SOUTHEAST BRAZIL - Brazil - page 159

of Christ. Dating from the
16th century, these images
were found within cavities in
the wall of the Igreja Matriz
during its restoration in 2003.
There are also a few streets
lined with Portuguese houses
and a number of civic build-
ings, the most impressive of
which is the Casa Esperança
on the waterfront. Built from
stone and wattle and daub
congealed with whale oil, the
exterior is whitewashed with
lime made from thousands
of crushed shells. The Casa
contains some faded but
original 17th-century ceiling
paintings and statuary.
P Casa Esperança
Av Altino Arantes 144. # 9am-
5pm Mon-Fri, 7-10am Sat & Sun.
R Igreja Matriz
Praça Major João Fernandes.
Tel [phone]. # 9am-noon
& 1-7pm daily.
E Museu de Arte Sacra
Rua Sebastião Silvestré Neves 90.
Tel [phone]. # 1-6pm
Tue-Sat. 7 ^

Waterfront at Vila Ilhabela with 18th-century cannon

the ferry arrives), Borrifos , São
Pedro , and Vila Ilhabela . The
latter has a few colonial rem-
ains. Rusting 18th-century
cannons adorn its waterfront
and there is a little avenue
of Portuguese buildings,
including a 16th-century
church, the Matriz de
Nossa Senhora d'Ajuda.
The island's other road is
a dirt track, usable only by
four-wheel drives, which
cuts across the interior from
Perequê into the park and to
the windward beaches. The
most spectacular of these is
the Baía de Castelhanos , a
perfect half-moon of sand
backed by rainforest covered
slopes. The island's longest
beach, and the best for
surfing, is Bonete which is
9 miles (15 km) south from
Borrifos village, along a
rough forest trail.
Ilhabela's forests are
dripping with waterfalls, but
many are either completely

inaccessible or reachable
only by trail. A short distance
inland from Perequê beach,
Cachoeira da Toca waterfalls
plunge in a series of little
cascades into swimming pools,
replete with water slides.
Cachoeira da Água Branca is
larger with more swimming
pools. It is an hour's walk
along a trail which begins at
the entrance to the state park,
a short distance beyond the
turn-off to Cachoeira da Toca.
Numerous shipwrecks off
Ilhabela also make it a popular
scuba diving destination,
despite the murky water.
} Cachoeira da Toca
Estrada Baía de Castelhanos.
# 24 hrs daily. &

Ilhabela 3
* 28,000. g from São Sebastião
to Perequê. n Praça Vereador José
Leite dos Passos 14, Barra Velha, (012)
3895 7220. _ Festa de Camarão
(Aug). www .ilhabela.com.br

One of Brazil's largest islands,
Ilhabela rises steeply out of
the Atlantic, a short distance
offshore from São Sebastião.
With a coastline sculpted by
dozens of bays and beaches,
it is covered in rainforest,
much of it cut by fast-flowing
mountain streams. Visitors
from São Paulo throng here
during weekends, but during
the week (outside of holiday
season), the island is all but
deserted. Much of the forest is
protected as part of the Parque
Estadual de Ilhabela and there
is plenty of wildlife, including
ocelots and several species of
primates. Biting flies, or
borrachudos , on the island
make insect repellent essential.
Ilhabela has just two roads.
One is paved and runs the
entire length of the western,
leeward coast. Most of the
numerous pousadas and
guesthouses lie here, as do
the villages of Perequê (where

Maresias 4
* 3,000. n Praça Pordo Sol, in
Boiçucanga, 4 miles (7 km) W of
Maresias, [phone].

South of São Sebastião lie
a number of beautiful beach
resorts. Maresias, the liveliest
of the lot, is busy with young,
hip Paulistanos at weekends
and holidays. Praia de
Maresias is famous for its
powerful surf, which has
been the site for many
international surfing com-
petitions. Toque Toque Grande
and Toque Toque Pequeno ,
6 miles (9 km) southeast, are
smaller, quieter beaches,
sheltered by rainforest-
covered spurs. There are
plenty of pousadas and
restaurants on, or just off, the
São Sebastião road, which
runs along the coast.

Visitors relaxing outside a café
in Vila Ilhabela

The archipelago of Ilha dos Alcatrez near São Sebastião, São Paulo