Around 180km, between the cities of Itacaré and Canavieiras, form the so called Cocoa Coast. Home to nature wonders, rivers flanked by cocoa farms, beaches of vast untouched coconut groves amid the Atlantic Forest and dense mangroves, the region enchants for its landscapes and the opulence of the golden years of the “black gold”. The architecture preserves the colonial houses of the 18th and 19th centuries, in streets paved with stones, churches and old mansions, important part of the national history that date back to the period when the production and exporting of cocoa were the primordial activity of the Brazilian economy. Scenery of movies, soap operas and novels – most of Jorge Amado’s work, translated in several countries, is set in Ilhéus, main city of this coast – , the region besides being part of history is the right destination for those looking for fun and close contact with nature. (Search:
Bahia)
Ilhéus is the setting for "Gabriela, Cravo e Canela", the famous novel by Jorge Amado and that turned in soap opera.
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| Ilhéus beach |
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| Ilhéus Cathedral. Photo flickr by kikolaus |
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| Bar Vesúvio, em Ilhéus.The bar gained fame with the novel Gabriela Cravo e Canela. Photo flickr by José Gustavo Abreu |
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| Ilhéus, historic center |
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| Ilhéus city hall. Photo flickr by kikolaus |
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| Jorge Amado, Bahian writer. Photo flickr GovBA |
Canavieiras, Ilhéus, Itabuna, Itacaré, Santa Luzia, Una and Uruçuca offer a variety of options for tourists. The abundance of beaches includes from surfing and fishing spots to calm waters and true deserted paradises. Extreme waterfalls – like Cleandro’s, in Itacaré-, rivers and rapids are an invitation to practice adventure sports such as rafting, rappel and canoeing. (Search:
bahia)
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| Itacaré |
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| Cachoeira (waterfall) do Cleandro, Itcaré. Photo flickr by Mario Suzuki |
The southern region of Bahia is known as one of the three major cocoa producers in Brazil, along with the poles of the Amazon (Para and Rondonia) and the Espirito Santo. Chocolate is a global product for a long time, but its story does not recognize the importance of farmers in southern Bahia. Here was created this boon crop in monoculture born ecological, imitating the forest. Then it migrated to other lands of Venezuela, Puerto Principe, Ecuador, Ghana, Nigeria, Indonesia, Malaysia and Ivory Coast. But in none of these places cocoa added much value to the ecology and biodiversity as in southern Bahia. It's true that in these countries, the "fruit of the gods" fulfills its social function in a highly "cooperativado" (co-op) system, supporting thousands of poor families while here, concentrated wealth for a long time. But that changed, and cocoa in southern Bahia is produced currently in a majority of small and medium farms, many of them obtained by the movement of agrarian reform. Thus, the production of southern Bahia has aggregated beyond the biodiversity values, the values of social inclusion and strengthening of traditional communities of small farmers in the region.(
blogdogusmão)
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| Cocoa tree |
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| Cocoa fruit |
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