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| The City of Cachoeira |
The city of Cachoeira was founded in 1674 on the along the banks of the Paraguaçu River. Cachoeira is about 110 km from Salvador
(see map) It was a colonial center to ship sugar cane, tobacco and cotton to Salvador and then out of the country. It still serves as a center of shipping and commerce. It also has wonderful examples of colonial architecture.
We visited Cachoeira on Aug 15 which is also the Feast of the Assumption in order to see the procession of
Nossa Senhora do Boa Morte (Our Lady of the Good Death). This is an organization of women over the age of 40 in veneration of Mary. They carry out good works around the area. The procession is a big draw and the street was very crowded outside the chapel.
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| Some of the women from the procession |
As I said above, Cachoeira also has excellent examples of colonial architecture:
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| The Amazing Ms. D enjoying a beautiful day |
Since this is such an important feast day for Cachoeira, the whole town comes out to party
For lunch we crossed the Paraguaçu River to the town of Sâo Felix and climbed the hill to the
Fazenda Santa Cruz. This old estate and farm has been turned into a restaurant and pousada. It sits overlooking the towns of Cachoeira and Sâo Felix. The building beautiful and it has fantastic chairs that have been carved in one piece out of wood.
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| Looking a Cachoeira |
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| Around to pool |
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| poolside seating for two |
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| The Amazing Ms. D on the veranda |
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| out the door of our dining room |
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| The Paraguaçu River and nearby dam |
After lunch it back to Sâo Felix and the
Dannemann Cigar factory, along the riverfornt
(see map). The wrappers for their cigars are locally grown and they wrapped in the area, although this factory is really more for show. The building has been turned into a cultural center and art exhibition hall.
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| Making cigars |
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| courtyard at the Dannemann Factory |
This was a wonderful trip away from Salvador.
Our day at Cachoeira was great. I'm not big on religious processions but this one was special. The ladies were resplendent in their white lace and layer after layer of amazing jewelry. We all wore white as a symbol of respect for the proceedings. The lunch up the hill at Santa Rosa was great. It was laid out in the country home of a local family. The rooms were airy and inviting and the spread delicious and plentiful. Our hosts were family members who took great pride in presenting food from their own kitchen. Brazil is a paradise for seafood lovers like me. I didn't have one bad meal the whole time I was there. Many of the restaurants we patronized grew their own produce and acquired their fish from the ocean just a few yards away. Everything was fresh and organic making the taste of the simplest fruit explode in your mouth. I must have put a real dent in their mango crop production. Mmmm. I feel my hips expanding just thinking of those juices fruit slices for breakfast every morning. AMD
ReplyDeleteWe participated in the procession at Cachoeira, on the day of the Festa do Boa Morte, the Festival of the Good Death, celebrating the easy death and ascension of Mary to heaven. Lots of music, drumming and joy as we joined the many people walking behind the sisters and the statue of Mary along the main streets of Cahoeira. Afterwards, our guide, Josuel took us to Fazenda do Santa Cruz which is an old hacienda converted into a restaurant. We met the owner, Dora, and she actually laid out our meal and graciously answered my questions as to dishes we were about to eat. Delicious!! As Jonathan said, the views from the restaurant are spectacular!!
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