MondayMorningMutiny.com

Fitting in somewhere just before I wrote the silly post coming up next, and my arrival in Ecuador, I found myself in Sao Paulo again.

SAO PAULO GALLERY HERE!

A few words and some photos below..

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After Busca Vida, a day was spent in other parts of Salvador, along the coastal stretch and bay area, before catching a bus inland to Lencois.

Lencois is a small, old diamond boom and bust town and sits in the national park of Chapada Diamantina, a beautiful oasis in the dry and dusty surrounding sertao.
There is good trekking here, if a touch hot – but this is eased by the refreshingly cold lagoons, tarns and waterfalls.
Interesting rock formations surrounded by tropical flora and drenched in gently flowing water, like natural Japanese gardens, stand all around and are amazing on the eye.

Like so many other places, it would be easy to stay here longer – 10 days to walk the whole region and see the many spectacular peaks, valleys, caves and lagoons would be ideal.
However, getting to Ecuador is a priority and time is short, so a few days trekking will suffice this time.

The executive decision to skip Amazonia and the rest of north Brazil was made, mostly due to time, distance and costs involved. North-eastern Brazil is definitely somewhere I would like to see more of, as is the Amazon (still want to travel the whole thing by boat) – so missing this out gives a perfect excuse to go back at a later date.

HERE IS THE CHAPADA DIAMANTINA PHOTO GALLERY!

 For a few samples, click below..

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The dust from the carnival settled surprisingly swiftly and the next day was business as usual in Pelourinho, the historic centre of Salvador.
“Pelourinho” means whipping post and it was here that slaves arrived from Africa and were traded and treated in a manner that would be considered unethical for cattle today.

Although somewhat rundown, with verbal harassment common, I liked the place and it’s unusual charm. Still a little under the weather, I spent a few days here, avoiding the more modern, built up coastal stretch and bided my time chatting to the locals and being shown the sites.

It`s definitely a generalisation, but it seemed like every male under the age of 30 here was either an expert drummer, skilled capoeira fighter or a drug addict.
Very different to everywhere else in Brazil, Salvador possesses a unique and vibrant zest for life, love, music and history, almost bubbling over with energy, despite the obvious hardships.
The African influence is very apparent and flows through everything – from the food to the rhythms in the music, the religious ceremonies of candomble and of course, the people themselves..

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Continuing north up Brazil to the north-eastern state of Bahia, I arrive at Salvador in the middle of the night. I decide it safer to take a cab.

The crazy web of unnamed cobbled streets was deserted and still.
Equally crazed was my driver, who made the journey anything but still.
It was unusual that everywhere was so quiet driving into the city – there is usually something going on somewhere in the bigger towns and cities in Brazil; at any time of day or night.

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I left Sao Paulo and another enjoyable time with my Brazilian friends in Limeira followed, spent socialising and route planning.
Themed parties are popular here and another coincided with my visit. This time the theme was `Hillbillies´ or whatever the Brazilian equivalent is: think straw hats, chequered flannel shirts, blacked out teeth, straw in mouth, pigtails for the ladies and braces.

A novel feature was a jail in which a hillbilly reveller could be incarcerated by another for 15 minutes for a small fee. For the same small fee, the prisoner could buy their release, without knowing who was responsible. This information cost a little more.

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