Lavagem do Bonfim

So remember all of that stuff I said about attending the ultimate dance party and not drinking before 11am? Yeah, well, scratch all of it. Because the Lavagem do Bonfim festa, which I was at all day yesterday, is actually the ultimate dance party, and drinking beers before 11 is kind-of a must. At the time, I had no idea what the festival was celebrating. No one who knew could speak English, and the people who knew only spoke Portuguese. But I definitely understood that it was a celebration where millions (I think!) of people gathered at one church in the old city, and walked parade-like for 8km to another church, following the Bahianas and their offerings, with drums, horns, singing, dancing, costumes, and drinking. I found out that the march commenced at 9am, so the Aussies and I planned to head out around 8:45 to participate. I was advised not to bring anything valuable, so I stuffed some money into my shirt and went out with a bathing suit and dress on. Luckily, Meredith has an ancient 4megapixel camera that she is convinced a thief would reject, so she brought that. The line for the elevator that connects the Pelourihna and the Cidade Baixa was over a hundred people long when we got there, but they really cram folks in, so it moved quickly. When we got down there, it was mayhem. Everyone was dressed in white, the color that honors the head-honcho Orisha (Candomble spirit [syncretic African/Catholic religion of Salvador]), Oxala, who is also the Bonfim (young Jesus) (thanks Wikipedia. The “Ritual and Festivity in Brazil” course I took in undergrad had been consistently failing me since I got here). The drums were already sounding like mad, and the parade was moving at a pretty good clip. We jumped on board behind a lively band, and started marching! The parade was very, very different than parades in the States. No security, no barricades, no straight lines formed by band members, no spectators on the sidewalks. Yes alcohol, yes masses of musicians and vendors and people dancing together, yes riotous participation. Mitch realized that we would need a beer to be able to process the craziness, and he was right. We started dancing right away, and took some pictures with the Bahianas. But the day was quite hot, the hottest day since I’ve been here. Marching in the sun with tons of people through relatively narrow, breezeless streets exacerbated the situation. Meredith, Mitch and I were smart, though, maximizing shaded areas and taking breaks to cool down. After about 2km, I began to realize that I was one of the only people wearing black. Every Orisha has a color, and white is the color that does not offend any Orisha. I had no idea what black meant, I just saw that I was the lone black-wearer. So I bought a crazy white polyester tank top with a goddess standing in the ocean under the moonlight, and felt way more comfortable. Where else would that shirt make you fit in more than a light black sundress? Crazy. We walked and walked and danced through parts of town that we knew we most likely would never have ventured into had it not been a Carnaval-like day, with everyone off work and ready to smile and have a good time (indeed, the post offices were closed, all shops were closed, and the busses in the whole city weren’t running! Lavagem really is a big deal…). Right around noon, when the sun felt like it couldn’t get any hotter, we made it to the other Church (for all of you researchers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Nosso_Senhor_do_Bonfim,_Salvador). The party was getter louder and louder, and the women were singing on the steps of the church. We found a weird little zone under some trees in a plaza at the church and chilled for about an hour, letting the heat pass and working up an appetite. When we got up, we had tons of energy and decided to venture off onto some of the side streets, which were buzzing with block parties. Huge sound systems were set up anywhere where a live band wasn’t! The sense of fun and camaraderie was so palpable: no one was paid to perform; everyone playing truly wanted to be there. We met and danced with lots of crazy characters, taking us deeper and deeper into the neighborhoods of this part of town. Then Mitch spotted some water at the end of a road. A swim! Perfect idea. We walked down to the water, where we could see lots of people swimming along the banks, which were lined with make-shift “restaurants” (orange plastic tables and chairs) under shady trees. Meredith didn’t have a suit, so Mitch and I swam for close to half an hour, cooling off, splashing with kids, and waving to the men on the old wooden boats that drifted by. Soon we noticed groups of men on horses cantering along the water-side road, causing the motorcyclists and bicyclists to have to swerve to get out of their way. It was such a beautiful scene. The sun was lower and more golden, and had lost the power of its heat. We strolled along the water, observing this very local slice of life, with families and friends having bbqs, swimming and listening to music and laughing. We found a little pier that all of the young boys were jumping off of, so Mitch and I had a go. It was great fun. We turned around and began the 10 km walk home, feeling like we had experienced something really extraordinary. The people were drunker now, and as the sunlight waned their inhibitions increased. Lots of men started making very overt passes at we gringas, and we were glad Mitch was there to accompany us. We watched the sunset over the water, and made it home after nightfall, tired and ready for some food and some sleep. We had hamburgers and acai for dessert, and called it quits.

Today was tough after all of the excitement yesterday! I felt a bit sluggish all day. After breakfast with the crew, I went out to visit some of the shops in the Pelourihno, and wound up on a long, exhausting walk that included a lot of hassling by local vendors pushing their wares way too hard on a smiling tourist. By noon I was over it, so I took a nap in the hammock back at the hostel to escape the heat and the t-shirts, sarongs, purses, postcards, and local art on the streets. By 2 or 3, I was ready for a swim. A bus to the beach, where a fresh coconut and cool water were waiting, was uneventful but lovely. I watched the sunset over the water, took a shower, and got some grub. Now I’m out to follow the bands of drummers again, who are out and making much noise! Tomorrow I leave Salvador and head to Rio d Janeiro, where my friend is meeting me. The last of my alone time, for now!