African Brazilian Heritage Rio & Salvador

Day notes

After arriving at Rio de Janeiro International airport we will be transferred to our hotel. Welcome to the Cidade Maravilhosa, Welcome to Brazil, Samba Country!

Lunch at Hotel (Buffet)!

Depart in our bus for visit to Hippie Fair in Ipanema where you will have a chance of purchasing some nice handcrafted pieces of souvenir!

The Ipanema Hippie Fair (Feira Hipe) has been held in the Praça General Osório, in the Ipanema neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro Brazil, every Sunday since the 1960s. It started as a rather small affair, organized by Hippies to sell crafts and who knows what else. 

Over the years, the Ipanema Hippie Fair has evolved into a major arts and crafts market, showing off the works of some of the city's best artisans.

It's held every Sunday, rain or shine, from 9 am - 5 pm. The Praça General Osório takes up an entire city block, bordered by the major streets Rua Visconde de Piraja and Rua Prudente de Morais. The smaller Rua Teixeira de Melo and Rua Jangadeiros, run to Ipanema beach and enclose Praça General Osório on its north and south sides. It's located in the northern section of Ipanema, two blocks from the beach, and pretty close to the southern end of Copacabana Beach. 
 

The Ipanema Hippie fair is a very well organized market, with covered vendor's stalls set up around the entire perimeter of the park. In the center of the park, painters show off and sell their latest oils, watercolors, and other pictures.

The place is crowded with locals (Cariocas) and tourists all day long. Some vendors accept credit cards, but cash is king here. Vendors will usually accept Euros and u$, although they prefer payment in Reais. 

The Ipanema Hippie Fair is not a flea market, so you won't find used items or bargain-basement prices. There are, however, medium to high-quality arts and crafts sold at the most reasonable prices you'll find in Ipanema. It's the best place in town to pick up some souvenirs, and it's a mandatory stop for all tourists visiting Rio de Janeiro.

In addition to arts, crafts, leather goods, paintings, and Tee-Shirts - other assorted cheaper goods are sold. Below, we recommend the best of the Ipanema Hippie Fair. 

Then we will continue to Sugar Loaf!

In the evening we will have one of our first real Tastes in Brazil. Dinner at a typical Churrascaria!

Day notes

After breakfast we will be picked up at our hotel and will be taken on our tour:

Today we will visit one of Rio de Janeiro highlights and a world's icon: the Corcovado Mountain. Afterwards we will visit the heights of Santa Tereza for Lunch at Aprazivel Restaurant with a great view to the city! Then we will visit Downtown Rio on an African Heritage Tour passing by Mural Kobra &  Cais do Valongo! 

We will drive to one of the older parts of Rio called Cosme Velho, from where we take the train to the Corcovado Mountain with the gigantic statue of Christ the Redeemer (2.300ft above sea level). A modern swiss-made cogwheel rail climbs the mountain from its base at 15meters almost to the summit at 710 meters. The train trip up takes 17 minutes aprox, at a maximum speed of 15km/h. The trip down takes 22min, at a speed of 12km/h.

Located in Gamboa, the 2500 m² "Etnias" Panel  is signed by muralist Eduardo Kobra.

One of the largest graphites panels stared the world, according to the Guinness World Record, is the newest tourist attraction in Rio de Janeiro was inspired by the Olympic rings representing the five continents and received the name of “ethnic groups”. The art is signed by Eduardo Kobra, which has works spread over 20 countries, such as England, France, USA, Russia, Greece, Italy, Sweden and Poland.

The Valongo Wharf (Portuguese: Cais do Valongo) is an old dock located in the port area of Rio de Janeiro, between the current Coelho e Castro and Sacadura Cabral streets.

Built in 1811, it was the site of landing and trading of enslaved Africans until 1831, with the blockade of Africa banning the Atlantic slave trade to Brazil (but clandestine trade continued until 1888).  During the twenty years of its operation, between 500 thousand and one million slaves landed at Valongo. Brazil received about 4.9 million slaves through the Atlantic trade.

In 1843, the wharf was renovated for the landing of Princess Teresa Cristina of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, who was to marry the emperor D. Pedro II. The wharf was then called Cais da Imperatriz (Empress Wharf).

Between 1850 and 1920, the area around the old pier became a space occupied by black slaves or freedmen of several nations - an area that Heitor dos Prazeres called Pequena África (Little Africa).

In 2011, during the excavations carried out as part of the revitalization works in the Rio de Janeiro port area, the two wharfs - Valongo and Imperatriz - were discovered, one on top of the other, and, along with them, a large number of amulets and worship objects from Congo, Angola and Mozambique. The wharf was  designated a World Heritage Site in 2017.

Day notes

Today we will depart the hotel after breakfast. We will visit Cidade do Samba, or Samba City. Where the Samba Schoolls prepare along the year for the coming Carnival! Lunch is included!

Te rest of the day is free for your own explorations & discoveries!

Day notes

Today we will leave Rio with great memories and will fly to Bahia!

It is said to be the most African place in the world, outside Africa! Bahia is special.., it's Smells, the Food,  Music, the Dances! Bahia is Soul. Bahia is not only African, Bahia is also Brazilian!

Bahia is Magic!

We will check in at hotel and depart for lunch and on a  tour of Salvador Historic downtown area, an African Heritage Tour!

Tonight you will have a Welcome Dinner in Salvador!

Day notes

We will depart hotel after breakfast by private bus to visit some important African Brazilian Initiatives and Social Projects.

We will visit Calabar Community, take part on a Percussion Workshop and end at Steve Biko Institute for a Lecture on Afro-Brazilian Themes, lunch is included.

Steve Biko Institute

It was founded on July 31, 1992, on the initiative of black teachers and students who - pioneeringly - created the first "Pre-College" (Pré-Vestibular) course in Brazil with focus on black people! In many meetings in the gardens of the Faculty of Economics of the Federal University of Bahia in downtown Salvador and based on anti-racist struggles around the world, there was an urgent need to bring together black activism at the national level around Education.

The Institute emerges, therefore, seeking the insertion of african brazilians in the academic space as a strategy for their social ascension and the fight against racial discrimination.   The Education of the Institute is born differentiated, from the rescue of its ancestral values ​​from its students, based on the Black Awareness Movements spread by Bantu Stephen Biko in South Africa. Hence, the name of the Cultural Institute, chosen in honor to one of the fiercest fighters against Apartheid's racial segregation regime.

Day notes

Today we will leave by Bus to Cachoeira, at Recôncavo!  There we will visit Irmandade da Boa Morte Sorotity, as well as an MST Movement area!!

Dinner is included!

Day notes

Today we will have a lecture on that will give us Insights of Candomblé and on African-Brazilian Affairs!

Lunch included

PM at leisure for own Explorations and Discoveries!

In the evening we will depart hotel for Dinner at Restaurant Uauá! One of the best in town (typical Bahian Food)! Followed by Folklore Show at Miguel Santana Theatre!