salvador

The tall buildings dot the skyline of Salvador. This historic town was once the capital of Brazil. Begining in 1549 until the role was transferred to Rio de Janeiro in 1763. Until then the city was the second most important Portugese capitol second only to Lisbon. This was due to its huge trade in sugar and gold. There are two sections of the city, the upper or Pelourinho, which is a Unesco World Heritage sight. The historic colonial architecture dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries, built atop a cliff. You can access this area either by an elevator, built in the 1930’s or a cable car on an inclined plane. The children prefered going up on the train, but both are spectacular!