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(note: this is one of my pre-scheduled posts set to appear at 5:00am EST each morning I am in a port city. I will post follow-up information about each trip once I am able to get back on the computer.)
This is the trip I will be going on today...
Cachoeira, Brazil (Time: 0830 - 1730)
(This is one of the "faculty directed practica" that I am leading so the cost of this trip is free for me.)
Description:
This trip to Cachoeira is an opportunity to gain insight into the lives of a majority of Brazilians who live in small rural communities, far from the hustle and bustle of the cities. Your destination is the 16th-century colonial town of Cachoeira, built on the banks of the Paraguacu River. Set in the heart of the oldest farm land in Brazil, it was the center of the sugar and tobacco boom which were sources of the early wealth of the colony. The inhabitants used their immense wealth to build splendid homes and churches, and Cachoeira has some of the finest examples of baroque and rococco architecture in Brazil. In fact, UNESCO declared it a World Monument. In light of this status, Cachoeira was by-passed during expansion of the road network at the beginning of this century. Thus the town retained its charm, untouched by the 20th century.
Leave the city and travel through the oldest farmlands in Brazil. This is the land of plantations, peaceful colonial towns and busy country markets. Stop at an experimental cacao farm. Until recently, this farm was in private hands but was appropriated and handed over to the national popular movement for agrarian reform, one fo Brazil's most pressing social problems. Continue to Cachoeira for a late lunch at the Pousada Convento do Carmo, a 17th century monastery converted into a pousada (guest house). Enjoy a walking tour of this charming riverside town as it relaxes for the Carnival period, getting a feel for country town life. Return to Salvador. (PRICE: $65.00)
Some links relating to today's trip...
Update:
We started out today on time. Two buses of about 45 people boarded buses and as the trip leader, I gave the bus I was on the spiel about me being the leader of the trip, having the first aid kit, etc.
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
view from the bus going from Salvador, Brazil, to Santo Amaro, Brazil
Our guide from the tour agency was named Paula and she was very good. She spoke the entire bus ride to the first location – a town (not on the itinerary) called Santo Amaro.
We got off the bus there and walked around the local market a little bit with Paula telling us about the various native fruits they were selling. Since it is Carneval, nothing is really open and there were only very few vendors out (normally there are a lot more).
the market in Santo Amaro, Brazil
the market in Santo Amaro, Brazil
fruit at the market in Santo Amaro, Brazil
crabs at the market in Santo Amaro, Brazil
After Santo Amaro, we got back on the bus and went to a place that is part of the Landless Workers Movement – the gist of it is that landless workers are given tracts of land to farm.
farm in Brazil somewhere between Santo Amaro, Brazil, and Cachoeira, Brazil
farm in Brazil somewhere between Santo Amaro, Brazil, and Cachoeira, Brazil
farm in Brazil somewhere between Santo Amaro, Brazil, and Cachoeira, Brazil
We went to a woman’s home who harvests cacao and there we got to see the cacao fruit opened up and we were allowed to take a seed from the fruit to eat. Essentially it is a white fleshy type of seed – you eat the flesh around the seed (it’s really tangy) and inside the seed is the dark stuff that chocolate is made of (you don’t eat that). She was selling some candy in plastic containers and before we bought any we got to taste a sample of each kind – one was chocolate, one was pineapple and one was guava. Each flavor is really, really sugary so the only way I can describe it is as if you are eating flavored sugar.
about to enter the cacao farmer's home
products for sale at the cacao farmer's home
our tour guide and the local farmer showing us the seeds of a cacao fruit
venturing into the backyard area of the woman's home to see a cacao tree
After that stop, we went to the town of Cachoeira. About 20 minutes prior to getting there Paula took a poll of what we wanted to have for lunch – there was a choice of steak (filet mignon), chicken or fish. I chose the steak and when we got to the restaurant, we didn’t have to wait long to get our food.
restaurant we at lunch at in Cachoeira, Brazil
restaurant we ate lunch at in Cachoeira, Brazil
restaurant we ate lunch at in Cachoeira, Brazil
The one thing about Brazil is that meals tend to be meat, meat and more meat. A lot of the vegetarian students (particularly those who are hard-core vegetarians and won’t even eat pasta cooked in chicken broth) would say “Brazil is not my country.” I heard another group of people ended up going out to dinner at a place that essentially was like dim sum with meat – they brought around big slabs of different meats to each table and shaved them off if you requested it. As for me, I don’t eat much meat at all, but I ate the steak and it was pretty good.
After lunch, Paula took us on a walking tour of the town. It was very lackadaisical in general – not crowded at all, local people just kind of meandering on the streets. The town is on the river so we ended the tour in the river area before getting on the bus and taking the two hour ride back to the ship.
Cachoeira, Brazil
Cachoeira, Brazil
view across the Paraguaçu River from Cachoeira, Brazil
view across the Paraguaçu River from Cachoeira, Brazil
along the Paraguaçu River in Cachoeira, Brazil
along the Paraguaçu River in Cachoeira, Brazil
Upon getting back to the ship, I took a shower and then went out my door to check my mailbox in the faculty/staff lounge on Deck 7. As I got to the end of the hall, I ran into Mark (the Global Nomads Group guy) and said “hey, I got your message.” Earlier that morning at breakfast, I ran into one of the professors who teaches religion classes and she mentioned that she was going with the Global Nomads Group people to a Candomblé temple tomorrow to participate in one of their broadcasts. She said that another professor was bringing 10 of his students as well, so I said since I don’t have anything to do tomorrow, I might try to join them. After breakfast, I left Mark a note saying I was interested in tagging along if there was any room and I also had asked him about when he wanted to come speak to my “Mass Media Systems Around the World” class (which I had mentioned to him in passing a few days back). At any rate, upon running into Mark he said it wouldn’t be a problem for me to come along too and that he just got my note as he was rushing out this morning and was going to ask me to come today if I wanted.
I had a brief conversation with him there and then after I went to check my mailbox, I went to go get something to eat in the cafeteria. As I was looking for a seat, I ran into Mark yet again at a table by himself so I joined him there. He said that he was going out to eat a bigger dinner later that night in the old city part of town with the Global Nomads Group people at 7:30 and that he was just getting a quick bite to eat then because he hadn’t eaten all day. He invited me to come along with them too so I said I would so after that, I went back to my room, changed clothes and about 45 minutes later, met up with Mark, Ben, Joanna and two students who had gone with the Global Nomads Group that day to one of the broadcasts they were doing.
We walked to the elevator that leads up to the old part of the city and in the elevator some teenagers were waving at Mark. Apparently earlier in the day, someone asked him for his autograph and as we got of the elevator Ben said to Mark “You know why those kids wanted your autograph before, don’t you?” I think Mark said maybe it had something to do with them having video cameras with them before and they thought he was someone important because of that, but Ben said “No, they think you are a famous football player – they think you are David Beckham.”
At any rate, we got off the elevator and walked to the area where Ben knew there were some restaurants. I thought it would be crazily crowded in the old city that night, but it wasn’t as bad as I was expecting. It was crowded, yes, but not to the point where you couldn’t walk. It felt more like a street fair with bands playing and there were a lot of people with their children out and about. The six of us sat outside at a restaurant and in the time we were there about 10-15 kids passed by trying to sell necklaces and other stuff.
dinner in Salvador, Brazil (left to right: Global Nomads Group editor Joanna, Global Nomads Group director Mark, 2 students, Global Nomads Group documentarian Ben)
While we were there one of the kids pointed to Mark and pointed to his eyebrows indicating he really noticed them. Mark just kind of laughed at the kid and smiled and then told us that kids are always pointing to his eyebrows because they turn white the more sun he gets. I guess in Brazil the fairer you are, the more attention you get as being an attraction. That and resembling David Beckham, I guess.
After dinner we ran into another group of younger people from the staff/faculty.
group of faculty/staff in Salvador, Brazil
At that point it was about 10:30 and Joanna and Mark were going to head back to the ship because Joanna had footage to edit for the broadcast they were doing tomorrow (they do teleconferences between classrooms in the U.S. and Canada with students in various countries). She had to edit an introduction piece for that so she wanted to get back early. I said I’d go back with them too so the three of us took a cab back to the ship and then I went to sleep.
