We entered the port early this morning as our captain maneuvered our ship through the largest bay in South America. We were quite excited to arrive at this port today because we had heard that it was alive with a vibrant mix of African and Portuguese culture. African slaves and Portuguese were the first settlers in this area, therefore most of the residents are a blend of these two races. Brazil brought in more African slaves than any other country in South America. In the beginning stages of settlement, Brazil made most of its money from slave trade. Our guide told us that in the 1700-1800's five million slaves were brought to Latin America (500,000 were brought into the USA) and Brazil was the site of the largest influx. The cultures and religious beliefs have intertwined so closely that the current culture now differs from any of the original tribes or races who first settled in this area.
There are two distinct geographic areas in "Salvador," the upper and lower city. These two areas are connected by a series of four elevators as well as a funicular which delivers passengers up the hill to a level of 800 meters above sea level. The lower city was added in the 1800's by filling in the land that was previously occupied by the sea. There are a number of lovely parks filled with a variety of large jacaranda trees, flame trees with fire engine red flowers brought from Madagascar, red and white hibiscus, gracefully hanging pink bougainvillea, kapok trees, dahlias, geraniums, and a host of other colorful flowers and tropical plants. The warm, tropical weather encourages plants to bloom frequently. It would be quite easy to walk down the street and collect a lovely bouquet!
We disembarked the ship and began our tour of the city. We could tell some differences in the culture of this port immediately. As we drove through the various neighborhoods there were major discrepancies. In the financial district and major shopping area there were many high rises built in a very modern style, with large tinted glass windows, brightly painted cement which were surrounded by meticulously manicured gardens. Clean, sharp lines dominated the landscape. Many of the luxury condominiums have an elevator directly from inside their unit to their private boat dock below. Across the highway there were hillsides filled with favelas (slums), now referred to by the local politicians as "communities" where unorganized and tattered combinations of scrap plywood, metal, and concrete were used to create tentative looking structures which looked as if they were holding each other together. Our guide informed us that people who live in this area who work in the city must take buses to work every day. It takes two hours to make the one-way trip. There is a metro but it doesn't run in the areas where it is really needed.
We passed two large farmer's markets with fresh fruits and vegetables, but they were very different. The market in the suburb where over 2,000 residents, mostly descendents of African slaves, live was an open-air market with tables set up in no particular order. It was a HUGE place where our guide informed us 10,000 local people are employed. The market in the city, however was much smaller, indoors, and in a very structured setting.
It was interesting to learn about the unique flavor of Carnival as it is celebrated in this area as opposed to Rio. There is no official competition between the samba schools in this town. All schools parade on the streets and ALL spectators are expected to dance, sing and play along with the performers. Our guide informed us that no "watching" is allowed. All spectators are expected to participate in the celebrations. At this time there are many different parades and celebrations. Some are focused on the African traditions and other are tailored more to European (Portuguese) traditions with their mass, costumes and music. A goal for the future is to combine more of the celebrations and integrate the cultures. This year the European communities utilized electronic, modern music and dance while the African people used percussion instruments with traditional dance.
Many neighborhoods throughout the city had properties surrounded by chain link fences capped with large circles of razor wire. Most of the residents have safety bars attached to the outside of their windows. Even the residential areas which were touted as the "nicest" places to live were dated and somewhat rundown. We were warned by our ship's crew, as well as travel websites, to avoid walking alone in this city. Evidently, due to the high level of poverty in this area tourists are a common target for crime, particularly pickpockets and robbery assaults. We decided to take one of the tours offered by our ship and stay with a small group. They took great care to make sure we had escorts with to ensure that we remained safe from harm. After the tour we decided to return to the ship instead of walking alone in town.
On many of the outside walls throughout the town there was a mixture of stunning, rich graffiti next to haphazard and unattractive graphics. Some of the graffiti really added a beautiful dimension to the environment. Unfortunately, many of the graphics really distracted from the environment. People walked the streets, particularly in front of popular tourist stops, asking for money. Local residents were scattered throughout the city, standing around in small groups while we spotted a few city workers busily employed on the streets. Perhaps many residents took the day off to recover from Carnival which just ended yesterday in this city. Each town organizes its own festivities for Carnival. Some areas celebrate Carnival on a Saturday and Sunday, others for 3-4 days, and here in Salvador they party for an entire 7-day week. Schools and businesses are closed for the week and many of the major streets are closed to vehicular traffic for the entire 7-day period. They finished their festivities last night so they were in the beginning stages of cleaning up after all the parades and parties.
In an attempt to keep Africans connected to their ethnic roots there is a law which mandates that schools in Salvador teach African history. Evidently, as the generations continue to become more
entrenched in their local culture, their elders are concerned they will lose an appreciation for their African history background and culture.
The African-Brazilian religion of Candomble is paramount in the lives of the residents in Salvador. This religion is based on their local mythology which has one supreme creator and a variety of lesser deities which serve the supreme creator It has an oral tradition so there is no written scripture. Music and dance are critical in this faith and priests/priestesses will often masquerade as one of the Candomble deities in order to become possessed by the ancestor spirit. Evidently this religion does not exist in Africa because the religion is a blend of the of the practices of slaves and their tribes brought here as well as the native Brazilian people.
We visited the Nosso Senhordo Bonfim which is the local Catholic church. It was quite interesting to see the shamen standing outside near the steps of the church with their tables and supplies including herbal potions and "wish ribbons," to offer blessings to people after they leave church. Our guide told us that although people state they are Catholic and believe and pray to Jesus, when their prayer request is "too complicated" for Jesus to handle He consults with the cult's African deities for a solution!!!!!!
The church itself was quite interesting. There were replicas of prosthetic limbs hanging all over the ceiling and walls from people who prayers had been answered in the form of a miracle (still not sure who they thought answered their prayers, God or their deities). There was a chain link fence in front of the church. A number of people were selling "wish ribbons" so that you can say your prayer and hang the ribbon the fence. The belief is that when the prayer is answered the ribbon will fall off the fence. Of course, I'm not sure how anyone could tell which ribbon they had hung since there must have been thousands of them tied to this fence. There were absolutely no blank areas on the entire fence!!!
There was one more interesting feature of this society. Everyone is REQUIRED to vote after they turn 18 years of age. If an individual does not vote, their identification is invalidated (passport, driver's license, etc.) and they must pay a $250 fine. Sure would change the way we vote in the U.S.!!!!!!!
Well, that's all I can think of to share about this port. It was a fascinating culture about which to lean. Both Bob and I have spent lots of time online studying the various aspects about life in this area. However, I must admit that it was not one of the most comfortable places we have visited. We certainly stood out as tourists and I felt eyes following us everywhere we walked. I am glad, though, that we had an opportunity to learn something about this unique part of the world. Now, we have a relaxing day at sea before we arrive at our next to last port in Brazil.
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