The main language spoken in Salvador is Portuguese. Because the Federal University of Bahia is here, there are many students and professors that can understand/speak a good amount of English. I try to only speak in Portuguese most of the time though to maximize my practice. I've taken Spanish classes since high school, and since this is my first time learning/speaking Portuguese, I often rely on my Spanish to help me because many words are similar.
Brazil uses what's called reais (real in English). As of today, one U.S. dollar is equivalent to R$5.31 (Coinbase).
A bottle of regular water costs about R$4, but the price depends on where you're buying it from. For example, if you're on the beach, water will cost more than buying it from a local store or market because of the convenience. What's more common to drink here than regular water is coconut water, which you can buy for the same price as regular water, usually about R$3-5. It's often served with the entire coconut, which I think is awesome. I don't like coconut water in the U.S., but the flavor here is much more pure because it is so fresh.
