10th-13th August: From the beauty of Maceio to the vibes of Salvador

On Wednesday we were charmed by the quiet beauty of Maceió's beach - light blue sea with nice warm sand and palm trees along the walkway.  Our pousada was luckily just one block away.  Slightly less impressive were the burgers we had at  Don Buerger.  Despite its promising name and the recommendation of the lonely planet, it was not even close to Cool Bun (Pierre´s restaurant in Brussels).

The following day, we visited a school (or Education Center) for children of the nearby favelas, created by Yves and Wanda (two friends of my aunt and uncle) 20 years ago, when they were already around 60 years old. We were touched by the care given to these children. Their aim is primarily to provide them with a good education, but they are also well fed and supported by a nurse (children are sent to the hospital when necessary), a psychologist, and a social worker.  The studies are organised by une directrice des etudes.  Their goal is to send some kids to university and others to specialised schools where they can learn a job.  This year, they managed to send two of their students to university.  Unfortunately, a few of their children dropped out of school, attracted by the money they could make as drug dealers.  A nice touch is that each birthday is celebrated, which is a great change as some used to not know their birthdates or would not anyway celebrate their birthday.  You used to have to pay to register a newborn so many of them did not have a birth certificate.  

We then caught a 10 hour night bus to Salvador, arriving at 4 am on Friday.  No spills this time but a few thrills: a snoring neighbour, a phone playing Total Eclipse of the Heart several times over on full volume, turbo air-con, and bright lights that would wake us abruptly every time the bus stopped. We arrived very fresh around 4 am at the bus station and caught a bus towards the historic centre of Salvador, the Pelourinho.

We were unlucky with the first hostel as they only told us that it was closed once we had reached the top of the seven-floor staircase, not much fun with our rucksacks... We stumbled to the nearest pousada, a few blocks away, dropped our bags and began our visit of the Pelourinho, to the rhythm of the drums (in particular of the school Olodum) and of Capoiera dancers.

We hired a guide for a city tour, who took us to places we probably would not have gone on our own (cowards that we are) as the lonely planet warns that if you're going to be pickpocketed or mugged in Brazil, Salvador is likely to be the place.  We enjoyed a great view of the bay from the Santo Antonio fort and I had lots of fun in the Elevador Lacerda (although I was mildly reassured by the OTIS brand on the elevator).  The baroque church of San Francis has a beautiful collection of azulejos, and the interior decoration in gold is quite impressive, but slightly overwhelming.

The Pelourinho has a lot of charming coloured little houses and is fairly tourist friendly. We couldn´t decide whether the armed police everywhere are worrying or reassuring. The lower city (or what we saw of it), however, is more decayed, although apparently the city has started a redevelopment project.

We also paid tribute to Michael Jackson, who filmed part of its video They don't care about us in the Pelourinho.  The guy whose shop MJ emerged from very proudly showed us the video, pausing at the appropriate times of course.

Probably the best part of the trip to Salvador so far was the Bale Folclorico da Bahia, a spectacular mix of percussion, singing, and dance (and fire-eating!) that left even the rhythmically-challenged John impressed.

One more day in Salvador, then on to Rio.