WATERBABY'S CIRCUS

Yes, it has been awhile. Nearly three months in Brazil, where it isn't always samba and sunshine. Winter storms, mindboggling bureaucracy, and a public transportation system that doesn't always go where you want to go; everything seems to take at least twice as long as it should. It all balances out though. There's lots of great stuff too. Like the art supply store and gallery that's not far from me here, Arte Cedraz . I've met some wonderful artists that I paint with every Friday. I decided to leave my watercolors back in the States this time, since it appears no one in this area works in this medium and quality paints and paper are hard to find. So it's been acrylics for awhile. The painting above was a small warm-up piece I did there. This represents a fairly typical rural scene, more commonly seen in the interior states like Minas Gerais.

Sorry, Chicago, and everyone else. But how can you compete with this?

Caught the bus up the coast to the little town of Arembepe. This has been a little fishing village for a long time, but gained fame when Janis Joplin among others 'discovered' it back in the day. It is still a fishing village, but there are now a number of restaurants, hotels and pousadas for the tourists. Nice relaxing getaway.

Well, I did it! I've searched and searched in Salvador for others to participate in this international day of sketching, but found no one else. So - I did it by myself. I went to the Cantina da Lua restaurant in Salvador and then did a street scene closeby. Ink with watercolor.

There's a neighborhood in the old part of Bahia called "2 de Julho". It's old and funky and has a lot of falling down buildings, some inhabited and some not. I finally found a small art supply store here that carries a few watercolor items, like Cotman watercolors. But also some Maimeri. The small supply of Canson paper is ridiculously expensive, and there's a limited selection of poor quality brushes. Everything is imported, so the cost is quite prohibitive for the average Brasilian. I still haven't found any other watercolorists here, and the owners of the store couldn't refer me to any clubs or organizations. So after I bought a few tubes of paint, I wandered down a sidestreet and stopped to do a quickdraw of this old building. The windows are all bricked up, there's no telling how long since it's been lived in. Sad to see all these once-beautiful old mansions. But I can't get carried away feeling bad that there's no one with the desir...

Yesterday I went to visit a very old fort that was built to protect the city of Salvador, Bahia in Brazil. I didn't have my camera and there wasn't an opportunity to sketch. Today I found this old photo of the fort online. Other photos of old Bahia are at this link . There isn't a date but I'm guessing it was taken in the '40s or '50s, judging from the clothes. The fort itself is that oval-shaped structure in the upper righthand corner. It has only been the last couple of years that it has been open for tours, following a major recuperation. The different levels and curves and angles make it a very interesting place to sketch, even if historical landmarks aren't your thing. I hope to get back with more time and my sketchbook.

The house on the left behind the wall is where I've been for the last two months. A lot of work is going on behind that wall: plumbing repairs, patching and plastering walls, cleaning up a huge lot that was badly overrun with weeds, replacing broken and worn out ceiling fans and showers, getting the microwave and TVs repaired, adding a laundry sink in back, and an outside shower in front . . . . The list is endless. It's a great old beach house, but it's suffered from years of neglect. And anyone who's lived close to the sea knows how salt air damages just about everything. So that's my excuse anyway for not painting more often and/or posting. Not that I'm doing it all myself, but still, it's a huge time-suck. Oooh! And doing it all in tropical heat with no car! OMG! The horror! Would I rather be back in the winter of my American discontent? Not freakin' likely!!!

A Baiana is a woman from Bahia in Brazil. This Baiana is one of many who dresses in traditional clothes and sells tasty treats known as acaraje', basically a fastfood made of blackeyed pea dough and cooked in heated palm oil. It comes out hot and crunchy and is then cut open and stuffed with your choice of cooked shrimp, a dab of hot sauce, and various accompaniments. Wash it down with an icy beer. Mmmmmmm!

Last week, I took a bus to what used to be a small fishing village north of here named Praia do Forte. There are still fishermen and their boats here, but now it is probably better known as a sanctuary and ecological project where sea turtles are protected. In addition to the project, known as TAMAR, tourism is expanding. Tourists come from all over the world as well as from within Brazil. Several species of turtles were endangered, due to being hunted for food, as well as being caught in nets and otherwise threatened. Find out more about Praia do Forte by clicking here . The above watercolor and ink sketch is of a typical small house there on one of the sidestreets. Many have been replaced by the eco-tourism industry with hotels, restaurants and shops. Not that that's an entirely bad thing, because awareness as well as money is raised to further this work.

I just learned about a fantastic promotion that American Airlines is having. For a short time only, they are offering roundtrip fares to Brazil for about half the regular price. If you had been planning, or just dreaming about, a trip to Salvador for Carnaval, this is it, but you'd better act now, at these prices seats will go fast. If you don't like trying to check and book online, call my favorite travel agency, Santours . Don't just take my word for it. Here's what Realtravel.com had to say about them. A good travel agency to book your ticket through is Santini Tours, 6575 Shattuck Ave., Oakland, CA 94609 (tel. 800/769-9669 or 510/652-8600; www.santours.com ). The owner as well as many of the travel agents are Brazilian and can give you many useful suggestions on air-pass routings and answer any questions you have about your itinerary. In addition to selling tickets and air passes, Santini can also arrange customized tours, including everything from airport transfers...