Salvador de Bahía

For those arriving from Europe or the United States, Salvador de Bahía is usually either the first stop or an important part of a first itinerary through Brazil. For those who come from the south instead, the first vacations in Brazil are almost always on the beaches of Santa Catarina, then if you can travel to Rio de Janeiro, and Bahia reaches the third or fourth trip, almost like a post-graduation traveler.

Iglesia de São Francisco en el Pelourinho

photo by letocarvalho - CC 2.0 by

That post-degree that is Salvador as a Brazilian destination, with its contrasts and incomparable diversity, validates us as travelers to Brazil: we arrive from the north or from the south, it gives us access to the very essence of the Brazilian, and to the true source of much of what we know as Brazilian culture from the outside.

Ciudad Alta y Baja desde la Bahía

photo by fhmolina - CC 2.0 by

I was in Salvador for the first time in the summer of 1994, and for the last time in 2008; year in which I lived in the city for several months, including a full month in the fascinating Pelourinho. In those 14 years between the first trip and the last, Salvador has not changed much in its essence: its shopping malls and its buildings have grown, the Pelourinho has repainted its facades with a diversity of colors more planned, and there are more and more tourists from all over the world visiting the city: during almost the whole year it is high season in Salvador, and in Carnival it is almost impossible to find accommodation if it is not booked months in advance.

Piscinas naturales en playa de Barra

foto de danielagama_fotografando - CC by

Salvador is still one of the most musical cities in the world. The diversity of options is incredible: reggae is still as popular as in Jamaica, the Axé remains the preferred choice of establishments to attract tourists, the peripheries adore a low-quality version of the forró called " arrocha ", the Africanist percussion groups reverberate on the Tuesdays of Pelourinho , and there are also plenty of places where you can listen to interesting emerging bands of the Bahia rock, forró of quality, good MPB, Bossa Nova and Jazz, and all the fusions between styles imaginable.

Iglesia del Sagrado Sacramento en el Pelourinho

foto de brasilplayas.com - CC by-nc-nd

Their small bars(called botecos in Brazil) are still insurmountable, there are all kinds scattered throughout the city, each with its stories and its typical dishes. Salvador has the sea present everywhere, and mythical urban beaches such as Itapuã ; It has a beautiful sunset over the sea of ​​the bay between Farol da Barra and the fort of Santa Marta, right on the border with the beach of Porto da Barra, with its crystalline sea and its natural pools in full city ​​. Bahia has favelas " chic" , which appear idyllic from a distance, located on the seafront above the rocks and where adventurous travelers stay; and has restaurants and bars with suspended terraces right on the edge between the upper and lower city, with spectacular views of the immense bay of all saints .

Vista aérea Faro y playa de Barra

photo by GOVBA - CC 2.0 by

Everything makes this city a difficult place to replace with others, there are sites similar to Salvador in other parts of Brazil, but Salvador will remain unique and irreplaceable as one of the & nbsp; Brazilian destinations par excellence.

Jazz en el Museo de Arte Moderno de Salvador de Bahía

foto de danielagama_fotografando - CC by

It is also worth saying that there are common places on a trip to Salvador de Bahía that can not be sauntered even by the most rebellious travelers: you have to go to the Pelourinho , obviously, you have to meddle with the soul of an explorer among the nooks and crannies of its centuries-old churches and witnessing its festivities; you have to eat an acarajé in Rio Vermelho or in Itapuã to know the & nbsp; most basic flavor of its gastronomy; you have to go up and down with the Lacerda elevator between the model market and the upper city at least once; and if we are on the 2nd of February in the city, we must go yes or yes to see the party of Yemanjá in Rio Vermelho ; because if not, we will return from Salvador with a strange feeling in the stomach, a tingling similar to guilt.

Una favela "chic" vista desde el Museo de Arte Moderno

photo by pelosi - CC 2.0 by-nd

Even knowing enough Salvador, having been a tourist in the city the first times, then having been a guest of Bahian friends who walked me through the places that only those who live there know, and at the end living several months myself in the city; I consider Salvador de Bahía a place of almost untold wealth, and I believe that there is no guide that can express it better than knowing it personally. I still have pending places for upcoming trips or stays, such as the reconcavo bahiano , that deep part of the bay of all the Saints which is the principle of the interior of Bahia; I would like to know Santo Amaro especially, the hometown of Caetano Veloso and that bar where he first heard the premiere of Chega de Saudade sung by João Gilberto, the day in that bossa nova was born and the popular music of the world changed forever.

Bahiana en fiesta de Yemanjá de Río Vermelho (Salvador de Bahía)

photo by agecombahia - CC 2.0 by

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