A spirit all its own

THERE is nothing bland about Brazil’s original capital, Salvador da Bahia. This northeastern coastal city rivals Rio de Janeiro with its kaleidoscope-hued Carnival floats and old Lisbon with its pastel Baroque buildings.

Tourists -- mostly from Europe, but increasingly from the United States -- arrive in ho-hum khaki shorts and white T-shirts, but soon sport banana-yellow soccer jerseys. On their heads, multicolored hair bands hold tidy new braids in place, and bare wrists are quickly layered with pink, orange and purple “good-wishes” ribbons.

Late last summer, I spent five days here with American college professors and students traveling the world aboard a cruise ship with the academic program Semester at Sea.

After being told to watch our cameras and wallets because of street crime, my friends and I raced down the gangway of our ship, the Explorer, and within minutes were submerged in the rainbow of colors painted on storefronts in city squares and later those painted on bars and hotels along the glistening coastline.

During the day, we bargained over strands of bright blue beads and paintings that made Picasso’s look pale. One night, we flooded the lighted squares in the old part of the city. A little tipsy from caipirinhas, a lime drink made with high-octane sugarcane alcohol, we tried to samba alongside Brazilians, known for their party spirit.

Nearly 39 million people live in Salvador, also called Bahia; it’s the largest city in northeastern Brazil. A vibrant African culture prevails. Most residents are descendants of the 3 1/2 million Africans brought to these shores as slaves to harvest diamonds, gold, coffee, sugar and tobacco for Portuguese settlers.

The city’s colonial charm has been battered over time, and repairs on rundown buildings and pitted cobblestone streets are slowly being made, but original structures have been preserved. Ceiling, walls, columns and arches of the 18th century Sao Francisco Church are still coated in gold, a shining reminder of the city’s importance as Brazil’s capital from 1549 to 1763.

“It’s paradise,” said Gail Austin, an administrator with the University of Pittsburgh, who honeymooned here with her husband, Mensah Wali, five years ago and returned with our group. “White sand, blue water and beautiful people.”

On one sunny afternoon, with church bells chiming, a young Sonia Braga look-alike in a swaying peach skirt tip-tapped her way down a street. A Ford Taurus with Bahia Salvador license plates passed alongside her, windows rolled down, radio blasting “Pretty Woman.” Then one of my companions in clunky tennis shoes began to follow in the woman’s high-heel footsteps, clomping over the cobblestones before twisting her ankle.

There are two truths about Brazilians: They are good-looking, and they know how to move. Locals explain it by saying that the strongest men and loveliest women were born here or came here and stayed. And they’re graceful because they use dance in everything: religion, protest, romance.

Candomble, the Brazilian blend of Catholicism and African rituals, received its name from the word Nigerian Yorubas use for “dance of the spirits.” And the lethal martial-arts maneuvers of capoeira were invented by Africans brought here as slaves. When plantation owners felt threatened and banned capoeira, the movements became more like a dance or game with two people performing choreographed handstands, cartwheels and legs kicks. The pace is set by a drum, a tambourine and the twangy berimbau, a long, one-string instrument with a painted hollow gourd that adds a deep haunting sound.

Candomble dances and capoeira matches are included in many Bahia restaurant shows. Street performers, hoping to earn a coin or two, demonstrate their versions in the city squares that overlook the turquoise water of the city’s bay.

It was this bay that first lured Italian navigator Amerigo Vespucci here on All Saint’s Day in 1501; he called his discovery Baia de Todos os Santos (Bay of All Saints).

Portuguese settlers followed almost 50 years later with royal orders to create a capital city. They fought the native Indians, the Dutch and the Spanish, and on a bluff overlooking the bay, they used slave labor to build large squares anchored by stone churches and lined with three-story manors painted coral, cream and pistachio.

“Brazilians love it so much here that when they arrive at the airport they kiss the ground and say, ‘Finally, I’m in Bahia,’ ” said Cloves Luiz Oliveria, a political science professor at the University of Salvador, who was a guest lecturer on our ship.

The city’s culture center

A steep bluff separates central Salvador’s lower bayside (Cidade Baixa) from the upper cultural area (Cidade Alta). The fastest, least expensive way to go from one to the other is on the modern Lacerda elevator or the funicular railway. Each takes less than a minute and costs a few cents each way, while a taxi or a bus takes 15 minutes and costs a few dollars or more.

The year-round steamy climate is like summer in Miami; it seldom dips below 72 and can shoot up to 100. We explored the streets of the upper city and discovered that it was designed for endless sunny days. There are no coverings over the walkways, windows or wrought-iron balconies. Restaurant tables and chairs overflow onto the streets.

“Bahians are very friendly, very sociable,” said Bruno Victoria, a tour guide with the company Tatur Turismo, (www.tatur.com.br) “They want to be outside and see the people, carts, movement.”

We found that the best people-watching spot is in the Pelourinho, or Pelo for short. All the pedestrian-only streets in this historic district lead to the open square where slaves once were sold and punished. (Pelourinho means “whipping post.”) Tour groups meet here, as do the poor, who gather around visitors to beg or perform, like the barefoot boy we saw juggling three green coconuts.

At the center of this beehive is the Jorge Amado Museum. Amado, the son of a cocoa farmer, is Brazil’s most famous author; he moved to Salvador in 1926 when he was barely a teenager and wrote 32 books, including “Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands” and “Gabriela, Clove and Cinnamon,” before he died at 88 in 2001.

There was no charge to explore the small galleries in the museum that displayed portraits of Amado taken by his wife, Zelia Gattai, along with covers of his books, which have been translated into 50 languages. When we were done, we sat on the front stone steps, watched people pass by and pointed out the heartbreaking beauties and shy loners who could have been among his characters.

Along the upper city’s old streets were tiny shops that stocked crocheted dresses and handmade berimbaus. Jewelry stores had silver reproductions of balangandans, ball-shaped amulets that were given to slaves by Portuguese families; if they collected seven, they received their freedom.

Easels outside the many art galleries held paintings with explosive colors depicting Candomble religious ceremonies. The Afro-Brazilian deities, or orixas, dance on canvases in yellow, red and blue dresses that signify their powers.

“Religion is seen in the colors, art, music, dance and food of Bahia,” said tour guide Victoria. “Colors honor the different spirits. And the spirits guide you through your problems.”

At Jesuit Square in front of the old basilica, women in layered white skirts set up stands and cook acaraje, palm-oil fried bean balls stuffed with shrimp. Acarajes are eaten here, says Victoria, “as often as Americans eat hot dogs.”

Bahian food borrows heavily from Africa, especially in the use of dende (palm oil), coconut milk and spices. A distinctive dish is bobo de camarao, shrimp with manioc (a powdered root) and coconut milk. Restaurateur Aldacir dos Santos, whose nickname is Dada, has three well-regarded Bahian-style restaurants in Salvador, including the elegant Sorriso da Dada in the Pelo.

Entree portions here are always large enough for two people, because as a local explained, “No one here would go to a restaurant alone.”

One night, we went overboard with food at a Brazilian churrascaria, which puts the best all-you-can-eat Sunday brunch to shame. At Villas Churrascaria, we ate seemingly every part of several animals. An endless buffet of self-serve delicacies was supplemented by waiters who came to our table with skewers of lamb, pork, beef, boar, chicken and sausage. They didn’t stop carving until we changed the green “go” sign on the table to the red “stop” sign. Then it was time for a flourless chocolate cake made with rich Brazilian cacao.

On the bay

A few steps from the ground-level elevator on the bay is the Mercado Modelo, a two-story yellow building that once was the Customs House and is now stuffed with souvenirs, from hammocks to those can’t-escape-them soccer shirts. From here, we took a 15-minute taxi ride south of the city center along the busy coast road to the Barra district, known for its nightlife and beckoning beach.

In the late-afternoon sun, we saw joggers and couples navigating along the boardwalk and whip-fast soccer players sharing the vast stretch of sand with picnicking families that were shaded under brightly colored umbrellas.

At the top of a knoll that juts over the water, the 16th century fort, Forte de Santo Antonio da Barra, and a lighthouse have views of the bay and the Atlantic Ocean. On the grass, couples lounged on blankets and sipped ice-cold Skol beer or Guarana Antarctica, a carbonated fruit drink.

When the sun set, we wandered back to the buzzing boardwalk where neon signs and strings of competing colored lights flickered. White-shirted waiters stood in front of salmon-colored stucco restaurants and the night hues of Salvador took their turn to shine.

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Brazil, vivacious and laid-back

GETTING THERE:

From LAX, connecting service (change of plane) to Salvador, Brazil, is available on American, Continental, Delta, Copa and Lan. Restricted round-trip fares begin at $1,286.

Getting to the island of Boipeba is trickier. For a price, innkeepers can arrange private transportation from Salvador by small plane or boat. The less-expensive route begins at the Sao Joaquim ferry terminal in Salvador, where you take the 25-minute catamaran ferry to Bom Despacho, Itaparica ($2.50). From there, hop on a bus to Valenca or Graciosa ($5), a two-hour trip. Boats leave Graciosa at 2 p.m. daily for the 2 1/2 -hour trip to Boipeba ($5). Or your inn can arrange for a speedboat to get you there faster (from $125 for up to six people). If you land in Valenca, catch the bus to Torrinhas (11 a.m. or 2 p.m. every day but Sunday; $5), which connects to a boat waiting to take you on a one-hour ride to Boipeba.

TELEPHONES:

To call the numbers below from the U.S., dial 011 (the international dialing code), 55 (country code for Brazil) and the local number.

WHERE TO STAY:

In Salvador

Pousada do Boqueirao, 48 Rua Direita do Santo Antonio; 71-3241-2262; www.pousadaboqueirao.com.br. Ricky Martin filmed his “Jaleo” video in one of the 10 rooms, which have sheer curtains that flutter when the bay breeze comes through the French doors. Rates begin at $85 for two, including breakfast, except at peak times (Dec. 26-Jan. 4 and during Carnival).

Pousada Redfish, 1 Ladeira do Boqueirao; 71-3243-8473; www.hotelredfish.com. This 18-room hotel, a 10-minute walk from the main square, offers modern amenities -- air conditioning, refrigerators and Internet access -- and authentic regional charm: 12-foot-high ceilings, plantation shutters and balconies with bay views. Doubles from $112. Includes a full breakfast.

Vila Gale, 320 Rua Morro Escravo Miguel; 71-3263-8888; www.vilagale.com.br. This 200-room hotel with cookie-cutter rooms but ocean views is an easy walk along the mosaic-stone boardwalk to the Barra’s restaurants and bars. Doubles begin at $177.

In Boipeba

Pousada Santa Clara, 75-3653-6085, www.santaclaraboipeba.com, is tucked among the banana trees and other tropical foliage a short walk from the beach. Mosaics, ceramics and other artwork on the grounds complement the brightly painted bungalows. The dining room is a giant palapa in the middle of it all where the dishes and drinks are divine. Doubles begin at $40, depending on season and room size. Entrees in the restaurant: $12.

Pousada Vila Sereia, 75-3653-6045, www.ilhaboipeba.org.br/en/vilasereia.html. Best option if you want to stay right on the beach. Four two-story cabins with patios, hammocks and sea views. Some have outdoor showers with a view. Pretty garden. Doubles from $89.

Pousada Sossego, 75-3653-6009, www.ilhaboipeba.org.br/en/sossego.html. Threadbare rooms in the village at rock-bottom prices. Friendly atmosphere. Tours and guiding services available from Marcos. Doubles from $28.

WHERE TO EAT:

In Salvador

Maria Mata Mouro, 8 Rua Inacio Accioli; 71-3321-3929, www.mariamatamouro.com.br. The dining room has dark wood panels and a handful of tables with crisp linens. I chose the covered patio to sit among the vines and enjoyed a glass of Casa Valduga wine and fish stew. The cost was about $32.

Sorriso da Dada, 5 Rua Frei Vicente; 71-3321-9642. Known for its authentic Bahian cuisine. Entrees $12-$41.

Villas Churrascaria, 2326 Avenida Otavio Mangabeira; 71-3240 2546. Unlimited amounts of quality food and condiments at this busy churrascaria. Entrees $14-$40.

Trapiche Adelaide, 2 Praca dos Tupinambas; 71-3326-2211, www.trapicheadelaide.com.br. This elegant restaurant in the ritzy Bahia Design Center, which houses fine-art galleries, wine shops and boutiques, dishes up a luscious bay view along with Italian and French cuisine with a regional twist. Our group of six started with a bottle of Brazilian Dom Candido Reserve Merlot and three appetizers: fresh salmon carpaccio with toasted almonds, filet mignon carpaccio with truffle oil and a pear salad with goat cheese. For entrees, we ordered succulent prawns, shrimp, beef filet, quail, duck and risotto. Rich desserts of caramelized walnut terrine with mango, whipped papaya with cassis liquor and melted chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream had to be shared. About $40 a person.

In Boipeba

Guido’s is on one of the island’s prettiest beaches. Just keep walking until you get there. Guido pulls down one of the plastic tables he stores on the branches of a shade tree, sets you up at the tide mark and gets to work on his portable stove cooking fresh lobsters. Lunch for one: $7.

Mar e Coco is a place to sit on a beach chair, order a beer and enjoy the catch of the day prepared any number of ways: stewed Bahian style in coconut milk and palm oil, fried or grilled. One of many such places. This is the best in Morere, a nice long walk from Boipeba village. Dishes for two: $18-$22.

Barraca Brilho do Sol is the best beach seafood joint in Boipeba. Similar menu to Mar e Coco. Dishes for two: $18-$22.

Panela de Barro in the heart of the village, near the pharmacy, simple Bahian home cooking. Not fancy, but hearty. Open for lunch and dinner. $8 per meal.

WHAT TO DO:

In Boipeba

Grab one of the guys walking around the island wearing “guia turista” shirts. Or have your hotel recommend a guide. They can arrange most any activity for you. Prices negotiable.

Take a day-long hike into the more remote parts of the island ($15), snorkel in the tidal pools ($15), or have a harrowing jeep journey to the more developed party town Morro de Sao Paulo ($50). Horseback riding can also be arranged, as well as sailboat cruises. Or you may opt for a tractor on the sandy mountain path that serves as the island’s de facto road.

Long walks on beaches, lazing around in hammocks and gazing at the ocean while sipping the juice out of a coconut are fine ways to pass the time. Or stroll into town to watch a soccer match.

TO LEARN MORE

Bahiatursa Information Office, 12 Rua Francisco Muniz Barreto, 71-3321-2463; www.bahia.com.br or www.braziltourism.org.

Assn. of Residents and Friends of Boipeba, Rua Comendador Madureira, www.amabo.org.br.

Brazilian Consulate, (323) 651-2664, www.brazilian-consulate.org.

-- Janet Eastman and Evan Halper