Worshippers honour Orisha Yemenja on the evening of Day of Yemenja, or Dia de Yemenja. Orisha Yemenja is the goddess of the sea and her day is celebrated by thousands of Brazilians, at Praia Velmelho. Devotees offer gifts such as flowers, objects of female vanity, Yemenja statues and sweets, to the goddess and leave them in the water.

Yemenja is an Orisha, a saint that represents the natural world. She is viewed as the essence of motherhood, the protector of children, fishermen and sailors, and most importantly, she is the sea itself. She wears a dress with seven skirts that represent the seven seas. Originally Yemanja was a river goddess of the Yoruba in Nigeria. African slaves brought Yemenja to the New World, where she became the Goddess of the Ocean.