Lisa's Brazil Adventure: Feeling colonial

Paraty - my favorite spot in Brazil.

Peter and I left Itamambuca Beach yesterday for Paraty (pot-a-tea or par -a-chee or other variations, depending on whom you ask). Paraty is a really old town on the Southern coast. It was colonized in the 1500s because it was a great port and was pretty much the main city for a long time. In the 1700's, Paraty was the finale of the "Caminho do Ouro" (Gold Trail) after huge gold deposits were found far away in the interior. In the 1800's, it became a major part of the coffee trade and was the center of the cachaca (native Brazilian hooch made from sugar cane) distilleries. The main thing? It's very beautiful and they work really hard to maintain the historical integrity in the old part of town. Motor vehicles aren't allowed into the historical district (except on Wednesdays for deliveries).

I'm basically in love with Paraty and its beautiful colors... except for the freakin' mosquitoes. They are carnivorous. I have a bazillion bites on my legs and I was wearing bug spray. It was also HOT and Brazilians don't really believe in air conditioning. (OK, electricity is really expensive, so it's not a a silly belief.) Up at Peter's house in the mountains, it cools off quite a bit at night, but down at the coast it pretty much doesn't cool off at all. It was mid-80s the entire time I was there with high humidity. It reminded me a lot of being in Norfolk, Va., except I had AC there.

Me behind the wheel from Itamamabuca Beach to Paraty - a little over an hour's drive.

I really liked this artist's paintings. There are a lot of galleries and small shops selling a range of stuff in Paraty.

Little boats for sale. Check out the captain in the one on the left.

These doors are really big. All of the doors are oversized and the streets are giant paving stones without any fill in between. It's very easy to twist your ankle.

Many of the buildings have decorative columns.

The view across the tile roof tops from our room. When they need to replace a tile, obviously they don't want to put a bright red new tile in place. There are tiles that are glazed in special multi-colors that blend in with the old weathered tiles.

The purple door was really cool.

More cool streets.

Peter taking pictures this morning.

Behind the green door.

Old knocker.

The lamps look really great at night.

a side street

Capela de Santa Rita (Chapel of Saint Rita)

Capela de Santa Rita is the oldest church in Paraty. It was completed in 1722. This was the church of the white elite and freeman, former slaves. It is currently home to the Museum of Sacred Art. * This is from Wikipedia, so who even knows if it's accurate.

You can take harbor tours on any number of these colorful boats.

Yup - it's Colonial.

Our hotel, the Estelagem Colonial. Ricardo, the owner, is a Brazilian lawyer who was grew up in the house. There are portraits of his great great grandparents hanging on the wall. It only became a hotel in the last few decades.