The ribbon railings
Bright colours.
Andrevruas — CC BY 3.0 · Matti Blume — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ananda Câmara — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Church of Nosso Senhor do Bonfim is Salvador's most famous church, on the only hill of the Itapagipe Peninsula, known as the Holy Hill. Building began in 1740 after a Portuguese navy captain brought a religious statue from Setúbal in Portugal to fulfil a vow; it opened in 1754, and its towers were finished around 1772. It was listed as a national monument in 1938. Its best-known custom is the coloured ribbons: thin cotton ribbons sold by vendors around it, printed with a keepsake phrase, which people tie on the church railings or their wrists, covering the railings in bright colours. Every January a great popular procession walks eight kilometres from the lower city to the church, where women in traditional white dress wash its steps with scented water. For visitors the highlights are the white façade on the hill, the square in front and the view over the Bay of All Saints. It is far from the historic centre, so take a taxi.
Bright colours.
On the hill.
Over the bay.
The Holy Hill, Itapagipe Peninsula, lower city of Salvador
Cotton keepsake ribbons sold by vendors around the church, which people tie on the railings or their wrists; they have become a symbol of Salvador.