Candombole... oh dear!

Siamo a Salvador di BAHIA (come mostrano le foto qui sotto).

Visto che ci piove in testa da 2 settimane abbiamo deciso di fare un fuori rotta di 22 ore di bus (spezzando in mezzo) per cercare il caldo e.....arrivati a Salvador piove a dirotto. Niente da fare. Abbiamo deciso di prenderla con filosofia. Le cose da vedere assolutamente qui sono .....CAPOEIRA´(danza-arte marziale) e CANDOMBLE ( religione animista esoterica nata tra gli schiavi Africani e tuttóggi praticata.....un po´tribale un po´voo doo, molto animista). Insomma, ci organizziamo per andar a vedere, o meglio "essere invitati in cambio di danaro" a sta cerimonia (visot che tutti dicono non essere aperta ai turisti) complice il nostro ostello ed una guida locale.

Alle 19.00 la "guida" ci viene a prendere all´ostello e vedendo che Charles ed io stiamo giocando a dama lancia una sfida a Charles mentre aspettiamo gli altri......e BARA......la nostra guida bara per vincere a dama con Charles. Inventa regole regole mai sentite dicendo che e´cosi´che si fa a BAhia.....rimaniamo interdetti ma infondo siamo gia´in spirito CANDOMBLE´quindi Checce frega "stamo pe fa´nésperienza vera aoh!!!!"

Veniamo caicati con altri turisti su un bus. Il mini bus viaggia 45 minuti in mezzo alle favelas......poi arriviamo a sta casa e ci ritroviamo tra 35 turisti e 3 Brasiliani disperati senza vestiti e come appare da subito senza gente per mettere in scena lo spettacolo. Riescono a tenerci tutti seduti pe r2 ore mentre due improbabili attori portano a termine la loro pagliacciata tra urli, finte sessioni di trans e le risa di altri giovani Brasiliani unitisi a noi . IL tutto e´ talmente ridicolo che io e chalres non riusciamo a mantenere un´espressione seria.....dopo quasi due ore ci alziamo, usciamo prima della fine del rito e cominciamo a confrontare il nostro scetticismo con quello degli altri malcapitati.

Le reazioni sono dal candore assoluto (che figo sto rito che emozione) allo scetticismo totale (ma stiamo scherzando, questa e´una farsa).´

Essendo l´énnesimo trucco mangia soldi per turista che Salvador ci infligge decidiamo di non lasciarlo passare. La mattina seguente chiediamo all´hotel di chiamarci la guida (che la sera prima se l é data ben prima della fine della sessione) e diamo lúltimatum. O ci ridate i soldi o vi denunciamo per frode.

FIngono stupore (ma per soli 10 secondi) e poi capisco che uno dice alláltro in portoghese " questo e´il solito problema di sta signora....se fai lo spettacolo lo devi fare bene, devi fare vedere al turista quello che si aspetta" E fondazmentalmente gli do´ragione. Se avessere almeno provato a fre le cose ben bene io non avrei saputo fare la differenza tra un rito vero ed uno finto.

EPILOGO: Ci hanno subito ridato i soldi e tutto questa avventura ci ha fatto conoscere una coppia molto simpatica, Cristina e Kurt, con la quale abbiamo finito la serata al bar a bere CAipirhinas.

Questa e´solo la ciliegina sulla torta per Salvador, posto veramente belle e tristissimo allo stesso tempo. Qui i BAhiani sono diventati troppo scaltri e la gentilezza brasiliana e´quasi completamente scomparsa. Altroche CANDOMBLE, celebriamo la morte di un altro paradiso terrestre.....alla nostra maniera.!!!!

So we have arrived in Salvadore. A beautiful colonial town 24 hours drive north of Rio.

The home of Capoeira, Samba and many more. The spiritual heart of Afro-Brazillian culture. To get us in the mood we thought we would treat ourselves to a night of Candonbole. A unique fusion of African mysticism, Native indian religion. A slave religion... hidden through the centruries from the slave masters inside Portughese catholocism. A now liberated religion, celebrated to the driving sounds of African drums. Or so goes the story...

We signed up to our night of Candombole with high expectations. We were to be picked up from the hotel by a guide, who would then escort us out into the Flavellas (slums to the uninitiated). We would be safe in these unsavioury environs due to the religious nature of our visit. Our guide would explain to us the rites, the do`s and most importantly the dont`s en route. We would then be privelaged to share in the locals communion with their spirits.

The guide arrived promptly at seven. Alessia and I were engaged in a game of checkers. The guide, seeing Alessia`s precarious situation took over playing her side. After inventing a few rules (how we play in Brazil etc etc.) he cleaned me off the board. Not to worry...

We then boarded a mini bus (an intimate gathering... ok). We then proceeded on a tour picking up passengers until the bus was full. At this point we headed out into the wild slums of Salvador. We drove up and around twisting streets, with the ever present voice of our guide expaining about Indian spirits, posession, african influence etc, finally arriving outside a house in a dirty little street. We were all then escorted into a white walled room. to sit with the other 20 or so foreigners who were already there...

In the room there was a man in traditional cosume playing the drums, a man at the front and a woman in traditional dress sitting on the side. Once we were all seated, they began... The man started playing the drums as the woman went to the front door and started yelling at their neighbours to come over. The neighbours duly obeyed. On arrival each was told (it is a bitch when you can kind of follow the local language.. it is not disimilar to Italian) who was to go into a trance and when. So they also assumed seats in the crowd to await their turn.

Meanwhile, the man at the front (who looked more like an Iraqui army general than an Afro spiritual leader) started to shake and convulse. He then proceeded to stand up, feint a few times before walking out the back toget changed. He reappeared shortly thereafter with a floral sheet draped around his mid drift, and wearing a leather version of an Irish potato farmers hat (if you don`t know what that is just say it isn`t flattering). Oh... and he was smoking a cigar.

Let us just say that night just went downhill from there. A number of people proceeded to go into a trance one by one. This involved alot of shaking and girating. In the womens case it also involved sqarking.

An hour later and Alessia and I both stood up and walked out. However, in the meantime may I leave you with this image. One of the women who originally overcome with spiritual feeling was a 60+ year old woman of african descent. She had freaky grey hair that managed to point straight backwards and was still blessed with at least two teeth.

Well when this woman was overcome she went out the back and proceeded to change into a floral boob tube and floral (sheet) skirt. She then proceeded to act out her possession very energetically... and sweatedly for the next hour.

When we left, we left her there, standing in the centre, still twitching occassionally, intermitently smoking on her cigar or blowing the smoke back out between her two remaining teeth.

We are happy to say we got out money back... well Alessia did anyway.

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