After the first impressions about Salvador let’s now talk more deeply about the city of Salvador.
Now that I have been here for a while I really want to share some information with you about the things you can do in Salvador, the nice spots to go and the nice places and beaches you can visit.
Pelourinho – The old town
The heart of the city. Salvador is a huge city, however the old town, Pelourinho, is quite small. Pelourinho is like a little village inside the city with a lot of culture, traditions and typical food. It is a very tourist place but if you really want to feel the vibe of the city, you have to come here.
Here you will find women wearing the typical clothes from Bahia, the percurssion of olodum (drums group which take poor kids from the streets and teach them how to play drums), people dancing afro dance on the streets or even capoeira masters always grabbing <gringos> to teach them.
Gringo: the word brazilians use to say foreign person.
If you ever come to visit Salvador, make sure you spend a Tuesday night here. Tuesday night means Festa da Benção, it is a religious party on the streets where you just follow the drums and dance all night long. It s amazing. I promise you: you will have really good time here if you come for Tuesday night. 😀
Monuments to see in the city
– Igreja da Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Negros: Brazil is such a religious country so there are churches everywhere. This one is located in the Pelourinho square and it is pretty famous because it was buildt by the slaves.
If one day you come to Salvador you will notice every building has a different color in the Pelourinho square. YES, it is beautiful but the colors have a meaning. In the past, a lot of people did not know how to read and write so coloring the buildings was a way to slaves distinguish each building. I found it so interesting. 😀
– Elevador Lacerda and Mercado modelo: It is the symbol of the city. The lift connects the up and down of the city. Unfortunately the lift is closed so you can not take pictures of the city from up. Each ride is 15 centavos. In the up side of the city you have the square with the big letters saying Salvador and in the down side you can find the Mercado modelo. It is the old customs house where you can buy souvenirs and handicrafts for the family. You can also get a nice view of the bay there.
Museums to see
I did visit the museums here but in my point of view none of them are SUPER amazing. Sorry bahianos! It is always nice to check out but I do not think you will have the museum experience of your life here.
– SENAC: Museu da gastronomia bahiana
– Fundação Casa de Jorge Amado
– MAM: Museu de Arte Moderno
Bairro Santo António
I am staying close to Santo António area and I love it. I almost feel home here with the tiny streets, the colorful buildings and the kids everywhere playing football. St. António is also a area with a lot of bares… Most of the time you can find someone playing music outside.
Rio Vermelho
Here is the place to be if you want to go out and have fun. There are a lot of bares and clubs.
One important thing: Brazilians are very proud of their music so you easily find clubs playing just brazilian music.
Barra beach
Barra is the closest beach from the Old town.
You have a lot of cafes, bares and tons of people selling stuff: from necklaces to bikinis or even cheese. Back in Europe is normal to find people seeling on the beach BUT Brazilians really have a cultural thing about eating and drinking on the beach. As a brazilian friend of mine told me, «Well I usually go to the beach to eat and drink, not to enjoy the sun or the sea…» ahahhah I found it so funny 😀
There is also a lighthouse that is worth to check out and take pictures 😀
Bonfim
The best sunset in Salvador is there. You also can go to the beach in Bonfim. However, the most known thing is the Igreja Bonfim. This church of ribbons is beautiful. Inside you can find a little bit of the portuguese influence with the tiles on the walls «azulejos in Portuguese».
These ribbons are usually tied around the wrist. According to the street vendors, you should tied the ribbon with 3 knots and make a wish for each one of them.
I hope you liked the post. I will be writing more about Salvador for sure but with this post I think you have already an idea of what you can find in this amazing city.
Beijinho,
Daniela