samba, capoeira, and candomble
Written: Jul 26 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: the cultural center of Brazil
Cons: you might not want to leave
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| freyda's Full Review: Salvador da Bahia |
Anyone who goes to Brazil should go to Salvador, especially if you're up for a good party. Salvador is a beautiful, old city whose heart pulses to an African rhythm. The city has beaches and modern shopping centers, but the best part is the Cidade Alta, especially the area around the Pelourinho. This beautiful, colorful historic area is being restored and is monitored by tourist police, so it is easy to wander around the cobblestone streets for a few days, appreciating the many churches, shops, restaurants, museums, and cultural shows. At night, the party begins. There are bands playing on the several stages in the area almost every night, the bars are all filled with locals and tourists, and by ten or eleven at night there are street parties popping up all over, dancing to salsa and samba beats pumping from boom boxes.
Salvador is an excellent place to soak up Afro-Brazilian culture. You can see capoeira, a dance-like martial art with roots in both African and Brazilian culture. There are shows on the street and on stage -- or you can even go into one of the capoeira schools and watch or take part in a class!
An absolute must for a trip to Salvador is to see a Candomble ceremony. Candomble draws from African religions and Catholicism, and is practiced mainly in the northeast region of Brazil. There are several ways to see ceremonies, which happen several times a week. My friend and I actually saw two. The first time, we took a chance and went with a man we met in the square who claimed to take small groups to see ceremonies often. He took us out of the city center to a very poor area where we found a ceremony taking place in a shed. The whole neighborhood seemed to come and watch or take part periodically throughout the hour or so that we were there. The ceremony involves members who fall into trances and seem to take on characteristics of certain deities, as everyone chants and claps. The ceremony goes on for hours, and people come and go as they please. The second time we went to a ceremony with an organized guided tour another friend found through the tourism agency. This was in a wealthier, suburban area, and took place in a building designed for such ceremonies. It was really interesting to see the similarities and differences between these two ceremonies of people from such different class backgrounds, both equally serious and intense, but in such different environments. It would be worth it to see either type of ceremony.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
freyda
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Location: Oregon
Reviews written: 20
Trusted by: 3 members
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