Paradise June 29, 2010

We had an AMAZING week in Arraial d’Ajuda. Arraial d’Ajuda, in the state of Bahia south of the state’s capital Salvador, is a small town on the coast located on a peninsula, across the river from the larger town Porto Seguro, which is the town we flew into. Our hotel is situated at the tip of the peninsula, with the river on one side and the sea on the other. Our flight arrived in Porto Seguro at 2.30am. A van was there to pick us up and drive us down to the river, where the hotel’s private boat transported us across the river to the hotel, Quinta do Porto. After checking in, we were shown to our room, which we were quite disappointed with when we first saw it, since it didn’t look as pretty as the photos on the hotel’s website! But the bed was very comfy, and we fell asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillows at about 5am.

The following day, we had to wake up at 9am so as to not miss the hotel’s breakfast that finished at 10am. After a rather disappointing breakfast too (not as much variety as we’d hoped for), we headed back to our room to get our things, then decided to explore the beach outside the hotel. The weather was slightly overcast that day, and the sea was quite rough and cold, so we didn’t take a dip. We had a wander along the strip of sand and rocks along the tip of the peninsula outside the hotel, then decided to head southwards to the centre of Arraial d’Ajuda, which was about 6 kms away. There were vans and a bus outside the hotel that would take you there, but it was nice and warm outside and we were in the mood for some excercise, so we walked the 6 kms to Arrial along the beach. It was a lovely, invigorating walk. Along the way, we checked out a couple of the hotels to see how they compared to ours. We’d initially been quite disappointed in our hotel, since we’d been recommended it by the travel agency, who’d promised us that it was a luxury hotel, which the hotel’s website’s photos seemed to confirm, but when we got there it didn’t live up to our expectations. Perhaps we’d set our hopes up too high. You know when you expect something to be special and then it isn’t as great as you thought, it leaves you quite disappointed… But after checking out the other hotels in the area, we saw that ours was in fact of a much higher standard than all the others, which made us appreciate our hotel more and realise that we had made the right choice after all.

At about 4pm, we arrived in Arraial d’Ajuda, and had a wander through the centre, which was quite touristic but very cute. We travelled during the low season, so it was quite empty, but it probably gets packed during peak season (between December and March, which is summertime in Brazil). We found a sweet little restaurant with a very friendly ‘baiana’ (a girl from Bahia) waitress, and by then we were starving so we tucked in to some yummy rice, beans and fish. By the time we finished our late lunch, we were feeling very tired (especially after only 4 hours of sleep the night before), so we bought some water, milk and crackers at a local supermarket, and then decided to catch the bus back to the hotel. We spent the evening in our hotel room, since we felt too knackered to do anything else. We watched some TV, and then had an early night.

Breakfast the next day was actually better than the first time, since there was a woman making fresh ‘tapioca’ (typical from Bahia, with a similar shape to tortillas, they’re made from dried, powdered ‘mandioca’, are heated over a frying pan, filled with cheese and ham (or other ingredients, including sweet fillings), and folded in half) – they’re very yummy! After breakfast, we met some of the hotel’s monkeys – a cute little Golden-headed Lion Tamarin and some even cuter Marmosets (see photo albums for photos and descriptions). We bumped into a couple from São Paulo (Renata and Carlos), who had arrived at the hotel the same day as us and who were celebrating their honeymoon (after their wedding on Valentine’s Day the day before). We started chatting, and decided to take the boat over to Porto Seguro to explore the town together. We crossed over, and were about to head towards the centre, when a friendly ‘baiano’ on the street stopped us, and asked us whether we were tourists. After saying we were, he proceeded to tell us about the best places to visit during our holiday. He asked us if we had any plans that day, and then recommended that we catch a local bus northwards of Porto Seguro, to the seaside village of Coroa Vermelha (Red Crown, due to the red coral reefs that can be found along the coast), where we could see the place where the first mass was held in Brazil and check out the local indigenous arts and crafts market. After thanking him for his tips (he didn’t ask for anything in return), we caught the bus along the coast, and got off at Coroa Vermelha. We walked along the beach, known as ‘Praia do Descobrimento’ (Discovery Beach), then found the small square with two symbolic crosses where the first Catholic mass was allegedly held in 1500, when the Portuguese fleet first landed in Brazil. There was a stone engraving, stating that: “Here, on the 26th of April 1500, Friar Henrique Soares de Coimbra celebrated the first Mass in Brazil, on the occasion of the landing of Pedro Alvares Cabral’s squad, as witnessed by Pero Vaz de Caminha in his historical letter. Here, on the 26th of April 2000, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, as bequested by his Holiness Pope John Paul II, and the Catholic Episcopate, celebrated a Congratulatory Mass for the 500 years of Brazil.” We took some photos, then went on to have a look at the market. Carlos and Renata bought some souvenirs from a lovely, pregnant indigenous lady, and I bought a pretty string of feathers to string through my hair. We then wandered on and came across an indigenous museum, which we decided to check out. It was very small, but interesting, explaining the history of the Portuguese arrival in Brazil, and with first-hand testimonials about the (mostly bad) experiences that the indigenous population had upon the arrival of the ‘white’ invadors. It’s really sad to read about what happened, but it’s slightly comforting to know that the few indigenous reserves that are left are being preserved. We visited another reserve a few days later (more about that below) where the indigenous language is still taught to young children at school by the village chief so that it’s not lost. After our trip to Coroa Vermelha, we caught the bus back to Porto Seguro, and had lunch with Renata and Carlos. We then wanted to get back to the hotel to change, so we could then watch the Brazil vs. North Korea football match at 3.30pm that day. Our hotel had a separate section on the beach with a lovely lounge area, about 200 mts down the road from the hotel, called Quinta da Praia, where we decided we’d watch the match. After a rather lousy match (I fell asleep!), the 4 of us caught a van to the centre of Arraial d’Ajuda again, and had dinner at a cute restaurant, where David had a prawn dish and I had a yummy fish ‘moqueca’ (a typical Brazilian seafood stew). We then headed back to the hotel for another good night’s sleep in our comfy bed.

On the Wednesday, the São Paulo couple had booked to go on an excursion to Praia do Espelho (Mirror Beach), where David and I also wanted to visit, but the weather was looking quite stormy. So we convinced them to change the date of their trip with the hotel’s travel agency another day so we could go with them, and David and I booked ourselves into the trip to the beach for that Friday along with them. We also booked a scuba diving trip with them the following day, which was surprisingly cheap – about £40 per person for a 30 minute dive, plus a whole morning out at sea (I thought scuba diving was usually very expensive). We spent the morning together in Porto Seguro, since the previous day we hadn’t had the chance to get to know the town. Porto Seguro is a sweet town, but it’s more lively at night, when there’s a fair selling food, local sweets, arts and crafts and all sorts of souvenirs. We spent the morning wandering around, then David and I left Carlos and Renata, who wanted to buy more souvenirs to take home, and we headed back to the hotel so spend some time relaxing by the pool. The weather had suddenly taken a turn for the better (the first two days had been slightly overcast) and it was hot and sunny – perfect sunbathing weather. The outdoors, decked area by the pool was probably the best part of the hotel – it was pretty, and they had lovely comfortable wooden deck chairs. After spending a few hours in the sun (and David in the shade!), we headed upstairs to our room to have a nap. Later that evening, we met up with Carlos and Renata and headed back to Porto Seguro to check out the fair and have dinner. We found a nice restaurant and the 4 of us shared another prawn and fish ‘moqueca’ – the best meal we had that week. I don’t think we’ve ever eaten as much seafood/fresh fish as we did during this trip. After a delicious dinner, and feeling rather full, we had a stroll through the fair, then headed back to catch the last boat back to the hotel at 10pm.

On the Thursday, we got up early to have a quick breakfast at 8am, because we were then going on our scuba diving trip. The scuba team picked us up at the hotel docks by boat at 8.30, and we then stopped by another hotel in Porto Seguro to pick up another group of people, before heading out to sea. It took about an hour or so to sail out to the reefs where we were going to do our diving, and along the way the fun, entertaining instructors explained the procedures to us and got us all excited about the dive. When we got to the spot out at sea, you couldn’t actually see anything from the boat – it looked like we were in the middle of the sea with not much to see! There were 3 instructors, who could take people diving in pairs, and since there were 12 of us who wanted to dive (plus two girls who stayed on board), there were two rounds of dives. David and I waited for the first 3 pairs to go diving before taking our turn. We were already in our wetsuits, and so we had a swim whilst waiting. Once Carlos and Renata were back from their 30 minute dive, the instructors on board fitted the oxigen equipment onto us, and we dove in. Our very cool instructor (whose name I’ve sadly forgotten) showed us how to breath with the oxigen masks, asked us if we were comfortable, and then took us down. Being our first ever dive, I don’t think we could have done it without an instructor. He was brilliant – he guided us down, steering us to all the right places. It’s much harder than it looks! The only downside was that I thought the water would be clearer and that visibility would be better, but the water seemed quite clouded with sand. We didn’t get to see that much of a variety of fish, but the whole experience was great fun. The best bit, as you all probably know by now, was the underwater proposal. The instructor stopped us at one point to show us some corals and then take a photo of us with an underwater camera. After taking a couple of photos, David held up his hand and signalled for him to wait a moment, and he then pulled out a little black bag and took out the rings. My heart leapt and I almost started to cry (my eyes got all watery) but with the goggles covering my eyes and blocking my nose, my nose somehow filled up with water and I almost choked! David then simbolized a heart with his hands, and we then exchanged rings (more about that further down). The instructor started whooping and cheering (he’s managed to master the ability of talking/laughing/cheering underwater, something that I didn’t even know was possible – David later told me he’d tried to ask me if I wanted to marry him but had swallowed water, so decided to stay silent and stick to signs instead). David and I tried to kiss but couldn’t cos of the snorkel oxigen thingy in our mouths, and we couldn’t smile or say anything either because of that, which was quite frustrating! It was a magical moment that I’ll never forget, especially since it was completely unexpected and took me by surprise. After that, I was eager for the dive to be over with so we could resurface again, so I could talk to David and express my excitement and happiness. When we finally did resurface, the instructor started whooping again and shouted out to all his colleagues about the proposal, saying that it caught him completely unawares too! He seemed just as excited as we were! We thanked him for the fun dive, then climbed back on board to take off our wetsuits – we were starting to get quite cold. It had been quite cold 5 mts undewater!

In Brazil the tradition isn’t always to give the future bride a (diamond) ring (unless the groom can afford it), but rather the groom buys the future wedding rings for the couple, and the couple exchanges them and wears them on the ring finger of their right hand, which simbolises that they’re engaged. Then on the wedding day the couple exchanges them again and puts them on the ring finger of their left hand, which then means they’re married. David bought lovely white gold rings with two thin strips of yellow gold through them, and he inscribed our names on the inside of the ring (mine on his and his on mine). They’re lovely!

After an amazing morning, we headed back to shore. Carlos and Renata decided to stay in Porto Seguro for lunch, but David and I were eager to get back home – so David could shower and so I could share our exciting news with everyone. We then spent the afternoon relaxing by the pool again, and later that evening we went back to Porto Seguro to have dinner – this time alone. David had fish again, and I had a delicious prawn ‘caldo’ (soup). What a fun day it had been!

The following day we got up early again to have another early breakfast and then head out on our excursion to Praia do Espelho. There was a large group of us going, and we all packed into a minibus and set off on the 1 1/2 hour drive to the beach. David and I sat up front next to the driver, so we got the best views. We drove through a large area of ‘mata atlântica ‘ (Atlantic rainforest), past a huge farm that breeds buffaloes, past an indigenous reserve that we stopped at on our way back, and finally arrived at the beach. What a beautiful place it was! There was a small ‘pousada’ (inn/hotel) on the beach, with a restaurant and a lovely are with deck chairs and lounges shaded by palm trees. We set our things down, next to another lovely couple that we’d met from Rio Grande do Sul (the southernmost state in Brazil), who were celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary. We had a dip in the sea – quite cold but very refreshing – and sunbathed a bit, then our guide, Dadá, took some of us on a walk along the beach, and round the cliffs to a couple of other beaches round the corner. If Praia de Espelho was beautiful, these other beaches (including Praia dos Namorados – Lovers’ Beach, called so due to its isolation) were paradisiacal. He took us up a small hill where there was a viewpoint overlooking the beaches. It was a glorious day and the views were breathtaking. After taking loads of photos, we headed back, paddling through the water and enjoying the sunshine. We spent the day sunbathing, chatting, and relaxing. It was probably the most relaxing day we had. For lunch, David and Carlos had ordered a large fresh fish to be prepared for us at the inn’s restaurant, and at about 1.30pm, we tucked into a delicious meal of baked fish with a yummy sauce, potatoes, rice, and a prawn dip. After lunch, David and I walked along the beach in the opposite direction, looking out for shells and checking out the dozens of sea urchins. It was such a beautiful place, I wish the day had lasted longer. Sadly, at about 2.30pm, it was time to leave. On our way back, we stopped off for about 1/2 hour at the Pataxó Indigenous reserve. There were a couple of stores selling handicrafts, and next door there was a cute little classroom, where a little boy showed us the things they learn at school, including words in their indigenous language that the village chief teaches them. There was a group of children outside, playing games with their teacher. It looked so peaceful there, that it made me wonder how easygoing there lives must be. Afterwards, we stopped off at a village called Trancoso (which is apparently a hot spot for celebrities, hosting the most expensive hotels in the area). There was a lovely viewpoint over the beach and coastline, and a pretty little church dating back to the colonial period, but it wasn’t open so we couldn’t check it out inside. We didn’t arrive back at the hotel till about 6.30pm, after a long, but fun, day out. That night, David and I bumped into the couple from the south (Made and Kako) on the boat to Porto Seguro, and we decided to have dinner together. I had spaghetti with a prawn sauce that night, which wasn’t a good choice, because for the next two days I had an upset stomach. I’m not entirely sure whether it was the prawns, but it’s the most likely option since there were a LOT of prawns in the sauce, and thinking about it now they did taste slightly funny! It didn’t ruin the trip, but it was frustrating. Anyway, that night we had a lovely time getting to know Made and Kako. Their 20-year old daughter spent 9 months studying English in London last year, and they have another 5-year old daughter who had stayed at home with Made’s mum. Made’s grandmother is German, and they told us about the large German population that lives in the south of Brazil (apparently there are some towns that are completely ‘germanised’ – German architecture, everyone speaks German…). The south sounds so interesting, almost like a completely different country, and I’d love to get to know it one day.

We had quite a quiet day on Saturday, mostly due to my stomach being quite upset. We spent the morning by the pool, then went down to Quinta da Praia that afternoon and met up with Made, Kako, Carlos and Renata, and spend a few hours relaxing on the lounges. David and Carlos made use of the free hotel kayaks and did some sea kayaking, which David loved – he’d never kayaked before. David and I had dinner by ourselves that evening – except I didn’t have dinner. Apart from breakfast, I didn’t have much of an appetite all day, and just ate a few plain crackers that evening. Still, David enjoyed his meal. Before heading home, we bought a few things form the supermarket, then headed home for an earlyish night.

On our last day, David and I headed back to Porto Seguro in the morning to buy a few things and to look for a birthday present for Marildes (it’s her birthday on the 29th June). We were hoping to go to the historical centre of Porto Seguro (the old part of the city), but I was still feeling quite weak from my upset stomach and the historical centre was quite a walk away, that we decided to give it a miss. We then we popped back to the hotel, did some more sunbathing and relaxing, then met up with the 2 couples to head to Arraial d’Ajuda to find a bar to watch the Brazil vs. Côte d’Ivoire match. The centre of Arraial d’Ajuda was packed, and we found a lively bar/restaurant, which had a happy hour where everything was two-for-one: yummy juices, Mexican dishes (nachos, tacos…), beer etc. So we settled down to order, and had lunch before the match started. It was a very lively match and was great fun. Brazil football matches have a completely different vibe here to anything I’ve seen. The whole country stops when a Brazil match is on – banks close, children get let off early from school, offices close… So that everyone can get home in time to see the match. You don’t see a single soul on the street during a Brazil match. It becomes like a national holiday. Everything is decorated with the Brazilian flag – cars, buildings, faces, nails, hair, clothes… And the lovely thing about Brazilians is that they’ll seize ANY opportunity to have a party and have fun. For instance, during the football match interval, the bar put on loud carnival-style samba music, and everyone got up to dance, especially the women (I’d have loved to go to Rio during carnival – the way women know how to samba here is incredible). I don’t think Brazilians know the meaning of inhibition – people just don’t get shy here. Everyone is always out to have a good time, no matter what the occasion, and if the occasion is something as important as the country’s football match, then all the more reason to celebrate! It’s something I really envy of Brazilians – their joie de vivre.

Sadly, our amazing week’s holiday had come to an end. That evening, David and I had a final meal with Carlos and Renata (who were also leaving that night), found a little present for Marildes (a lovely soft wooden garlic crusher), then went back to the hotel to get 1 1/2 hour’s sleep in before having to leave at midnight. We checked out of the hotel, said goodbye to Kako and Made (who had woken up especially to say goodbye to us!), and caught the boat and van to the airport.

Our trip home was a bit of a nightmare. After arriving at the airport at about 1am, we waited about an hour after checking in, then boarded the plane about 40 mins before it was due to leave at 3am. About 20 mins, just when we thought we were due to take off, the pilot told us that there was heavy fog outside and that the runway had to be closed down because of it, and that we would only be able to leave once the fog lifted. He said it shouldn’t take too long and that as soon as it was ok to leave we would. 3 hours later (yes, 3 hours!!!) we were still on the plane, waiting. David and I managed to drift off now and again, but it wasn’t very pleasant. At about 6am, the pilot told us that it wasn’t improving, so those of us who wanted to could get off the plane to go to the terminal to stretch our legs. The tiny airport was a bit hectic and no one knew what was going on. 1 1/2 half hours later, we were finally told to board the plane again, and at 8am, we FINALLY left. We landed at in Goiânia at 9.30, and David’s cousin Harley came to pick us up from the airport at 10.30am. We didn’t get home till 11am – almost a 12 hour trip since leaving the hotel! We had a maximum of about 2-3 hours of sleep all night. I didn’t even feel tired by the time we got home – I just feel a bit sick!

After such a lovely, relaxing week away, I felt quite down and blue about having to return to Goiânia. Our fun trip had only left me wanting more! I guess all good things come to an end, as they say. Hopefully we’ll have the chance to have loads more fun trips like this one in the future…

Advertisement