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Very few tourist destinations can offer such a variety of options as Brazil. Its natural beauty, the wonderful popular festivals and the countless protected ecological reserves all bear testimony to its great appeal. The fourth most populated state in Brazil, with over 12 million inhabitants, is Bahia and its capital, Salvador, is the largest city in the region. One of the main features of Salvador is its wide avenues and easy access to the most important tourist spots. Worthy of mention is the district of El Pelourinho, set in the historic centre of Salvador and where the buildings are regarded as being of genuine architectural worth and declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO. Its cathedral basilica, alongside the church and convent of St. Francis, is one of the richest complexes of religious buildings in Brazil. The Museum of Sacred Art and the Modern Art Museum are also worth a visit. The first ever medical faculty in the whole of Brazil is to be found in Salvador. Another important landmark is the elevator, known as the Elevador Lacerda, which has four cabins and since 1930 has connected the Upper City, from Plaza Tomé de Souza, with the Lower City, from Plaza Cairu.
The city possesses 40 kilometres of beaches spread between the Upper City and the Lower City. With crystal clear waters it is ideal for such water sports as sailing, swimming, diving and underwater fishing. Praia do Forte is an old fishing village which is also called the Brazilian Polynesia and is where some of the most beautiful beaches in Brazil are to be found. Papa Gente, a natural pool of transparently clear waters in which you can do snorkelling and many other activities, is particularly outstanding, as are the paths in the Sapiranga reserve, teeming with trees and with an amazing variety of wild orchids.
It is also perfectly possible to see Jubarte whales migrating from the South Pole, directly towards the warm waters of this beach when the seasons change.
Finally, it is worth going diving along the Coconut Coast where we can find a huge variety of coral reefs.
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