as service in most “regular” restaurants is usually slow. Of course, you can find pizza parlors, fast food places, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Lebanese, Japanese and Chinese restaurants if you prefer not to go “native” right away. Don’t miss drinking água de coco, some 500ml of coconut milk for only R$1 to R$2 at most beach-side vendors. You can also find a great variety of fruit juices and ice cream made from fruit found only in this region of the country: açaí, umbú, cajá, jaca, mangaba, maracujá, siriguela, pinha, sapotí, graviola, acerola, pitanga and cacau. Everyone loves the soft-drink Guaraná Antarctica available in cans and bottles; the fruit itself grows in the Amazon and is wrongly thought by the Native Brazilian Indians to be a light drug to keep them awake long hours. Caipirinha is the local alcoholic drink and cost between R$2 and R$6.
Farol da Barra
Accommodation in a hostel can cost less than R$40 per night in high season. Hotel rates here are per room, not per person. A double bedroom is slightly more expensive than a single, not double the price. For the budget minded traveler, a bed & breakfast type seaside two-star hotel locally known as pousada cost from R$50 (low season) to R$70 (high season). Note that for the week of Carnival (11-16 Feb. 2010, 03-08 Mar. 2011) accommodation rates are double of those during high season; that would still be very cheap if compared to American and European standards. Reservations must be made at least two months in advance, rates for Carnival are per person and room space is sold only in packages of 5 to 7 nights. Top chain hotels are found in different neighborhoods along the seacoast of Salvador with daily rates ranging from R$100 to R$1,250. In case you are visiting on June 23/24 don't miss São João festivities taking place in several towns in the countryside near Salvador (Cachoeira, Amargosa and others).
Pelourinho
Sightseeing: be prepared to do some walking during the day. You would have seen a great deal of the city if you walked four miles (beware of many pickpockets), from Farol da Barra, a fort and lighthouse built in 1598, to Pelourinho, a UNESCO World Heritage Site considered to be the finest complex of colonial architecture in Latin America. Pelourinho was once the site of the slave market and where they were publicly punished. You will climb Ladeira da Barra, a 900-meter long slope going up some 80 meters in elevation, while having a breathtaking view of Baía de Todos os Santos (All Saints' Bay) and Itaparica Island 5 miles to the west. The bay is the largest on the Brazilian coast and was discovered on 1 November 1501 by Americus Vespucci, who America was named after, sailing under Portuguese flag. You must see some of the magnificent churches and cathedrals, rivaling those in Portugal itself when Brazil was still a colony. Gold has been used in some of them, brought from the Amazon Basin in the 17th Century: São Francisco Church with its lavish structure inlaid in gold from floor to ceiling, Conceição da Praia Church and Bonfim Church. Don't miss watching Capoeira (the Brazilian martial art, disguised as a dance) and seeing a few of the famous local percussion groups playing in Pelourinho. Tip: getting drunk is not well seen by locals, who can always have fun without drinking much. Oh...and don't forget to look up at the skies at night, you will see constellations that can’t ever be seen from the Northern Hemisphere...you’ll never forget The Southern Cross once you see it!
Dangers & Annoyances: I hate to sound negative, but Brazil has a very bad reputation for being a dangerous country (with an official average of 133 homicides per day, which is known to be underreported), and Salvador couldn't be different. The local police will never release any statistics showing how many foreign tourists are victimized; moreover, they claim that their role is NOT to fight crime nor to provide you with safety... Scams and unscrupulous characters abound everywhere, 'every man for himself' attitude and cheating one another (always with a convincing smile) is part of the local culture and daily life; courtesy, politeness, honesty and consideration for others is very rare here. Although homicide rate is lower than in Rio and São Paulo, Salvador is the third largest city in Brazil, so expect to find a staggering crime rate here too. Homicide rate in Salvador has increased by almost 50% every year for the last three years, mainly due to corrupt local politicians and an almost useless civil police force. Forget about seeking help from the local police, unless you have the bad luck to get involved in a homicide (although only 1 out of 10 homicides get investigated/solved), or need a police report for insurance purposes; you will waste hours waiting in line and they will either mock at you, or make you feel guilty for being a victim and won't take any action. Please keep in mind that tourism accounts for only 0.6% of the Brazilian GDP; so, through the eyes of local authorities, tourists, foreigners included, become like cattle and in this way become inconsequential objects of little to no importance. And as far as the safety of these cattle is concerned, it is an unnecessary evil. Don't expect to get any help from anyone in the street while you are being robbed/assaulted, locals will just stop and watch, as they are afraid that they get shot or stabbed if they help a victim. I wouldn't recommend anyone to walk alone after 10:30 p.m. anywhere; avoid deserted streets and beaches any time of day and night. Make sure to ask at your hotel reception if the streets you plan to walk through are safe at that time, and be street smart, making eye contact with the 3 or 4 people who are nearest to you while you walk. Keep in mind that in Brazil you must make eye contact with everyone, it's often considered rude not to do so. Always lock your expensive belongings (cameras, cell phones, watches, etc.) inside you bag before leaving your hotel room. Avoid renting a car at all costs, as you would need to relearn how to drive and how to avoid bandits on specific traffic lights, parking lots and so on; taxis are very safe and cheap, and buses are so so (with an average of six armed assaults per day in the city). Unemployment in Salvador has been nearly 20% for the last few years, so expect to see crowds and traffic jams almost everywhere. Beggars and kids will insistently ask for money, and there are many pickpockets and purse/camera/mobile phone snatchers in the streets, often in groups of 3 or 4; note that not all poor kids are thieves, most times all you have to do is say não (no); although they will hardly take a "no" for an answer, ignore any further verbal or eye contact. You usually can't go more than 5 minutes without some beggar asking for money, the worst being on tourist sites. Most of these solicitations aren’t dangerous, but they are aggressive and the constant stream of requests makes it a very tiring trip to anywhere in the city. Although nobody likes to be constantly hassled, authorities hypocritically claim that it’s part of the local warm hospitality (!?). As you may have already guessed, even if there's a police officer standing less than 3 meters away from a thief who is caught in the act, the officer will do nothing to arrest him, let alone to discourage a beggar from begging. In Brazil the government is very reluctant to stop anyone from doing anything; it’s all messy and dirty politics. Not to mention that there are many 'professional beggars' and 'homeless street kids' who aren't ‘homeless and hungry’ at all; some of them make over US$1,700 per month, which is about six times the Brazilian monthly minimum wage. Street vendors in touristy areas like Pelourinho will also insist that you buy something from them; again, say não once and avoid any further contact. Solo female travelers are strongly advised to avoid any contact with Rasta's in areas like the beaches of Barra neighborhood and Pelourinho...they usually start a conversation, then pretend to be in love at first sight just to use you as an easy source of extra money. Feel free to email me if you need any further details regarding all this. All that said, Salvador is still a bit safer than Rio, although one may not feel so.
Weather:
the coldest month is July with the minimum night temperature between
17ºC and 21ºC (63ºF and 70ºF); the
"rainy season" is from April to July, although you may encounter many
sunny and warm days in a row. Summer temperatures don’t
usually go past 32ºC (90ºF.) It sometimes
rains in summer but it's no big deal: if you are at the beach stay put
and the sun will be back sooner than you think. The beach here is a
place to socialize and to do lots of people watching, usually from 10 a.m. to
3 p.m. If you prefer the sound of the breaking waves, or you like to
read a book in the shade, arrive 8 a.m. and leave as the crowd arrives. At
left, Porto da Barra Beach, a nice central beach and the
place where the Portuguese landed in 1549 to found the city. In the
background, Santa Maria Fort built after 1624;
its nine cannons were used to protect the city against an invasion
attempt by the Dutch in 1630.
Transport:
highways in Brazil are very bad compared to European ones (but
excellent if compared to the ones in Bolivia, Costa Rica and most Sub-Saharan African countries for instance) and
dangerous at night; forget about renting a car and traveling around the
country, buses are comfortable and among the best in the Americas.
Trains are almost non-existent.
If you intend to travel a great deal within Brazil you may consider
purchasing a Brazil Airpass before leaving your country, as it
entitles you to go anywhere in Brazil in a very affordable way; you can buy a
minimum of four and a maximum of nine flight coupons for about US$100 each.
In Salvador don’t bother taking buses (R$2.30)
for short distances; taxis are much safer and cheap, charging R$3.45 flat rate plus R$2.00/Km ('flag fall 2' adds 20% from Saturday 2 p.m. to Sunday night, and for the whole month of December).
