What´s there to do in Praia do Forte?

There are lots of things to do in Praia do Forte, and nearly all of them are overpriced. The shopping, the bars, the turtle project and the day tours as well. Still, there are some nice things to do that don´t cost much. If you want to get out of the disneylandish and styled village of Praia do Forte for a day and see something different, why not walk all the way to Imbassai on the beach? It´s a 10km walk and the last 5km of the beach are absolutely beautifull and deserted. We didn´t see a single person for the last hour of our walk and felt kind of relieved when we finally saw a fisherman - Imbassai lies behind a bend of the beach and we where getting nervous already that we wouldn´t make it there ;-) Imbassai is very quiet and very different to Praia do Forte. Nearly no tourists, no stylish shops, no paved streets... and the beach is absolutely beautifull and deserted! From Imbassai you can take a minibus back to Praia do Forte or to the next village of Costa Sauipe, a further 5km north. Another nice 'get away' for a day is the castle of Garcia d´Avila, also known as the Casa do Torre (Tower House). The castle, or - the ruins of the castle - lies about 5km from Praia do Forte on a hill overlooking the sea. The way to the castle leads through the ecological reserve of Sapiranga, its definately worth walking instead of talking an airconditioned bus ;-) The Casa do Torre has been founded in 1551 and is considered the first large Portuguese building in Brazil. The Casa da Torre played a remarkable role in the history of Brazil´s colonization and defense for more than three centuries. In 1835, with the extinction of the morgados regimen (the first-born son being the heir to an entailed state), the Castle was abandoned and soon began to decay. In 1938 it has been rediscovered and the renovation had started. Unfortunately the management of the site invested more in a huge restaurant then in information which is a pity, as the hisotry of this building and its inhabitants definately must have been very interesting! (http://www.casadatorre.org.br/monumento.htm)