Salvador

 Salvador was a lot different than I had expected.  There were so many tourists!  I had no idea that the city was such a hot spot for tourists from all around the world.   This elevator costs 15 centavos, and it takes you from the higher level of the historic Salvador to the lower level, and it is the only 2-floor elevator I have ever paid to use.  Well worth it though.

Salvador is the oldest city in Brazil, and a lot of what its colonists left remains today.

 There is a lighthouse ("farol") located on the southwest tip of the city, where visitors are allowed to pay a fee and go to the top to get a better view of the city, as well as the ocean.  Unfortunately the weather wasn't so good during our stay.

 The city is located on the coast of Bahia, a state that is in the northeast of Brazil.  Though Bahia is considered "nordeste," it was very different from anything I'd ever seen in Fortaleza or Recife.  Recife, though unique, reminded me a lot of Ceará, but Salvador was a city completely of its own.  The culture had a lot more African influence than I'd seen in any other part of Brazil, due to the fact that it was a central port for importing of African slaves during the years of Brazil's colonization.

A view of the city from the top of the lighthouse.  

 One night we decided to treat ourselves to a real Bahian meal, which of course means seafood.  The traditional Bahian dress was worn by the waitresses at the restaurant, though I got the feeling that they just wore it to please tourists (I'm still skeptical about how common this type of wear is today).

 The meal included every type of seafood you can imagine, including a few that you can't imagine.  There was a few types of crabs, some lobster, shrimp, fish, and several types of shellfish.  My favorite was the type of soft-shell crab that is native to the region.  You eat it with the shell and everything, pretty crazy.  But good.  The best part of Bahian food, in my opinion, is the pimenta (hot sauce).  Their pimenta is some of the greatest stuff I have ever eaten in my life.