Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
used to adorn the city with imposing public buildings, ornate squares and, above all,
churches. In the 1800s the region survived the decline of the sugar trade by diversifying
into tobacco and spices - especially peppers and cloves. Though the city has effectively
been in elegant decline since the nineteenth century - largely bypassed by
industrialization - today it's Brazil's third-largest city, a major port and oil-refining
centre with a population close to four million and a booming tourist industry.
Centro histórico
Salvador's
centro histórico
is built around the craggy, 70m-high bluff that dominates
the eastern side of the bay, and is split into upper and lower sections.
Cidade Alta
(or
simply “Centro”) is strung along its top, linked to the less interesting
Cidade Baixa
(the
old commercial centre, aka “Comércio”) by precipitous streets and the towering Art
Deco lift-shaft of the
Elevador Lacerda
. Cidade Alta is the cultural centre of the city,
and the section known as the
Pelourinho
is the groovy old district with colourful and
hilly winding streets, its most vibrant and beguiling neighbourhood.
3
Palácio do Rio Branco
Praça Municipal • Tues-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat & Sun 9am-1pm • Free •
T
71 3117 6492
The best spot to begin a walking tour of the city is at the
Praça Municipal
, the square
dominated by the impressive
Palácio do Rio Branco
, the old governor's palace which was in
use until 1979. Burnt down and rebuilt during the Dutch wars, the building features regal
plaster eagles added by nineteenth-century restorers, who turned a plain colonial mansion
into an imposing palace in 1919. The fine interior is a blend of Rococo plasterwork,
polished wooden floors and painted walls and ceilings. The exhibit inside, the
Memorial
dos Governadores
, houses pieces from the colonial era and portraits of former governors.
Memorial da Câmara de Municipal
Praça Municipal 3 • Mon-Fri 9am-6pm • Free •
T
71 3320 0308
On the east side of Praça Municipal lies the
Memorial da
Câmara Municipal
, the old
seventeenth-century city hall (the current, characterless, 1980s Prefeitura Municipal is
just opposite on the plaza), graced by a series of elegant yet solid arches and now home
to a small, well-presented museum. Exhibits chronicle the history of the city from its
founding by Tomé de Sousa (whose statue graces the plaza outside), including the state
legislature, and the history of the building, which dates back to 1660.
Museu da Misericórdia
Rua da Misericórdia 6 • Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm • R$6 •
T
71 3322 7355,
W
scmba.com.br
Housed in a grand and sombre mansion and church dating back to the 1650s, the
Museu da Misericórdia
is now a large colonial-period art museum with dazzling carved
Baroque ceilings, mahogany panels and period furniture throughout. Head up to the
GOING UP AND DOWN FROM THE OLD TOWN
The best way to zip between the Cidade Alta and the Cidade Baixa (for boat tours and the
Mercado) is via the 73.5m-tall
Elevador Lacerda
(24hr; R$0.15) on the
Praça Municipal
,
though it is best avoided late at night. Simply pay at the turnstiles and line up for the next car
(every few minutes). The elevator was designed by its namesake Antônio Francisco de Lacerda
and dates back to 1873, though it was given its current Art Deco makeover in 1930 and the
equipment has been replaced several times.
Further along the cliff, the
Plano Inclinado Gonçalves
(Mon-Fri 7am-7pm, Sat
7am-1pm; R$0.15), a funicular railway dating back to 1874, links Praça Ramos de Queiroz
(off Praça da Sé) with Rua Francisco Gonçalves in Cidade Baixa; it was reopened in 2014 after
a major three-year restoration.
