In the bay of Ribeirão da Ilha, whose calm waters contrast with the enormous waves of the east coast, the navigator Sebastian Cabot dropped anchor in the early 16C. At the time a small community of Carijós Indians lived here. The first colonists who came from the Azores in the early 18C built their white houses with colourful shutters here and developed fishing. Nothing seems to have changed since then, or barely. Fishing remains the primary activity (meaning excellent seafood restaurants) and tourism remains quite limited here.