in my GLASS
Paraty
Sunset on the mountains across the bay from Paraty
A small village off the coast of Brazil made an indelible impression
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BY » Trevor Burton | PHOTOGRAPHY BY » Trevor Burton
razil is famous for Rio de Janeiro and its flamboyant carnival. Over the years, my wife, Mary Ellen, and I have spent quite some time in Rio; enjoyable time. But what really sticks out in our memories is a small village that’s distant from Rio in mileage, culture and atmosphere—Paraty. That’s “Par-AAH-chee” in Portuguese. The village is located on a large, serene bay and is surrounded by jungle covered mountains. It dates way back in history. Today, it has the look and feel of a colonial Portuguese village. The colonial core of Paraty is the Centro Histórico. It’s like entering another era. It has whitewashed mansions, baroque churches and lots of cobblestone streets. It’s a town for walking around. No cars are allowed except once a week for deliveries to homes and restaurants. Part of the Portuguese influence is those old churches, all interesting but one always pulls us to it. Back in the day, churches served a definite social hierarchy. The one that draws us, Igreja de Santa Rita, was at the lowest level on the list. It was founded in 1722 by freed African slaves. It was built by, and for, all those considered not white enough to
22 LimitlessMagOnline.com | March 2022
attend the church of the ruling elite. These would have included indigenous people and freed slaves. The church was deconsecrated and now serves as a museum of sacred art. Pretty neat. Some context. Paraty was shaped by two defining eras, one of which is the reason we keep coming back. In 1696, one of the world’s richest gold mines was discovered in the mountains. For logistical and political reasons, Paraty became an export port for gold to Rio de Janeiro and then on to Portugal. The ensuing gold rush led to the construction of the “Caminho do Ouro—Gold Trail.” This is a 1,200 kilometer road, paved in steep areas with large stones. It connected the mines to Paraty. Paraty became a boom town. Pirates soon noticed the gold export business and ships became easy and profitable targets. The boom died out. Then farming took over. It became a lucrative business. The production of sugar and cachaça, Brazilian rum, were very important to Paraty. The quality of the local cachaça became recognized worldwide. For a long time the word paraty was used as a synonym to cachaça. That’s what interests us. And that brings us to Caipirinhas. A Caipirinha is Brazil’s national cocktail. It is made with cachaça, sugar, and
crushed limes. Simple but delicious. I drink only wine and not hard liquor but I have a soft spot for Caipirinhas. As Paraty is, basically, the home of cachaça it seems only right to visit from time to time and pay homage. So we do. When we visit, we get on the side streets of the Centro Histórico and pick out some small restaurant for lunch. A Caipirinha to start, of course. And then a dish of local seafood and some interesting wine. Generally we opt for Brazilian wine but, the last time we were there, something else caught our eye. We’re very fond of wines from a region of Chile, to the very north of the country, the Limari Valley. Rarely seen at home but there was one on the wine list of the restaurant. We opted for it. A great lunch, a great wine and some live, soft background samba music. I was in a happy place. It’s odd what memories stay embedded. I love the whole feel of Paraty. I just like being there. But one thing sticks, indelibly, in my mind. It is the view of the mountains across the bay at sunset. The whole sky is pink and there’s a mist covering the mountains. Perfect. I can’t wait to see it again as soon as this COVID nonsense clears up. And I’m sure there’s a Caipirinha with my name on it.
