The corner of Lagoa da Conceição (Canto da Lagoa) nearest the winding road across a hill to Barra da Lagoa, Joaquina and Praia Mole. On a winter weekday like this, the restaurants on this stretch of waterfront Avenida das Rendeiras, most of them specialized in sequência de camarão (all-you-can-eat-shrimp), were all closed. It's another story altogether in the high season, when traffic often comes to a halt around here.

Canto da Lagoa is like a village in itself, with lots of little budget pousadas and seasonal rooms to rent.