BEACH. You can find almost all... and other Salvador da Bahia, Brazil Things to Do Tips

BEACH. You can find almost all kinds of beaches in Salvador. Actually, Salvador is almost an island. It is a triangle attached to the country by one of its sides - the other too are baded by the Atlantic.
* Porto da barra, if you want family, peace and quiet environment. It has no waves...

* Jaguaribe, if you want to see people and sunbade, more than swimming. Surfing spot, so be careful with the sea - the streams are strong and you might just as well be carried away or hit by a board!

* Flamengo, is the best of all beaches in my opinion. Good sand, good sea, not too crowded. And it has the best beach hut in Salvador. Just to give you an example the food and drinks there are cheaper than in the other huts, the decoration is fine and every time I go there I watch the moon rise from the sea by the sound of Billie Holiday...

* Farol da Barra, for those who are getting started on surfing. Jogging and other sports are also welcome. Also if you like to dive there's an old ship wreck not far from the light house that attracts people from all over the country to come visit. There's 2 or 3 diving resources rentals in Barra.

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Address: Call 131 and ask.
Other Contact: The beach on the picture is in J

BEACHES - I

Porto da Barra
Perfect for families of for those who love swimming of for those who like to see the hillarious spectacle of brazilians and tourists mingling together. On sundays it's crowded to its most. Good for jogging, swimming, bading, flirting, relaxing, seeing the sunset, seeing the sunrise. Go there anytime - by night it's illuminated.

The best thing about Porto da Barra though is that it's a baby bay closed to such a point it's pratically a salty swimming pool. You only have tiny waves by the shore. 2 meters after that you can simply float and forget about your life. If you should wake up 2 hours later you'd still be in the same beach. Perfect for kids and people who like to swim and meditate or have a special link with the ocean. Let me tell you one thing - surfers won't bother you there! ;)

Also it's a very clean water. There's a stream crossing the bay that sweeps all kinds of possible trash to the other side of the rocks. Being in a residential area, Porto is also very well taken care of. There are periodical diving contests there in wich wins he who's able to collect the biggest amount of trash from the ocean. The salesman by the shore are also always cleaning everything up.

In Salvador, specially on the beaches of the Barra region (the short shore ones, with no huts) the salesman who rent sunchairs, sun umbrellas (?) and sell coconut water, beer and soda have the very funny ritual of watering the clients. Yes! They get a flower waterer, fill in with water from the sea and come water the clients' feet. If the client allows them to, they can water the whole person up!

:)

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Directions: Porto da Barra. Everyone knows where it is.
If you look at the bus, and you see 'Barra' written on it, just ask:

Passa no Porto?

If the answer is yes, hop in. You'll recognise the place. Just look

BEACHES - II

Jaguaribe
Jaguaribe was the surfers' spot of the early 90's. Maybe that's why it's so dear to me. In my teens, in love with anything that was able to stand on his feet on a board... *lol*. Still Jaguaribe is absolutelly beautiful. The shore is much wider, there are people playing sports there, surfing, etc. Not as good for swimming (given the number of boards on water), but excellent for bading, eating and doing what bahians love doing at the beach: PLAYING DOMINO!

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Directions: Get the bus by the sea shore (the sea will be behind you, the bus will be going to the right). The bus must be called 'ITAPOAN' (or anything that leads phonetically to that - there is never an underst
Other Contact: I recommend 2 huts in Jaguaribe:

BEACHES - III

Stella Maris
The name of this beach is latin and means 'Star of the Sea' - the name in portuguese of the starfish. This beach is absolutelly dazzling and the most surfable in Salvador. White sand, wonderful sunset, troubled water - we like it wild, we like it rough!

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Address: After Itapoan.
Other Contact: You'll need to take the bus 'Pra

Rio Branco Palace, at Municipal Square

It used to be the government palace in times of Tome de Souza, but now it's a beautiful museum. Take a peek inside and ask the hosts to let you in the verandas - you'll have the best view of the bay!

Picture borrowed from Udo Müller's site

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Named after the abolicionist bahian poet Castro Alves, who used to go to that square speak out his poems in favour to the end of slavery, this is certainly one of the most beautiful squares in the world. At a time of the year, the sun sets in the hand of the statue, at another, the moon rises from it.

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'He who goes to Bomfim, my darling / Never wants to go back home / he was very lucky / he is very lucky / he will be very lucky / Have you ever been to Bahia, darling? No? / So you must!' This little extract of Caymmi´s song shows how important the Bomfim is to Salvador. The biggest devotion of every one in town - atheist, candombleis, catholic, no matter what you are, in the second thursday of january everyone walks to Bomfim to wash the stairs and ask for luck and protection, pay promisses and be blessed.

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Other Contact: The church is beautiful inside,

'Abaete is a dark lagoon / surrounded by white sand / oh by white sand / oh by white sand / oh by white sand'... says Dorival Caymmi in one of his songs. Traditionally 'lavadeiras' (ladies who wash clothes for a living) used to come to the lagoon and do their job there. Then one day the government decided to build them sinks and explore the place for tourism. The result is a horrible structure made of concrete absolutely not matching the landscape. But the lagoon is simply beautiful. I suggest you go there by late afternoon, wait for the night to come... It's beautiful. It may be too crowded during weekends though.

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Address: Itapua
Other Contact: There are several legends that e

Wonderful view of the city! The nautic museum is in there. You cannot go up to where the light is, but you can go to the fort under it and have a cup of coffee or a cold beer. The Cafe is not very good, but the view is wonderful!

One of the best spots to see the sunset is behind Farol da Barra, sitting there between the fort and the sea... it's wondeful! You simply can't hear the buzz from the city because the wind is very strong and carries the noise away.

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Address: Barra
Other Contact: Just behind Farol, for those who

Sabor dos Saberes - Livraria/Cafe/Internet
It's a very very very charming bookstore in the heart of Pelourinho. There you find very good books about arts and life appreciating in all dimensions (sailing, tiles, religion, tourism, photography) and they have cultural events going on every week, usually on monday and wednesday nights. They generally include poetry, fine arts or simply getting people together, always for free. The owner of the bookstore is one of the most important indigesnists in Brazil and also very lovely and kind, as is his wife, who also runs the place. They have the best cappucino in town and you can read the books or draw while you drink it. They also sell paintings and some music, posters, wonderful and rare postcards and some souvenirs.

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Directions: Right where the Gregorio de Mattos street meets the Laranjeiras street, a yellow house on the corner, in front of the official organ of tourist information of Pelourinho.
Other Contact: telephone number::
+55 71 321 69