Historic Salvador, our base for the FIFA World Cup

 We based ourselves in Salvador for the duration of the FIFA World Cup group games with a stadium ticket including a second round game and accommodation at Pousada Manga Rosa on the Barra waterfront.  The Pousada (boutique hotel) is right on the waterfront, a perfect spot for the town beach, restaurants and bars.

Founded in 1549 as it's first capital Salvador remained Brazil's most important city for over three hundred years. The wealth that this brought is visible in the gold filled churches throughout the old city.  From the foundation Salvador was built on transportation of slaves and has retained it's African influences of music, dance and arts. Salvador remains one of Brazil's most vibrant cities with a feel very different feel than the south of the country.

Igraja do Santissimo Sacramento do Passo

On arrival we were honoured to be met by one of Daniela's former students, Danilo and his father, Sergio and given a tour of the city on the way to our accommodation. Sergio said Daniela had looked after Danilo during his stay in New Zealand so he wanted to look after us in return, a great introduction to Salvadorian hospitality.

On the way to the Pousada we had to negotiate several roadworks and it soon became apparent that infrastructure improvements that had been planned for the World Cup were still underway. Over the next few days we were saddened that the business at the Forte Sao Diogo end of Praia de Barra had barriers up with the street being dug up in different places every day, the view being obscured by diggers and a constant hum of pneumatic drill. Not the peaceful, scenic place we thought we had booked. There was no way we would spend time on the beach with such disruption.

Once finished the Praia de Barra waterfront will be stunning.

The saddest thing of all was that every day huge progress was being made and you could see that with more organisation and planning it could have been beautiful. It has been incredibly frustrating as a tourist as what is clearly a lovely area has been quite unpleasant to walk around, must be even more frustrating for local businesses. Once finished the wide boulevard they are putting in will be superb and it must be hoped that the city and country benefits long term from infrastructure projects like this. A shame it is too late for the big event.

Our first trip to the Pelourinho, which is the old city was on the day of our first game. The Dutch fans had taken over the main square Terrerio de Jesus complete with live performers on stage. 

The old city is a UNESCO World heritage site and it's steep, cobbled streets and colourful stone buildings, are great to wander around. With churches everywhere you turn I can see why it is said Salvador has a church for every day.  As well as the World Cup our visit coincided with the Festival of Sao Joao (John the Baptist) so the streets were decorated with more than world cup bunting and frequent and random pyrotechnic explosions added to the mood. During the day it is a wonderful place to explore and soak up the atmosphere, though expect to see a lot of street vendors selling the usual tourist trinkets. 

We found a small streetside restaurant for a pre game bite to eat, meat rice and beans, a staple of our diet in Brazil and only 12 Reais, we were able to watch Mexico v Cameroon to get us in the mood.  Arriving at the stadium it encapsulated many of the concerns people have had over hosting the tournament here.  The stunning 600 million real Fonte Nova Arena is overlooked by Favellas showing the stark contrast of hosting the event here.  I will blog separately about the games themselves but in terms of organisation a few more signs directing people and at the first game a few more refreshment kiosks open were the only minor quibles.

Arena Fonte Nova

Early on game day Netherlands v Espana

The following day, Danilo's family further extended hospitality taking us on a day trio to some of their favourite Salvador spots, eating Ice Cream in the historic Sorveteria de Ribeira, founded in 1931. This huge ice cream parlour was packed with locals enjoying the dozens of locals indulging in the dozens of different flavours available.

Continuing along the Itapagipe peninsula we visited the beautiful. Igreja Nosso Senhor de Bonfim, the most important church in the Candomble religion. The iron railings are covered in thousands of Fitas, the seemingly omnipresent coloured ribbons which adorn wrists throughout Salvador. They are tied with three knots, each representing a wish which will come true by the time the ribbon falls off. Don't even think about cutting it! Services here are vibrant and melodic, very uplifting.

Igreja de Nosso Sehnor de Bonfim

We watched the sunset over Baia De Todos Os Santos, the huge bay which Salvador sits on the mouth of and which creates (apparently) the only place in Brazil where the sun appears to set over the sea.

In Barra itself the city had chosen Farol de Barra as the site for the official FIFA Fan Fest ™ where big screens, musicians and a zip line entertained huge crowds on match days. I blogged previously (here  ) on my disappointment that this site wasn't open every day but it was a perfect choice of venue and a complete success when open.

FIFA Fan Fest™ site viewed from Farol de Barra

The Farol (lighthouse) itself sits atop Forte de Santo Antonio de Barra and is home to the city's nautical museum which contains interesting artifacts from the city's seafaring history including the slave trade and an interesting ships in bottles exhibit. How do they do that?  Climbing to the top of the Farol gives a great panoramic view.

Forte de San Antonio de Barra

There is so much more to Salvador, we loved seeing the city embrace the World Cup, we loved the old town and enjoyed the history. Yes there were missed opportunities and the continued construction work around Barra was a disappointment but long term that work will only improve what is a wonderful city to visit.

Spirit of Enzo nominated for the Liebster Award

Spirit of Enzo's first blogging award!




A huge shout out to Dariel Lim tweeter at @wheresdariel and blogger at Where's Dariel? for nominating me for a Liebster Award, my first blogging award.

The Liebster Award is an online award given out by fellow bloggers to new bloggers with under 500 followers to congratulate them / highlight their blog. It is a great way of networking and introducing new people and sharing ideas in the community and having a bit of fun.

The Rules

Thank the blogger who gave it to you.
Answer the eleven questions they ask you.
Nominate eleven bloggers with less than 500 followers.
Ask those eleven bloggers eleven questions.
Let those bloggers know that they have been nominated so they can continue the chain.

One of the rules I set myself when starting the blog was that I wouldn't let the writing take over my travels so I have taken a bit of liberty and stretched the number of followers slightly to speed the process but hope I've kept the spirit in keeping the numbers low.

So Dariel, here are my #liebsteraward answers;

1) Do you travel with luggage or backpack?

I've been travelling with a backpack since InterRail Europe in 1992 and I wouldn't give it up.

2) What would you do without the internet / wi-fi access for 1 week?

I'd miss being in touch with world news and football scores but I'd read more books which would be a good thing.

3) If you can only choose 1, mountains or cities?

Very tough one, cities would just swing it when travelling, mountains to spend my weekends when working.

4) Which country / city / island is at the top of your must-see  and why?

Of places I've been I was recently blown away by Rio de Janeiro so I'd recommend that. A phenomenal city in every way.

My must see but haven't is China, such a vast country with amazing history.

5) What is the weirdest food you have eaten?

I guess some would see Haggis as a bit out there!

6) Are you a dog lover?

I am but I have never had my own.

7) Which camera are you using for your blog?

I'm using a Canon Powershot. Chosen because it has a 20x zoom but is compact so doesn't look flash. Don't make yourself a target!

8) Do you plan your itineraries or play by ear?

Depends on the length of trip. A three - four week holiday is planned in detail to make sure we hit deadlines to see all the top sites. A long trip such as our current South America jaunt we'll see what the grapevine says and plan a day or two ahead.

9) Have you ever missed your plane?

Got very close to missing a connection in Amsterdam but no, I'm usually at the airport well ahead of the two hour check in.

10) Do you prefer to drive, fly or take the train?

You missed boat!  Of the other three, train is my favourite, there is something especially romantic about it.

11) Are you a Mac or Windows person?

Windows on laptop, Android on mobile.

My nominations are

@worldwidewriter      World Wide Writer
@shoestringblog           Shoestring Traveller
@her_travels                 Her and Her Travels
@kal_traveller              Kaleidoscope Traveller
@backpack_n_go          Backpack n Go
@roamingjason            Roaming Jason
@onenomadwoman    One Nomad Woman
@travelworkplay         Chuck and Lori
@asullivanwriter         The Craveable South
@backpackerbetty       Backpacking Betty

brand new on the blogging scene and already building a following on Twitter

@holsandbear              Hols and Bear

My questions are

1) What host and/or templates do you use for your blog?

2) What travel experience most changed your perspective on the world?

3) What/Where was your most memorable overseas meal?

4) Should reclining seats be banned on aircraft? ( @bemusedbackpacker posed this and I am fascinated)

5) You can go on a three month trip tomorrow, where?

6) Top five cities visited (not lived in)

7) Which are better books or e-books?

8) Top 3 brief pieces of travel advice.

9) Have you ever been robbed travelling?

10) Souveniers, essential or to much trouble to carry / post?

11) Photos, remain digital or printed and put in albums?


I look forward to reading your answers soon.

Rio De Janeiro, one of the top tourist destination cities in the world

If you haven't been to Rio de Janeiro, go. Trust me, just go. If you need more persuasion I'll do my best to do justice to this amazing city.  I have, fallen head over heels for Rio de Janeiro, its people, its vibrance, the food, the beaches, the climate and the views, oh, the views.

View from Christo Redentor to Pao de Asucar

We had six days here and I'm not going to diarise day by day, we saw so much, did so much and still leave behind a list of things we didn't do as long as the one we did. I always try to arrive somewhere new with as few expectations as possible, places are never quite what you imagine but somewhere as well photographed and as famous as Rio challenges this. The big ticket items, Sugarloaf (Pao de Asucar), Christ the Redeemer (Christo Redentor) and Copocabana are so well documented you can close your eyes and picture them before you get here.

We stayed in the bohemian hillside barrio of Santa Teresa, away from the most popular beachside suburbs of Copocabana and Ipanema where most visitors stay. We chose Santa Teresa partly on price and partly as it's laid back, chilled out reputation suits us better. We couldn't have made a better choice, Villa Leonor was a home away from home for a week with stunning city views and a very laid back vibe.

Villa Leonor, Santa Teresa

The stairs back up the hill were hard work after a night out in the vibrant samba party barrio of Lapa.  It seems every night is party night in Lapa, dancing in the streets, great weekend night markets selling good cheep food and bargain drinks to revellers out on the streets.

Vibrant street art, Lapa

The Centro area has a reputation for being quiet and a bit rough at the weekend and it makes sense to stay away from anywhere that is quiet in a big city. During the week though it is a typical busy business district with a wonderful feel to it, busy but still with the laid back South American feel that nobody is in too much of a rush. There are plenty of museums and art galleries, including currently a Salvador Dali exhibition at the Banco de Brazil cultural centre, so Sao Paulo doesn't have claim to all Brazil's culture. There are plenty of street side restaurants selling good value Executivo lunches to keep you fuelled.

So what of the big ticket items? Unlike most people we preferred Copocabana to Ipanema, it's wide boulevards and long curved beach are simply stunning, it offers a better range of beachside cafes and seems to revel in it's own take me as I am brashness where Ipanema tries to be the cool fashionable area, scenicaly possibly nicer but architecturally, not as attractive for us.

lively, brash, stunning Copacabana

Having lived away from Europe for so long it was amusing to see hawkers selling food, drink and souvenirs and vendors with their patch hiring deckchairs and sun shades. Great fun to see but I can't imagine these commercial activities on New Zealand beaches!

Observing the football kick abouts it was hard to know if this was a normal level of activity or World Cup related.

Kick about on Ipanema beach, count the balls

Visiting Christ the Redeemer or Christo Redentor using the tourist train provides amazing views and is a fun ride, the train is well serviced by local buses so there is no need to use a tour to get there.  We'd kept an eye on the weather forecast to get the clearest skies possible, for us a priority that trumped the recommendation not to go at the weekend to avoid the crowds.  Christ himself is the largest art deco statue in the world and is stunning, a marvelous piece of architecture overlooking a stunning city scape on one of the most spectacular harbours imaginable.

Christo Redentor or Christ the Redeemer

The views towards Pao de Asucar are breathtaking, and you can see why these views are some of the world's most famous.

Pao de Asucar or Sugarloaf

Bearing in mind we are here for the World Cup, the view over Estadio Maracana, one of the worlds top iconic sports stadia is quite spectacular.

Estadio Maracana

Views from Pao de Asucar are equally spectacular, as is the cable car ride up there, and the perspective on the city is so different I highly recommend doing both viewpoints.

There were plenty of football fans impressed by the England training camp and strained views of the team training far below. Being with so many fans of different countries it was clear the city was really getting into party mode.

Not a bad spot for some pre tournament training

Transport around Rio is easy. Apart from our taxi from the bus station that on arrival let's give him the benefit of the doubt and accept his reasoning for the long circuitous route as 'avoiding traffic' it couldn't be smoother.  Buses are easy to come by, operate a fixed fare per ride and go to all areas of the city. The metro, though a bit of a walk from our hostel is even better, clean, frequent, cheap and completely safe.  It is a city with everything, art, culture, bars and restaurants as well as spectacular beaches, chill out, explore or party the night away.  If there is a city that offers more to tourists than Rio de Janiero I haven't been there yet.

Estadio Maracana World Cup final venue 1950 and 2014, Flagged for Enzo

FIFA score major own goal in Fan Zone debacle

FIFA have scored a major own goal with the Fan Fests organised as a meeting place for fans to enjoy the games.  Thousands were turned away from the Salvador fan fest today unaware that these venues are only open for showing Brazil games and on match days in Salvador.

Lack of signage at the venue meant fans had no warning that games would not be shown.  We walked through the Fan Fest site twice this morning and there was no information that the games would not be shown.  Team colours of Columbia and England were in abundance with fans of Holland, USA, Spain, Germany, Italy, Portugal and France all wandering the streets looking for somewhere to watch the game having all converged on the Fan Fest expecting the games to be shown.  We spoke with some Australians of Greek heritage who had travelled 16k to be here to be part of the expected gathering.

An opportunity to encourage fans of all nations to gather and celebrate the games together has been lost. Money spent on setting up the venues has been wasted.  I can not fathom the logic in only opening these venues for limited games. On match days most travelling fans whether supporting the games played or neutrals are at the stadium, it is non game days when there is most demand for a place to watch games on a big screen.

A poor show from FIFA and an organisational mistake which reflects badly on Salvador and Brazil. With fans sharing stories of how good the Fan Fest in South Africa was this is a major disappointment. Once again it is the travelling, ticket buying fans who lose out.

Sun and good times in Paraty

The mere mention of Paraty sends people rushing for every superlative they can think of. It was, it seems a place you can't miss on this stretch of coast. A picturesque seaside village of whitewashed stone buildings and colourful fishing boats with cobbled streets so uneven as to make walking a challenge before the caipirinhas. Although aware of heading into winter we'd been caught out by how cold and wet Curitiba and Sao Paulo had been with un-seasonal wet weather putting a literal dampener on Bonito and The Pantanal so were ready for some sun.

The drive through the Costa Verde was a bit of a thrill seeker special.  Really? That speed, on that corner? The lush rain forest which cascades down from the high passes right to the waters edge is spectacular and as we travelled through, was hugged low lying fog and ominous cloud.  The white sand beaches below with paddle borders and surfers in the sea were calling out and we hoped the weather would break.

Most places are better in the sun and we'll allow the less than warm welcome we received at Backpacker House to be down to this. The pool from the pictures turned out to be a building site that threatens to become a pool one day and the bathroom was so small you could barely turn around in it, for the price you pay, accommodation in Brazil so far was more expensive and much worse quality than other countries, not a great start. Only a friendly word from some of the other guests cheered us up.  A stroll around the town in the rain left us wondering how far north we'd have to go to get some warmth, but with an equally strong feeling this would be a stunning spot in the sun.

The Iconic Paraty shot.

The next morning things were looking up! The sun was threatening a breakthrough and the rumoured breakfast proved to be every bit as good as we'd heard.  Sausage, eggs, the most amazing fruit selection, areal fill your boots feast. This was made even better by the chatter around the table. Lexi and Tosha from the USA and Philipp and Christiane and Martin were all on great form and a plan was hatched for an afternoon boat trip for a tour round the local beaches and islands.

A boat was hired, alcohol was sourced, ( Note, kids : Swim before you drink!) the sun came out and the scene was beautifully set. We set off for sea in good spirits and soon a beer was cracked open as we soaked up the long overdue warmth.  Pulling into the first bay we dived in for a swim / snorkel, the water was warm and inviting despite low visibility.  Climbing back aboard we scoured the bay, a known turtle spot and sure enough soon a turtle popped up to the surface for air. The first one I have seen in the wild.  I went back in for another snorkel and caught a brief glimpse of one though lost it quickly due to the low visibility.

 There is a turtle around here somewhere

The next bay was a calm secluded bay with possibly even warmer and certainly clearer water with fish circling the boat. It provided a perfect opportunity for the guys to show off their manliness playing with rope swings and jumping off cliffs, though, not being a fan of heights or underwater rocks there was a bit of a delay while I steadied myself for the jump.

A perfect afternoon was rounded off with the local Moqueca de Peixe (fish stew) on a small island beach. There is something unbeatable about eating seafood with the sand between your toes watching the sun go down.

The only thing to make the day more perfect was to take the helm of the boat on the way home.

The other passengers took special notice of the overhead lifejackets

The next day we checked out the options for a trip to the next small town Trinidade. A tour at $60R or the local bus for $7R which wasn't much of a decision. Local bus wins!  The trip was an easy 40 minute ride which drops you right near the beach so I'm unsure of the need for a guide. It is another stunning location but I would recommend keeping an eye on the waves. I am a decent swimmer but got picked up dumped on one shoulder flipped and dumped on the other shoulder which left me in significant discomfort for over a week, some beaches here say no swimming and I would take the advice.

We topped off the day with pizza (her), pasta (him) and caipirinhas (who do you think?) at Viva La Pizza, quite possibly the best pizza and pasta outside Italy.

While still patchy the weather was fine enough to explore and enjoy the town some more with the stunningly painted boats and beautiful whitewashed buildings it is the perfect seaside town, take care on those cobbles after a couple of caipirinhas at Viva La Pizza though!

Whitewashed buildings, cobbled streets and England bunting.

We had a great few days with great company and hoped to catch with some of the guys we'd met later on.

Is it hard to love a city like Sao Paulo?

As with all large cities there are many sides to Sao Paulo. To do a city of 19 million people justice in a few days is impossible, you certainly can't see it all in that time, all you can do is try to get an overview and a general feel for it. You can't avoid the huge disparity of wealth and level of poverty, something I've only previously experienced in, India.

Driving into Sao Paulo from Curitiba you drive past the hillside favelas and even though I was expecting the density of housing, the homes barely more than tarpaulin roofs covering the most basic timber structure and rough brick housing with basic tin roofs it was still saddening to see the reality. How does a country like Brazil begin to address the issues that lead to such vast numbers of people living in this way?

The question of living standards is impossible to avoid in Sao Paolo, every neighbourhood has homeless people on the streets, pop up tents in parks are permanent homes in many areas of the city. Tarpaulins tied to trees and lamposts as homes for me reminiscent of India.  All this is contrasted with a vibrant scene with Sao Paulo being the cultural capital of Brazil with multiple museums, art galleries and theatres.

We stayed at the new Wanderlust hostel in Santa Cecelia close to Republica, a central area close to a large student population. Republica itself is know as an area you need to be careful in with the central area generally being known for being rough, Santa Cecelia is just outside this area. Rodrego gave us a great welcome to the hostel which he runs with his father.  Rodrego took us out to the local supermarket to get some supplies to cook and showed us where we could eat if we chose to eat out.  Though we had headed north in some search of some warmer weather, Sao Paolo also proved cold and wet but the welcome largely made up for this.

Wanderlust hotel itself is basic, which you'd expect as it was the cheapest hostel we could find in the city but great staff can make up for it. Our first morning Rodrigo helped us plan a full walking tour taking in the major sites of the central area, deliberately saving the football sites for us for later on.  The tour took us through old railway stations through towards the more central business district where we took in the Banespa building also known as the Altino Arantes building which though not the tallest building, due to it's position provides the highest viewpoint.  The tower topping the building is reached via two elevators and a couple of flights of stairs.  The view is mind blowing, the sheer scale of the housing required for 19 million people becomes apparent, with skyscrapers and towerblocks ringing the city in all directions as far as you can see. Thousands upon thousands of high rise buildings stretching into the distance.

View from the Banespa building

Mixed in with this the green roofs of the cities central municipal cathedral stand out.

After this we took in the cathedral, an attractive building, more so from the outside. Interestingly the lunchtime mass had drawn a large crowd, a sign of the active worship in this part of the world.

Metropolitan Cathedral of Sao Paulo

We stumbled across a small square where a large number of people were engaged in frenetic activity which looked on first sight like some kind of illicit gambling or money exchange, I was more than amused it was a clearly arranged meeting point for swapping Panini world cup stickers where people were frantically trying to complete their albums before the finals begin on 12 June.  It was reminiscent of playgrounds of my childhood! Daniela couldn't quite believe it was grown men and women rather than children engaged so intensely in the swap meet.

Got, got, need!

My online album is coming along nicely, thanks for asking.

Entering the district around the Theatro Municipa de Sao Paulo the area was a bid crazy, street performers rapping dancing and performing,  the worst rendition of Sweet Child o' mine that I've ever heard.  I was getting a good feeling about the city, while still keeping my wits about me I was feeling pretty relaxed.

The next couple of days followed a familiar pattern, we got to know the Sao Paulo metro system pretty well as it is to big to walk even for us!  Taking in the impressive Afro Brazil museum in Ibirapuera park and Museum of Art Sao Paulo (MASP) which was largely closed for refurbishment but still had an impressive array of artworks by van Gough, Cezanne, Manet, Monet, Degas and the rest of the usual suspects, I did find myself wondering just how prolific some of these artists were as they seem to have exhibits in every major gallery. Of more interest to me were the Constable, Turner and Gainsborough which you see much less often.  Sao Paulo is without doubt the cultural capital of Brazil and we only touched the surface of it's museums and galleries.

On our last full day we moved to the suburb of Villa Mariana, checking in at Olah hostel for our last night, a last minute decision to stay an extra night meant our room at Sao Paulo Wanderlust wasn't available. Th move had benefits that we got to see another suburb and Olah is only a couple of minutes from Ana Rosa metro station which is on the line directly to the bus terminal, which is always a bonus.

We headed off to Pacaembu Stadium, which until the building of the new world cup stadium was home to Corinthians. The stadium itself is an old coliseum style design, very attractive from the outside with stone bench seating through most of the interior.

Estadio Paecambu 

It is worth a visit if you are a fan of sports stadia, as I am but the main reason for coming is the excellent Football Museum.  The museum displays are mostly explained in Portuguese with some English explanations included, though as most of the museum is visual, this doesn't matter. There is lots of archive footage of great moments in Brazilian football, the advantage of which is it by default includes great moments in world football history.

The FIFA World Cup history is told from a Brazilian perspective but we still manage to sneak in a picture of Bobby Moore as it tells the history of all world cups!

Jules Rimet still gleaming.

 I like displays which interweave local and world events so pictures of the Berlin wall coming down and Tiannamen square help place each competition in context.

Addition of Table football tables is a great idea, though some of the kids took a bit of elbowing out of the way for us to get a game!

The under seating display of video reactions to goals is loud and excellent, really adding to the atmosphere.

After the visit we sat outside the stadium taking in the view when a teenage girl approached us, I suspect dared by her friends and before we knew it we were a tourist attraction ourselves, having a great chat, translating between English, Spanish and Portuguese with a dozen of them who had just finished their own tour. Great fun.

So what more is there to say about Sao Paulo, a city of huge contrasting wealth, one with one of the best metro systems I have ever used making transport safe and easy one with friendly people and bags of culture.  It is hard to love a city with so many challenges but we had a great time there always feeling safe and welcome, and part of travel is to challenge what you know and to get out of your comfort zone and Sao Paulo certainly helps you do that.