Archive for category: Travel

Salvador, Brazil: The Bahian Way

Salvador, Brazil: The Bahian Way

salvador brazil 1 Salvador, Brazil: The Bahian Way

The streets of Salvador

To say that this post is a tad belated would be a rather large understatement. I’ve made passing mention in previous blog entries on plans to travel to Brazil through Steinhardt’s Dean Research Travel Colloquium program with the pretense of examining differences between the United States and Brazil with regards to health care for low-income families. Shortly after returning from Hong Kong, I set forth on a week-long trip to Salavador, Brazil.

One of the immediate things that comes to mind when I tell people about my trip is “what is Salvador? Don’t you mean El Savador? And if so, that’s not in Brazil, you know…” And yes, I am well aware that El Salvador is not in Brazil, but no, that’s not where I was headed. Salvador is the country’s third most populous city, and is found in the state of Bahia. The city carries great cultural significance as it was the first colonial capital of Brazil and considered to be one of the oldest of the Americas.

Since the flight took an approximate fifteen hours, along with a three hour time change, the initial day was spent up in the air. With televisions not working, there was not a lot to do apart from sleep on the two legs of our trip (we transferred flights). Although I had spent a good portion of the flights asleep, I still found myself exhausted when we arrived at our hotel – Golden Tulip Rio Vermelho – at 2AM the following “morning.”

Golden Tulip Rio Vermelho
Rua Monte Conselho, 505, Rio Vermelho,
Salvador, 41940-370 Brazil
http://www.goldentulipriovermelho.com/

With several more hours of sleep under our belt, our group was most certainly more alert and readily entertained by our fantastic guide, Simone. Giving focus to our research, the morning was spent at Projeto Axé – a place where street children are offered real opportunities for education and training, along with involvement in creative and cultural activities. While some questions were left unanswered, a greater understanding of the situation of the poverty in the city was gained. Thereafter, we were given a tour by Simone, who provided us the necessary historical context, touching on colonization and religious beliefs, along with visits to the São Francisco Church and the Museu Afro.

Perhaps it was coincidence or careful planning, but our group arrived at a point of the year in which celebration was amidst. The subsequent morning, we found ourselves on the bus at 8AM and driving towards downtown for the Bonfim Festival. The story behind the festival, before I elaborate on the happenings, is as follows: a captain, whose ship was wrecked off the coast of Bahia in 1875, promised God that if his men survived, he would build a church in gratitude. Subsequently, the captain built the church known as “Our Lord of the Happy Ending,” and thus rooted is the ritual of women dressed in traditional white dresses of colonial Bahia and forming a procession to the church. Despite the fact that Brazil is nominally a Roman Catholic country, it is observed that many Brazilians find themselves adhering to various Afro-Brazilian beliefs.

Coming back to the actual festival, it was amazing to see that the path to the church was already crowded by 8AM. Both men and women were clad in all-white garb, dancing and celebrating in the streets. Despite it being rather early, people had already begun drinking, with young children selling beer (either Skol or Schin) and folks readily buying them at a modest 3 for 5R$ (the equivalent of $3 USD). But what I found to be most troubling wasn’t the selling of alcohol by minors, but rather, the fact that these children were actively consuming the beer themselves.

These observations that we had made were kept in mind during our visit to COPE, which deals with health initiatives for the state of Bahia, the following day. The information received was fairly positive with regards to the campaigns launched and success rates; however, one couldn’t help but wonder how effectively the goals were being met and what issues had yet to be addressed. Overall, the meeting seemed to carry an air of idealistic goals with some promising results.

But to build upon the programs developed for at-risk youths with creative goals, we were brought to CIPÓ – Interactive Communication, a nonprofit focused on training individuals on technological and creative mediums. To see the impressive work by these adolescents, as well as watch several of them at work, was a touching experience, especially when I come with an understanding of how difficult it is gain access to some of the programs and technologies that were available. To provide adolescents that wouldn’t have otherwise had an opportunity with these tools was simply remarkable.

The evening, perhaps, was the highlight for some since it was our first and only collective meal and the big opportunity to see capoeira in action. Our meal was considered to be comprised of traditional fare – moqueca (fish stew), cornmeal, rice – at the second-level restaurant Uauá. The dessert, which was a passion fruit pudding, had most of swooning and excited for the evening show at the Miguel Santana Theatre across the street.

Uauá
R. Gregório de Matos 36, Pelourinho,
Salvador, 40025-060

The show, titled Bahia by Night, was put on by the Bahia Folklore Company (Balé Folclórico de Bahia); through music and dance, the story of several African Gods (Orixá) were told, including those of Xangô (God of Fire and Thunder), Iemanjá (Goddess of the Sea), and Oxum (God of Rivers and Lakes), along with the story of colonization and freedom in Brazil. Though there were moments in which my eyes drooped heavily on account of the warm air in the theatre, I was captivated and entranced by the liveliness and passion of dance troupe.

Having spent so much time in the city, our program shuttled us away to the “farming hinterland on the western side of the All Saints’ Bay” (or so my itinerary reads). Our first stop was the country market town of Santo Amaro, whose open-air markets were unlike anything I had ever experienced or seen. Crabs, covered in mud, were bundled by string and sold by the corner of the street; meat was cured in salt and left to sit out in the open on a table; homemade laundry detergent in various hues were sold in recycled pop bottles; and cigarettes rolled on the spot and cigars sold for 1$R each. From there, we were taken to the town of Cachoeira, where one could find the Danemann Cultural Centre – the country’s oldest cigar factory in the country.

Now, when you think of beaches in Brazil, images of bliss are conjured. Turns out that numerous beaches, at least the ones along Salvador, have polluted waters; of the few decent ones, it becomes incredibly crowded over the weekend. Lasting out in the sun for more than ten minutes is quite commendable, especially with the heavy sweat that one will be breaking. Stepping into the ocean provides relief from the blistering heat, although quite a few tend to forget that the sun is just as strong in the water. That said, I didn’t last longer than an hour at the beach before decidedly heading back.

I mentioned earlier in this post about arriving at a particularly opportune time; in addition to the Bonfim Festival, the duration of our stay happened upon one of the Candomblé ceremonies at a local terreiro. Having the explanation of the ceremony and seeing the actual ceremony take place are two completely different things. Despite having fallen asleep for part of the “dances” and “trances,” it was quite the experience in having observed at least part of it.

Cultural activities aside, the last portion of our trip was spent at the hotel, listening to and meeting with representatives of various organizations, including the ministry of health, and Bolsa Familia, and intellectuals. The conversations were enlightening and rather elaborate upon a lot of our observations throughout our time in Salvador.

And that was it. Our trip to to Salvador, Brazil met its conclusion the day after as we loaded our bags on the tour bus, and made our way for the airport. The experience was most certainly an eye-opening one, what with it being my first trip to South America, as well as informative, while staying relaxing with the spread-out agenda. Though our tour guide wouldn’t admit to us being the best group she’s ever led, she certainly shed several tears at our departure, making us the only group to make Simone cry (but in a good way).

In case you hadn’t noticed, there was a lot of leisure time. So how exactly did we spend it? Much of our afternoons, between activities, were spent on the rooftop pool deck. Evenings were spent at the foot of the hill on which our hotel was located hanging out in the orange plastic chairs and chatting the night away over freshly made caipirinhas at a meagre 3$R a glass. For meals, the lunch favourite stemmed from our tour guide Simone’s recommendation of a vegetarian eatery (pay-by-weight system) named Manjericao, followed by a fresh coconut from a local stand or a scoop of ice cream at the nearby Sorveteria Primavera. Dinners were seldom elaborate; for the most part, it was grabbing an acarajé from the well-known Acarajé da Cira. As you’ve probably surmised, I spent a lot of time eating.

Manjericao
Rua Fonte do Boi, 3-B,
Salvador, Brazil 3335-5641

Sorveteria Primavera
http://www.sorveteriaprimavera.com.br/

Acarajé da Cira
Largo da Mariquita, Rio Vermelho
Salvador, Brazil

salvador brazil 2 Salvador, Brazil: The Bahian Way

Bonfim festival

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Bonfim festival balloons

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Acarajé da Cira; a hit amongst the locals

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Watching the students work at CIPO

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Moqueca (Bahian fish stew) at Uauá (R. Gregório de Matos 36, Pelourinho, Salvador, 40025-060)

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Trying out fruit at the country market

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Fruit market in Santo Amaro

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Cured meat at the market

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Seeing how cigarettes are made and rolled

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Nothing like people watching

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The Brazil of 'yesteryear'

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Touring the streets of Cachoeira

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Cigar rolling at the Danemann Cultural Centre

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Cigar rolling at the Danemann Cultural Centre

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Boats nearby the Mercado Modelo

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Boats nearby the Mercado Modelo

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Manjericao; Rua Fonte do Boi, 3-B, Salvador, Brazil 3335-5641

salvador brazil 19 Salvador, Brazil: The Bahian Way

Manjericao; Rua Fonte do Boi, 3-B, Salvador, Brazil 3335-5641

March 31, 2012
Hong Kong: Last Day

Hong Kong: Last Day

happy valley 7 Hong Kong: Last Day

Looking over the Happy Valley racetrack

I decided to take a leisurely approach to my last day in Hong Kong, starting the day off with a back massage at Bua Hom Thai Massage in the Lan Kwai Fong district. The night before, I had attempted to seek it out since it was open until midnight, but had the wrong address, which seems to be posted online on some blogs. After a little more searching when I was back in my hotel room, I realized it was actually around the corner. For about $70 USD (20% tip included), the masseuse worked out a lot of the knots and kinks in my back. And hey, a big plus is that she spoke English, which means there was no need for my embarrassingly broken Cantonese.

Bua Hom Thai Massage
1/F, Lan Kwai Fong House,
5 Lan Kwai Fong, Central
Hong Kong
Email: info@buahom.com
Telephone: 2234 9322

The next stop was afternoon tea (or more like lunch for me, since I hadn’t had time to make the stop at Sang Kee for congee) at the Ritz Carlton’s Lounge & Bar. The price for afternoon tea isn’t as steep as what you might find at some of the other Ritz Carltons around the world; though one would still be apt to find it pricey for an afternoon snack at ~$35 USD. While the view was gorgeous from the 102nd floor, along with the live band, the pastries and desserts left much to be desired; most of the desserts were “all right” at best. The brownie and macaron, in particular, were the most dismal of the set what with the brownie being dry and the macaron’s texture completely wrong. That said, there were some highlights; of the set, the cheese cake and hazelnut cream were the highlights.

Following afternoon tea, I greeted sunset at the Nan Lian Garden, which is a public park built in the style the Tang dynasty. Adjacent to it is the Chi Lin Nunnery; however, when I made my way up the steps, I was disappointed to find that it had just closed. I wound up simply taking a lovely stroll in the garden before heading to the Happy Valley Racecourse for the Wednesday night races. Although I hadn’t placed any official bets, it was all the while fun to watch the enthusiastic folks write down their bets for the next race, as well as watch the short bursts of actual racing.

Perhaps one of the more shocking highlights was before the fifth or sixth race when I heard a gaggle of English speakers. It turns out that New York University had managed to follow me, even during vacation; the NYU Stern MBA DBi (“Doing Business in …”) program had an evening out at the racecourse and merely dropped by for one to two races to see the horses up close.

After I grew tired of watching the horse races, I stopped by for a quick dinner of noodles and wontons at Mak’s Noodle, which I’ve heard to be quite formidable. Before heading home to pack, I obtained a snack for the morning at the Singaporean jerky store, Bee Cheng Hiang.

Mak’s Noodle
G/F., No. 44 Jardine’s Bazaar,
Causeway Bay, Hong Kong
Telephone: 2895 5310

Bee Cheng Hiang
G/F, 25 Lee Garden Road,
Causeway Bay, Hong Kong
Telephone: 28330128
http://www.bch.com.sg

The morning after was quite a relaxed one, especially since there wasn’t a lot to pack. I enjoyed a light breakfast at the MoMo Café downstairs before making my way to the airport. When taking the Airport Express from Central, one can check into their flight before making their way to the terminal and leave luggage to be checked-in at the counter to be transported on their own, which in turn, makes for a smooth and comfortable ride to the airport. The flight itself seemed to go by a lot faster this time around – perhaps it had to do with the TVs working this time around. In any case, I only had about two days of rest before heading back to New York to catch a flight to Brazil for my DRTC trip.

ritz lounge bar 1 Hong Kong: Last Day

Ritz Carlton; Lounge & Bar

ritz lounge bar 2 Hong Kong: Last Day

Ritz Carlton; Lounge & Bar

ritz lounge bar 3 Hong Kong: Last Day

View from Ritz Carlton; Lounge & Bar

nan lian garden 1 Hong Kong: Last Day

Nan Lian Garden

nan lian garden 2 Hong Kong: Last Day

Nan Lian Garden

happy valley 1 Hong Kong: Last Day

Happy Valley Racecourse

happy valley 2 Hong Kong: Last Day

Happy Valley Racecourse

happy valley 3 Hong Kong: Last Day

Picking the winning horses for the next race

happy valley 4 Hong Kong: Last Day

Happy Valley Racecourse

happy valley 5 Hong Kong: Last Day

Happy Valley Racecourse

happy valley 6 Hong Kong: Last Day

Happy Valley Racecourse

mariott courtyard wart Hong Kong: Last Day

Back at the hotel, waiting for me to pack

March 11, 2012
Hong Kong: Cheung Chau

Hong Kong: Cheung Chau

cheung chau island 1 Hong Kong: Cheung Chau

Cheung Chau

It may have been a month since I came back from Hong Kong, but I still have two more days worth to lay out before approaching the trip to Brazil (coincidentally, we met for our mini “reunion” this past). Sharing and synthesizing my traveling experiences has been quite the task because of how much I saw in such a short period of time, along with the fast-paced life that I have, meaning that I don’t have a lot of downtime to sit and actually reflect.

For my second last day, a friend of mine told me about a small island that had a cave that belonged to a pirate. Although the cave was a small aspect of Cheung Chau (長洲, lit. “Long Island”), it was enough for me to warrant a day’s visit.

Since the island is not accessible by the MTR, I had to take the ferry from Central. There are two options to get to the island – the Fast Ferry or the Regular. As the names suggest, one cuts the travel time in half from one hour to approximately thirty minutes. The price difference isn’t that much, so it boils down more so to the schedule. The Fast Ferry arrived first, so I hopped on board and took a nap for the duration of the ride.

Upon arriving on the island, the first thing that strikes you is the absence of motor vehicles. The only modes of transportation is either bicycle or foot. Walking through the narrow streets, it becomes clear as to why there are no cars or anything of the sort (apart from emergency vehicles).

Since Cheung Chau is known as a fishing village/island, my first mission was to get some curry fish balls. I stopped by a local food stand of sorts, and paid the equivalent of less than a dollar for two of the freshest curry fish balls I’ve ever tasted.

After gobbling my snack, I set out to look for Cheung Po Tsai’s cave. The entrance is a nondescript, as I came across with a rock wall and a narrow entrance by my feet. Sliding down, I entered a small cave that is a pretty short pathway and leads out to a fantastic view of the ocean. That said, it is a pretty fun experience, using my phone as a flashlight and feeling the rocks as a pathway.

Although the walk to the cave took a good hour, I decided to take advantage of the “ferry point,” which was just one of the small motor boats for hire (~10HKD) that traveled back and forth between the ends of the island. Not having to make the long trek, I stopped by a small café, with locals talking to the husband/wife owners and a sleepy cat, for a bowl of fishballs and noodles. The slow-paced afternoon came to an end when I took the ferry back to the main island so as to get ready for dinnr with relatives at 8 Happiness (for whom I brought fresh fish balls from Cheung Chau), where we dined on my favourite dishes (including sea cucumber, fish maw, and chicken feet).

8 Happiness
2/F, W Square,
314 Hennessy Rd,
Wan Chai, Hong Kong
http://www.maxims.com.hk
Phone: 2838-6998

cheung chau island 2 Hong Kong: Cheung Chau

Cheung Chau

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Fishing on Cheung Chau

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Fish drying outside

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Fresh curry fish balls

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Boats

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Boats

cheung chau island 8 Hong Kong: Cheung Chau

Cheung Chau

cheung chau island 9 Hong Kong: Cheung Chau

Going up the hill

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En route to Cheung Po Tsai cave

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Cheung Po Tsai cave

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Cheung Po Tsai cave

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Cheung Chau

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Cheung Chau

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Fishing at Wan Chai ferry pier

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At 8 Happiness with grandparents

February 20, 2012