São Paulo – Visiting the ruins of a 16th century church in Guarujá, getting to know the Fort of São João, in Bertioga, and laying on father José de Anchieta’s ‘Bed,’ a set of stones where he used to rest, in Peruíbe. These places date back from the days when Jesuit priests came to Brazil to catechize the Indians, shortly after the discovery of Brazil, and now they may be visited in one single pilgrimage route. The program “Passos dos Jesuítas-Anchieta” (In the Steps of Jesuits-Anchieta), launched on September 14th by the Secretariat for Tourism of the State of São Paulo, enables tourists to travel along the entire coastline of the state, on foot or by bicycle, and visit sites that the Jesuits passed through.
The full tour covers approximately 340 kilometres. It starts in Peruíbe, on the southern coast, and ends in Ubatuba, on the northern coast, passing through Itanhaém, Mongaguá, Praia Grande, São Vicente, Cubatão, Santos, Guarujá, Bertioga, São Sebastião, Ilhabela and Caraguatatuba. No one is required to take the whole tour. The inaugural group, of 25 people, left from Peruíbe on September 14th and arrived in Bertioga on the 20th. They travelled 140 kilometres, walking an average of 23 kilometres each day. The section from Bertioga to Ubatuba should open by November.
The trip through the colonial period of Brazil starts in Peruíbe, on the southern coast. In the city lie the ruins of Igreja de São João Batista (Saint John Baptist’s Church), also known as the ruins Abarebebê. In the language of the native peroibe Indians, abarebebê means “flying priest.” Such was the nickname they gave to Father Leonardo Nunes, a Jesuit who was sent to the city. Itanhaém also holds its treasures. In between the beaches of Gruta and Sonho there is a rocky formation known as “Anchieta’s bed.” The priest would rest there whenever he was not teaching the Indians to read and write.
Mongaguá was used as a resting point in the Jesuits’ journeys. In Guarujá, the ruins of Ermida Guaibê are preserved. At this small church, located on the route to Prainha Branca, Father José de Anchieta used to say his prayers. The history of the Jesuits continues on the path to the northern coast. At the Fort of São João, in Bertioga, Manoel da Nóbrega and José de Anchieta, two Jesuits, rested for several days in 1554 before setting off to Ubatuba and negotiating peace with the confederation of Tamoios Indians.
Ubatuba, in the final leg of the trip, also hosts its share of references to the days of the Jesuits. It was there, for example, that Father José de Anchieta wrote his “Poema à Virgem” (Poem to the Virgin), on Iperoig beach, when he surrendered to the Indians during the negotiations for peace between Tamoios and colonizers. “Paz de Iperoig” (Peace of Iperoig), as the agreement has come to be known, ended the war between the Portuguese and the Indians.
There are signs and warnings across the whole path, according to the state secretariat for tourism. Alternative routes enable the pilgrims to enjoy the natural beauty of the cities and get to know the fauna and flora of the Atlantic Forest more closely. They can even “flee” the daily walk to put their feet on the sand or going into the ocean.
Upon registering on www.caminhasaopaulo.com.br, the pilgrim receives a bar code that must be traded in for a magnetic card in one of four posts during the trip, located in Peruíbe, Mongaguá, São Vicente and Santos. The card gives discounts at hotels and lodges in the cities along the route of the Jesuits. As pilgrims place the card near each of the 22 electronic machines along the way, they record that they have passed through that section of the route. Their relatives and friends will be able to trace their footsteps.
Upon recording their presence in at least 12 of the 22 electronic machines along the route, pilgrims get a certificate. Each person has one year to cover at least 12 sections of the route. On the Caminha São Paulo (Walk São Paulo) website, they may upload their pictures, accounts and travel surprises. Those who cover the 340 kilometres of the route will enter a contest to win a trip to Santiago de Compostela, in Spain, one of the main pilgrimage routes in the world.
“I did not know Anchieta’s Bed, I had never heard of Poço das Antas (another tourist spot in the region). This project is a chance to rescue our history and value the saga of the Jesuits,” says the technical consultant for the project, José Palma. He calculates that in one year, 10,000 people should travel the route. The state government wants to expand the project and create seven other routes: three covering the Jesuit’s tracks and four in the interior of the state, following on the footsteps of the Bandeirante colonizers.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
