Sao Luis – historic centre Friday afternoon | I'm not surprised but I never feel quite prepared

At 12.30 the schools superintendent came to take me down to Sao Luis to the old town for my bit of historic sightseeing before leaving for home tomorrow. She has asked a teacher who speaks some English to show me round…this is yet more generosity. Giving up an afternoon to show round someone you haven't met. Another hair-raising drive into the old centre, crossing the estuary of the Rio Anil on a long bridge and as you do you see the old town rising up on the hill in front of you.

Sao Luis has connections to two cities I've been in recently. To Dakar, because slaves were brought here from West Africa to work on the plantations and in the sugar fields. And to Liverpool with which it traded those goods as the western branch of the slave triangle in particular between 1780 and 1840. The Portuguese developed and built the city though the French had an influence too. It was picked for its location and proximity -comparatively – to Europe. The paving stones and beautiful Azulejos tiles which decorate so many of the buildings arrived sometimes as ballast and show the massive Portuguese legacy. It is now a UNESCO world heritage site.

We met with the teacher – Ariella – in the Turismo. And she was my guide for the next three hours. But first, before Luizenete had to go back to work, we had a snack of coconut and coconut milk, freshly cut by the stall holder. Sweet and delicious and refreshing and not at all like coconut I've had before. It's not easy to work with (See below). A man comes over and starts quoting philosophical proverbs and shaking our hands. He is stick thin and really intense. The gist is that we all make mistakes and we try to swap some proverbs back. HIs is a sad story according to the stall holder – he was a lecturer once. Then he drank too much and now he is in th Mercado most days.

L. has to go back to work and Ariella and I start walking whilst she tells me some of the city's history; for two of the buildings we visit we also have short guided tours. The rest is at the level of just wandering and getting the atmosphere of the place. It is, of course, very different to the beach side zone of the hotel some 10km away in by Praia Calhau. Tiny cobbled streets, crumbling buildings, colourful Azulejos tiles, market stalls with strange fruits and dried shrimp, crabs in bottles, jars of medicines, sweets, sights and sounds different to anything or anywhere else I've been. The Se – the cathedral – echoes some in Portugal and is big and imposing, full of children on a tour. The theatre and museum is the second oldest in Brazil and very atmospheric. The city museum is housed in a former cotton magnate's house. Laid out around a rectangualr courtyard with an upper deck for the family and a lower deck for the servants. An ingenious wooden ventilation system ensures the house takes advantage of the Sao Luis easterly prevaliing wind to provide a genuine air conditioning effect.

We walk some more and then stop in a roadside cafe. I have strong sweet coffee – they just put the sugar in here which is great – with a local pastry dish with a minced chicken filling. Ariella talks about her job in developing literacy programmes – really interesting work with her students on popular culture and remixing youtube as a way of engaging learners – links with everything yesterday. She is getting married next year – avoiding the mad time in Sao Luis in June/July around the local carnival Bumba-meu-Boi, a riotous festival recreating a legendary resurrection of a dead bull (See picture of me with Bull costume below).

The time eventually comes to return to the car; this has been a privilege really and hopefully if Ariella and her partner come to London I can repay the tour and show them round. Likewise for any of the wonderful people I've met.

Back to hotel in late pm. Long journey home tomorrow…