Carnival in Recife and Olinda - Music, colours and folklore

 

In Olinda, close to the Skol house

 

Participants in the street in Recife



The whole gang

The last leg of our trip… we have big expectations for this final week. First of all it is carnival in Recife, then we were to meet up with Stéphanie and Jean-Yves our friends from Belgium. We will share a flat that we rented in Boa Viagem, a quiet neighbourhood of Recife some 8km away from the centre. Will and Archanna, our other friends whom we’ve been seeing in every country since we met in Cusco, Peru are also part of the gang renting the flat. Archanna’s sister Amruta is also here for the first 4 days.

The flat is old and badly maintained and for the price we’re paying we were hoping for better, although in hindsight, the rent we’re paying is not as high as most of the other options we’ve seen online. The problem with where we are is that from our flat we need to take 2 buses to the centre or a taxi. Taxi actually works out cheaper if we all 7 get in it.



Notice the cigarette!



It's important to be well stocked in beer



That first evening started very well with a nice dinner and champagne to kick-off this week in style.

The costumes in Olinda were fantastic - here the Spartans

The following day we went to check out the party in Olinda, a smaller town about 10 km away from Recife centre opposite from the direction we live. Olinda is a cute little town with a lot of colonial town houses and a few beautiful churches and cathedrals. The day we went there was still pre-carnival and preparations were still going. They were painting the houses and setting up the vending stalls. TV crews were checking out the best spots to film from. 

The bands in the street were fun and the rhythm was great, percussion and trumpets make for a great combination. People were already dressed up in very colourful outfits and their faces were all painted and glittered. After a great few hours there, we decided to return to Recife and went into town for some more party. There were many more street vendors and food stalls in Recife and we tried our first Caipirinhas there. We also got some much welcomed food. 



Child in Superman's costume ...



... and the real Spiderman


There was this other night when we went out and it was simply pouring down with rain. We were soaked to the bones but the rain was warm and even at 2 a.m. we were feeling in the party mood.  



The girls also taking part in the fun



Night party in Olinda

Over the course of the week that followed we went to Recife and Olinda quite a few times using 2 taxi drivers that we had come to know and who had 7-seaters. They would come pick us up at the apartment. The parties in Recife or Olinda were different each day. And we managed to do some shopping too! 

The carnival in Recife and Olinda is different to the one we see on TV at Rio. In Rio (in the Sambadrome) it is much more grandiose and lush. I would like to see that one too some day, which probably gives us the perfect excuse to come back in a not so distant future...


For more pictures of Recife and Olinda



The priest with the beer can



The security police squad




The Recife main stage beautifully lit at night



Porto da Rua - empty beaches and juicy fruits

Patacho Beach

Deserted beaches are something else

Fishing boats at low tide

After the treat at Ilha Moreré it was difficult to come back down to earth. It was a bit unfair on Porto da Rua, a picturesque fishing village 70km away from Maceio. The best thing about the pousada we stayed at was its garden. It was huge and filled with fruit trees. The first thing that strikes when you enter the garden is the number of mangoes that litter the ground. There are hundreds of them. They were ripe and juicy and I readily started picking the least bruised to eat later.

Biking on the beach

Praia Patacho

The beaches in and around Porto da Rua were absolutely amazing. One of them, Praia Patacho, was even voted one of the top 5 beaches in Brazil and that’s saying something. We really enjoyed the empty beaches and the feeling of being all alone. The lagoon was so warm that it felt like a bath.

Anyway we had a quiet time there before going to the hustle and bustle of Recife for carnival, the calm before the tempest if you will.    

For more pictures on Porto da Rua

Ilha Boipeba - Paradise Island

Moreré beach, Boipeba island

All of this is covered at high tide

This is our taxi to the other side of the island

If Paradise exists then this is it! I am not easily impressed when it comes to beaches, coconut trees and lagoons but this island struck a chord in me. And one must earn it too: a ferry from Salvador da Bahia to Bom Despacho, followed by a 2-hour bus journey to Valenca, a taxi to the river port where you catch a speed boat. After one hour of battering you get to Moreré Island and it’s not over. You need to ride 20 minutes in a tractor (I kid you not) to get to the other side of the island where our Pousada was.

There we were welcomed by Gary, a very nice South African, who has lived in England and Spain before buying this superb estate on this island. It is an orchard rather than an estate, filled with mango, jambo (zamalac for the Mauritians), papaya and banana trees and all kinds of orchids, hibiscus, and bougainvillea.

Deserted beaches

All alone for kilometres

This calls for laziness

Apart from Gary’s house, there were 4 villas hidden amongst the trees. Each villa could accommodate a family of 4. The living space outside was amazing, there were reading areas, 2 dining tables, 3 hammocks, a couple of long-chairs and another bed outside! We definitely loved this bed sitting outside filled with cushions and pillows. We would just lie there and listen to the birds singing.

The island was extremely safe and everyone greeted you with a big smile. We soon visited our first beach and it was magical. White sandy beaches and beautiful coconut trees slanting forward as if trying to reach for the warm water of the lagoon: it was a postcard picture. On top of that there were so few people on the island, you could look either way on a 2 km stretch of beautiful beach and see no-one for hours.

We also made a short list of the restaurants we wanted to eat at and what we were going to have in each. The Alizée restaurant had a different choice on the menu every day so we would go up there around 5pm to see if we fancied anything on the board.

Delicious Robalo fish at Samburá - a local favourite

Yummie

The breakfast at the Pousada was incredible: fruits from the garden, along with fresh fruit juice, homemade jams (the jambo jam was excellent), tea, coffee, bread, rice cooked in milk, cooked bananas, cakes, and eggs (omelets, scrambled, sunny side up or boiled). That was the best breakfast we’ve had thus far.

Enjoying the quiet life of the island

Brazil = Football ... anywhere

There were very few things open after 9.30pm and that suited us perfectly. We have not slept that well in a very long time and we needed it. Our big problem there was: what kind of egg to choose in the morning, to which beach to go to during the day and at which restaurant to eat at in the evening! After a hearty breakfast, a long day at the beach and after dining on exquisite sea food we would generally return home exhausted.

A visit to the natural pools at low tide

The only regret we had is to have to leave after 4 days. We would have gladly stayed longer had we not already planned our next move. But who knows …

For more photos of Ilha Moreré

Ripe, sweet and juicy jambos (zamalac)

The view from Pousada Alizée 

Full moon rising on the bay

Having some fun on the beach

Lost in thoughts - we hope we can come back some day

Salvador da Bahia

Salvador da Bahia was a huge let down. We came here knowing that it was a dangerous place with a lot of petty crimes and insecurity. In fact our guide book said: “If you are going to be pick pocketed or mugged in Brazil, it is likely to happen in Salvador.”

But we still came because the old historic centre is supposed to be very beautiful and boasts some of the best examples of colonial architecture in Brazil. This city is said to the have the best preserved African culture in the whole of the Americas. The descendants of African slaves here still practise a lot of African rites and cuisine as well as a rich Afro-Brazilian religion which is a mixture of Catholicism and old tribal customs.

We flew into Salvador from Rio and took a bus to the old town. We drove through one of the main religious festivals of the year here. It took the bus 2 hours to cover a strip of 1km! We then took a taxi to the hostel and on our way there we saw our first scuffle. A guy appeared in front of us, chasing another guy who apparently had tried to rob him. The whole street got involved and before we knew it we were in the middle of a big fight. Our taxi driver told us to pull our windows up and lock the car doors.

When we got to the hostel we were told that there were riots going on in the city where people had sacked a supermarket, a few local businesses and had even stopped a bus and robbed all the passengers of their possessions! Despite the guidebook’s warning, surely it could not be like this everyday here.

We learnt soon enough what the problem was: the police were on strike over salaries and benefits. Obviously they had chosen one of the most crucial moment (just before Carnival) to put maximum pressure on the state governor who was not ready to negotiate. And some of the rotten apples of Salvador decided they could ransack the place unpunished.

The response was inadequate. They sent in the army in heavy vehicles and armed with M16s but those kids looked like 15 and were not a strong deterrent. In the meantime because of these events, all businesses were shutting down at night and all the concerts and music festivals supposed to go on at night were cancelled. A couple of nice restaurants we had planned to go to had also decided to close their doors at night.

For that same reason I did not once carry the camera with me in town, while only bringing a small amount of money, half of it tucked away in my shoe. Was that being over cautious? I hardly think so judging on the sad experience of some co-residents of the hostel: a group of some 10 youngsters got mugged just meters away from the hostel by some up-to-no-good kids. The next day a few other guys from our hostel were surrounded by a gang on motorcycle but they were saved by a bus driver who saw what was going on. He drove into the gang and opened the bus doors so the guys could jump on the bus and leave!

The experience of Salvador was also tarnished by the fact that cash machines had not been replenished because there was this police strike, and we spent a whole day trying to find an ATM with bank notes in it. In the process of trying my card everywhere it got blocked by my bank for security reasons. The last day we had to take a taxi to the ferry to go to an island and there were no taxis in the morning at the taxi stand, another sad consequence of this state of affairs.

The only thing we actually did in Salvador was to visit the Afro-Brazilian Museum. They had an extensive collection of African art in the form of sculptures and paintings. They also had a very didactic exposition on African religions as well as the history of slavery in the world which they linked to Salvador.

When we actually got away from Salvador we were relieved and a little bitter to have lost three days there. We will try to forget this wasted time as soon as possible.

Rio de Janeiro

I say Rio and you think beach, half naked women (at least I do!), the statue of the Christ, Copacabana, beach football, carnival, endless parties and favelas. And you would be right. Rio is nicknamed "Cidade Maravilhosa"  (Marvelous City) and it is well deserved. 

Photos of Rio de Janeiro

The Christ emerging from the clouds - very symbolic

You might not think of rain though but when we arrived in Rio it was pouring and you know how it is in big busy cities with warm climates when it rains: it's hell. There are puddles, more traffic jams and generally more commotion.  We managed to get to our hostel which was at the end of Copacabana beach (yippie!) but just at the entrance of a Favela (oh oh!). But they say it is a "pacified" favela which makes it safer... at least that's the theory.

Astounding views of one of Rio's bays from the Sugar Loaf

And the Sugar Loaf taken from the Christ Redeemer

At first glance it looked good, there was a police car at the entrance, and another one 400 metres up the very steep hill. Right opposite our hostel was a community centre and the police, we were told, stay there 24/7. The hostel looked very nice (Lisetonga Hostel), nice open space, friendly staff, good size TV room, clean kitchen and bathrooms and a central patio where breakfast is served weather permitting. It used to be a mansion but with the expansion of favelas in the 50's and 60's many of the wealthy people living in such mansions moved somewhere else. We were supposed to move to another hostel for the last 2 nights in Rio but we immediately decided to extend our stay here and cancel the other one. Experience had taught us to grab a good hostel when we found one.

We had a lot on our plates for this city.

What we did

Birthday Party

Beautiful decor

Where best to celebrate my birthday than Rio? After all this is the place to party. After extensive research on the Internet, we decided to go to the Rio Scenarium downtown. The neighbourhood is called Lapa and that's where many of the trendy bars, restaurants and night clubs are. Rio Scenarium opens at 8pm on Saturdays but when we got there at 7.40pm there was already a queue of about 50 people to get in!!! Unbelievable. It starts as a nice bar which also serves food. Then it features live music from 8.30pm to 11pm on the ground floor while there is a live DJ in the extension. It is huge (3 floors + the extension) and each section is differently decorated. It is a great place to spend a birthday.

Archanna and William came that evening and we started getting the Caipirinias in. We ordered some snacks and caught up on the gossip. Then we went to the live music and the DJ section. By then the floors were very crowded with locals and tourists of all ages. It was an excellent night out and we went back home tipsy and knackered.

Enjoying the party

Favela Tour

The little kids having fun in the streets

It always seemed odd to me to actually do a Favela tour. What is the point of it? To go out there to see some poor people and houses with no running water nor electricity that were illegally constructed? How dare I do this? But the truth is that much of what we think about Favelas is only part of the big picture and there is a lot of stigma associated with favelas. We met this American guy in our hostel who actually lives in a Favela (recently pacified) and who said he would bring us there for us to make our own opinion.

We followed him into the favela named Vidigal and took a moto-taxi deep into the favela. These moto-taxi bring people up and down the huge hill for 2 Reals. When we got there, first thing that catches your eyes is the number of satellite dishes on roof tops. The main street up the hill was properly built apparently with the drug barons’ money. We then had a snack in one of the small eating places and enjoyed an amazing view of Ipanema Bay. The view was amazing.

We also saw some kids with a football and started to play with them. The youngest of them had great skills and was dribbling and doing all kinds of tricks with the ball. These Brazilians do live up to their reputation. We were also explained what a pacified Favela means. Basically the authorities announce that they are going to come into the favela on a given day to "clean up". The drugs and arms barons either move out or fight. When the day comes, the army and police actually moves in with tanks, helicopters, elite strike forces and take the favela. After that they post a specially trained police division in the favela to make sure law and order is respected.

The thing is that in all those favela the overwhelming majority are simple honest hardworkers. But it is true that some of the worst organised crimes are also run from them. All in all it was an eye opening visit and we were glad to have done it.

  

Carnival rehearsal

First school getting ready to parade - 800 participants!

Rio is synonymous with Carnival. And it is a BIG deal here. There are several dozens of samba schools in Rio preparing all year round for the big party. These schools are even ranked in divisions and the best ones are featured in the famous Sambadrome during the carnival. Each school meticulously rehearse the songs, the choreography and each of their members (up to 800 people parade for each school during carnival) must know all the lyrics and moves very precisely. In the months leading to the event, the schools hold open rehearsals where you can dance all night. And as from December, proper technical rehearsals are held in the Sambadrome for the schools to have a chance to practise in the venue.

Some of the youngest participants looking their best

We went to one of those rehearsals and there were 3 schools that evening: 2 of them from a lower category and the 3rd one from the first division. The latter school was Salgueiro which is currently 4th in the Samba school ranking! The Sambadrome can hold up to 90.000 people during the carnival parades. For the technical rehearsals they open up only one side of the stands and an average of 35.000 spectators show up. Imagine, 35.000 people attending the rehearsals only, that's how big a deal it is here.

Even without the full package of chariots and lights the show was great and people were on fire. We spent the 4 hours there and had a glimpse of what Carnival in Rio is. We are not going to be there but in Recife for the Carnival which I'm sure is going to be amazing too.

This is how big the Sambadrome is - and this is only one side

A caipirinha vendor - they look yummie

Museums (Arte & Cachaca)

Cachaça labels on show

The two museums we went two could not be further from one another. The first one was the museum of modern arts in the city centre while the other one was the Cachaça museum in the boheme neighbourhood of Santa Teresa.

The latter one was more original for me as they explained the origin of this sugar cane spirit. I love the Portuguese classification for this type of drink: Aguardente which literally means Burning Water. They also had a special work on the different types of labels that have been used over time.

A depiction of an episode of Brazil's history

Escalera & Santa Teresa

It was a great outing despite the rain

In that same neighbourhood of Santa Teresa we climbed the superb Selaron stairs. Selaron is a Chilean artist. Those stairs were amazing and all the ceramics are either made by him or nowadays sent to him by people all over the world.

He then makes sure that each and every ceramic sent to him is inserted somewhere in the stairs. He is always replacing older ceramics with new ones which makes these stairs a perpetually evolving work of art.

Sugar Loaf

It was impressive especially on a clear day

The sugar loaf is this superb piece of rock standing in the the bay of Copacaba. Those of you who are James Bond fans will know that this is the rock from which Roger Moore glides down in Moonraker pursued by the villain Jaws.

We got up there by taking two cable cars that cost a lot (25€ per person). That afternoon the sky had cleared up and the view from up there was spectacular. We could see the whole of Copacabana and its beautiful bay.

Christ redeemer

The statue is humbling. 

The 30 metre statue of the Christ is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world. It has been voted as one of the 7 new wonders of the world in 2007. We took the tram up there which is not as spectacular as people say. It goes through dense vegetation most of the time which makes it impossible to see anything of the bay. For a few extra Reals, prefer the car services that bring you up, and you’ll also avoid the long wait for the two-wagons tramvia.

The mysterious statue on a cloudy day

Botanical Garden

Giant Lily pads

This botanical garden was a pleasant surprise. It was a welcome break from the hustle and bustle of the city. Set on 140 hactares this is one of the largest botanical gardens in the world and one of the most diverse. There are ponds with all kinds of fish and Japanese gardens, alleys lined with the famous Pau-Brazil tree (from which the country got its name) and a superb collection of Orchids. There also was a very interesting section on medicinal plants and their use in traditional medicine.

The orchids were fascinating

What we did not do

Maracana Stadium

We could not visit the legendary Maracana stadium which initially could hold 200.000 spectators and which later was transformed in an 84.000 all-seater. The reason was that extensive works are being done to get it ready for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. The Maracana is going to host the World Cup final game just like in 1950 (Uruguay  2- Brazil 1)

Favela Party

There are favela parties going on during week-ends where daredevils can go for high adrenaline very dangerous entertainment. Have you seen the shooting scene when they kill Benny in “City of Gods”? Well we prefered to see this in a movie! 

Boat tour in the bay

We missed the boat tour because unfortunately we did not have enough time.

Football game and horse racing

Off season – snif!