We continue our cruise up the east coast of brazil to the city of Ilheus. Founded in 1534 as vila de Sao Jorge dos Ilheus, it reached its heyday around the early 20th century when the cocoa business in the surrounding area earned it nickname “The Cocoa Coast”. During that time the city was one of the wealthiest in Brazil, and there was a building boom of elaborate “Cocoa Palaces” built by the upper class people. The industry then declined and so did the city, but in recent years much of the city has been restored. Tourists now come to this city of about 225,000 for access to the beautiful beaches up and down the coast, but the city does have another claim to fame. It is the city of Jorge Amado, Brazil’s most beloved author, whose novels such as Dona Flor and her Two Hundred Husbands have been translated into some 48 languages. Amado lived here while writing his first novel and his house is now a museum filled with artifacts of his life. Fans of Amado also come here to spend time at the Vesuvio Bar, the place where two of his best loved characters meet. After our walk around this easily walkable city we also spent some time in this very nice appointed bar/restaurant.
Six minute shuttle into town, took us to Cathedral Square, the town’s main square. Yes, only a 6 minute ride but at 10:00 when we left this morning the temperate was already registering 30 plus degrees - it was a hot one. We strolled along the mainly pedestrian streets just looking around, went to the local theatre and the artisan market, then strolled over to their version of Christ the Redeemer, called Praia do Cristo. We then strolled through the main Cathedral before stopping at the mentioned Versuvio Bar. Before heading back to the ship we did pick up some the infamous chocolates, yum.
Note: The cool thing about this Versuvio Bar is that when you walk in, everyone gets a card with bar code on it (there is a picture on the blog of this), you find your seat and when you order, the waitress keys in your order on what looks like a smart phone using your code. So, no separate bills are needed because at the end of your meal or drinks or whatever you take your card to the cash register (in the case of paying for more that just yourself you take as many of the cards that you going to pay for up the register), you pay and then the cashier gives you another card (or cards) to indicate that you have paid. Upon leaving each person must present a “paid” card to the hostess before leaving. I think this is brilliant and should be used in more places, takes the complication out of the separate bill thing because if you at the bar with many different people you can move from table to table basically taking your bill with you along the way.
A few pics of our hot day here, hope you enjoy…
Quote of the day: “To move, to breathe, to fly, to float, to gain all while you give, to roam the roads of lands remote. To travel is to live” - Ibn Battuta
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