yemanjá is offered flowers, gifts, perfume, rice, and even champagne - the offerings are set into little rafts and cast adrift into the sea, or thrown directly into the waves.  

those who have not built boats will leave their offerings on the beach close to the water, and those who cannot reach the ocean will tuck occasionally extravagant offerings into holes in sand or rock alongside the water.

these offering rituals, combined with the hundreds of small improvised altars dug into the sand and illuminated by thousands of candles, create a surreal and unforgettable atmosphere.