Touring Bahia - Photos
Eowyn
Sun 20 Feb 2011 19:49
|
Éowyn is still moored in
the Termino Nautico marina in Salvador (San Salvador de Bahia in full),
Brazil in position 12:58.348S
038:30.959W
We are back in the Termino
Nautico after a week exploring by car and yacht.
On the 13th we met up with an
expat Belgian, Ivan who has a sideline in private tours. We had booked a 2 day
jaunt to Cachoeira and the Reconcovo agricultural area On the first day we drove
to Cachoeira, a beautiful riverside town with historic buildings and a very
relaxed feel to it.
  Cachoeira and our Pousada
Unfortunately, Ivan's car was
c**p and we got oil from the seats on our clothes, particularly Bob and Rui. The
town was interesting enough though and we stayed in a Pousada (Inn) which had
been converted from a convent.
 Bob's New Shirt
In the evening Ivan had
arranged for us to attend a private Condomble ritual and this opportunity was
fascinating. I will not pretend to understand all which went on but basically 4
females were persuaded into a trance by ritual dancing and drumbeat. We were not
allowed to take photos here. In the day we had also visited the small fishing
town of Marigojipe where the fishing and oyster collection was carried out in
traditional sailing or oared craft.
 Traditional Craft
The next day we visited the
agriculture of the Reconcovo. This involved Ivan driving at up to 80 kph on
unmade roads - not comfortable. we wandered into a Casa de Farinha where
the a local root is processed in the most basic way to produce manioc
flour which is then sold to a wholesaler. The process is almost all by hand and
would not be out of place in the Europe of 500 years ago.
 No Machinery Here!
We also visited a tobacco
factory and saw the rural life with donkey carts as the main means of transport.
A visit to a distillery revealed a similar lack of
mechanisation.
 Mike returned the day after we
finished the tour, very exhausted from a long journey from home.
Antonio from Thor VI lives in
Salvador and kindly took us around to see another aspect of the town with modern
facilities, shopping malls etc. He kindly bought us a fabulous lunch in one of
his favourite restaurants.
Three days ago, we set off to
explore Baia de Todos os Saintos. We visited Itaparica and a delightful
anchorage at Ile Monte Cristo. It was a welcome break from the city atmosphere
at Salvador. we have returned there to do our local clearance and laundry before
setting off for Recife. Unfortunately the winds are forecast to be North East,
exactly our required direction!
 Monte Cristo
Island
|