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After a couple of days having issues with this site, we finally have something for you! Enjoy
Salvador, Bahia
We arrived in Salvador in the evening, after a delay from Rio. It's funny, our boarding time was at 10:30 am and departure was at 11:30 am. 11:30 came and went, no one was even slightly concerned about all these people lined up to board a non-existent plane. After a bunch of people started to ask questions (oh the horror!) we were notified of the delay. No kidding Einsteins! Our gate was moved and we finally boarded a plane an hour later to Salvador.
Our hostel in Salvador is in the historic part of town, another Unesco declared world heritage site, we seem to be good at picking these places as our destinations! The first 3 days were a write off, the rain would not give us a break :( we did however use this time to do research and bookings for the rest of our trip and Andrew has been working on his financial blog.
So we've had 4 consecutive days of sunshine now. It still rains at night, starting at 9 pm like clockwork. But we visited 2 beaches, one day it was the local beach where the real Salvadorans go, an another where the tourists go. The real difference was in the size of the booty you see around you, much bigger on the local beach :)
We took a boat cruise trip to a couple of islands nearby, they are called priest island and itaparika island. The ride itself was really fun since they had a small band of 3 guys playing Brazilian music and singing and people danced. The islands were very pretty and quiet which after having been in the hustle and bustle of the city it was a great getaway.
Another amazing experience was a folkloric show that was highly recommended in both lonely planet and trip advisor. It took some convincing on my part, and we ended up at one of their nightly shows. It was an amazing experience, and Andrew did admit that he was happy to have seen it! We couldn't take any pictures but bought a DVD of the show. I am convinced that one of the capoeira performers was the one that we saw at a show in Toronto and they said he was from Salvador. I guess it's a small industry!
We watched the Euro cup while in Salvador, and I get the feeling that not too many people care about the European championship! We did have fun watching it on a teeeeny tv mounted so high you can barely see it, and being the only 2 people yelling and cursing at the tv! Good times.
Bahian food has been amazing and we even got to do some cooking since this hostel has a well equipped kitchen.
There's always a party in Salvador. Either a saint is born or a war was won or the rain has stopped. They also seem to love doing capoeira at all times of the day. These people are itching for good music and dancing, which is perfectly fine by us! I have been introduced to a new drink which they call the martini here. I will sit around and sip my fake martini and Andrew his beloved caipirinha, and watch a good capoeira show any time of day!
Oh and today, July 2nd, is a national holiday in Bahia, celebrating their independence from Portugal. Apparently the Portuguese let Brazil become independent but held on to Bahia for economic reasons. I wonder why July is such a big month for independence. they celebrate with marching bands and dancing for hours. Its not even noon ad they've been going since 8 am and the party's supposed to last way into the night.
So enjoy your Canada day, US Independence day and we celebrate Bahian independence! We are off to Fortaleza tonight as a gateway into a beach town called Jericoacoara. Will write again as soon as possible.
Love, Yasmin and Andrew
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