Today we spent the day in Recife, Brazil, the 4th largest population center in Brazil. The city itself has a population of more than 1.5 million and it’s the capital of the state of Pernambuco. It was founded in 1537 by the Portuguese and its harbor was a major port for shipping out the sugarcane produced in this part of Brazil.
I came here ten years ago and when we visited then we took a tour to Olinda, a UNESCO World Heritage site because of its many colonial buildings. Since I’d been there then, I didn’t book a tour this time. There was a shuttle bus to take us to a former prison which has been converted into a craft market. Each former cell is a shop. I went with one of my new friends on a mission to find cooler clothes and carnival supplies for a carnival party we’ll be having in a week or so. We found none of the latter. I guess they all were bought up during the actual Carnivale, and here I was looking forward to getting some feather boas and glittery masks. I did buy a couple of those floaty, tropically printed dresses which I will probably use for bathing suit coverups.
The temperature was about 90° and the humidity was so high you could practically cut the air with a knife. After we wandered around all the little shops we headed back to the ship. I dropped my things off and headed up for a salad and to snag a table in the shade out by the pool for an afternoon dance performance by a local group. They performed for a little over an hour and the two principal characters wore what looked like heavy costumes. I don’t know how they did it without succumbing to the heat. I’ll post a few pictures but won’t even attempt to try a video since I haven’t had much luck with those.
After dinner the entertainer was an absolutely fabulous Brazilian guitarist named Diego Figueiredo. Wow, could he play! He played with such passion that I think we were all mesmerized. I think he did a lot of improvisation as he played and I suspect that if he played the same selection tomorrow night it would be a little different because of the improv. Of the entertainers we’ve had he definitely ranks up there as one of my favorites. After the show I went down to the Club for a little dancing and then it was time for bed. I think the heat and humidity really got to me today.
One last photo because I'm obsessed with sunsets. I took this as we sailed away from Recife and I thought it turned out pretty well.
1 comment:
Really neat-looking! The lady with the sneakers on looks like she must have felt hot. I like the sunset skyline, too. Hope you keep having a good time!
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