New friends in Praia do Forte

The sun was out, and my classmates and I watched as the island Praia do Forte came to life. The sky was a soft baby blue, and the clouds looked like white cotton candy balls. The birds were singing, and the ocean was laughing. The cool breeze lifted the sound of the ocean waves, carrying its laughter into our ears as an invitation to come further into the island. To come to paradise and spend our last official day in Bahia Brazil. We started our day at 9 am with our most enchanting tour guide Simone. We boarded “the Beyoncé,” our new bus, that was considerably larger with an orange and red interior. The hour and thirty-minute ride to Praia do Forte felt shorter due to Simone’s suggestion that we listen to a concert performed by a famous Brazilian artist.

Our first site of the day were the beautiful ruins of the D’Avila Ruine Castle. According to Simone, this Castle had played a crucial role in warning the villagers when pirates from Europe were spotted on the ocean. The warning was a smoke signal that was often propagated through the villages all the way to Salvador, where soldiers would prepare for invasion. The castle walls were a mirage of light brown, black and gray colored stones. The arches of the castle indicated a sense of wealth and imposition to all those who visited. It was very clear that the previous owners had great taste in architectural design. The castle was originally three stories high, but only two stories survived its abandonment 150 years ago. Although it was not mentioned to us, I wondered where the slaves that built the castle lived.

Simone shared more interesting facts about whale hunting for oil used as building reinforcements, and the use of hollow Catholic statues to smuggle jewels and riches from Brazil to Europe. The castle resonated with my other classmates and me, mostly because we thought of ways to modernize the castle. A few of us, myself, Ejiro, Gabby and Brooklynne discussed the installation of an infinity pool and a human-made waterfall with a cave that had a private Jacuzzi inside. We thought this would considerably improve the beautiful aesthetics of the castle. I also wondered what it would be like to live in this place, so secluded from others. I found myself daydreaming about waking up to ocean waves and palm trees that kiss the sky in my backyard. I imagined large family gatherings, my future children running up and down the second and third floor of this castle, and a small pediatric office on the first floor by the house. At that moment, I realized that I wanted more for myself. In that castle, through the picture frame window, I gazed out into the ocean, and I saw so much more in the world than a red and white brick house in a subdivision, in Douglasville, Ga.

As we moved on to our second site, a turtle reservation shelter Projeto Tamar (Tamar Project), Simone shared her fond memories of Praia do Forte. She explained that the place had changed remarkably since the 70s and 80s when she visited with friends, and at the time they would carry her car on a raft across the river that currently had a bridge over it. She explained that the cost of living was incredibly more expensive with the improvements, which included, indoor plumbing, electricity, paved roads, and hotels. She spoke of these improvements with cheer, but I wondered about the previous inhabitants of the village before the “improvements.” Were these renovations welcomed? And what is life like for these people now that their village has been converted to a tourist destination? I also considered the locals’ accessibility to health care. Do healthcare workers want to live in an area that is only densely populated seasonally? Furthermore, could the locals afford private health plans considering the new inflated cost of life in their village?

We walked over the cobblestones, and people whisked past us on their bicycles. I looked over at my classmates as we approached Projeto Tamar, and our excitement collectively mounted as we entered. The turtle shelter housed injured turtles, baby turtles and other forms of sea life. All turtles captured were nursed to health or allowed to grow and then released back into the ocean. All sea life kept at the reservation remained for educational purposes, or the animal could no longer survive in the sea. Lunch was a blast, and we moved on to the beach.

The beach was treacherous. Thirty minutes in at the beach, the breeze becomes a slight wind, and the laughter of the ocean becomes a roar. Soon it begins to rain, and large waves mounted to the shore. Alarm covered our faces as my classmates, and I could not figure out how strong the waves were and if we could outswim it. We stood nervously on the edge of the shore, and suddenly Iman bravely walked into the water. I followed her and soon after the rest of the group, Hoodoo, Gabby, Shaina, Kennedy and Lani, joined us in the water. The harder it rained, the louder we laughed at each other as the ocean waves carried us roughly and dumped us on the sandy beach. Iman, a student that I had become very close with on the trip and often stayed in the background, laughed unabashedly and tumbled in the sand multiple times. We all had sand in very uncomfortable places, but that only encouraged us to swim further into the ocean to get the sand out. Our logic may have been flawed, but we did not care and laughed each time we were deposited on the shore with more sand than we started. In the ocean, we observed no crab or colorful fish, but seaweed and the occasional bottle cap graced us with their presence as they floated to the surface with the raging waves.

The rest of our group joined us in the water, the others talked with the locals, and the sun continued a game of hide and seek. We stayed in the ocean for as long as we could, occasionally returning to the water after drying off, because the green ocean waves were getting larger. Our feet dragged as we walked back to the bus and Aaron, whom I had seen briefly all afternoon, said something we were all feeling, “I guess nobody wants to go back home.” We purchased paintings, ice-cream and charm bracelets as we walked up to the bus, drinking in the colorful sights and elegant shops. Today was a fun and beautiful day, because my new friends and I followed the simple mantra, “ride the wave!”

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