Recife - Recife

Recife is a city of Brazil, capital of the state of Pernambuco, located in the northeastern region.

To know

the capital of Pernambuco is one of the largest and most interesting cities in the northeastern coast of the Brazil. Founded by Dutch colonists, Recife is a lively city, with a historic center that includes the oldest synagogue in the Americas and with some beautiful beaches in its urban perimeter, among which Boa Viagem stands out.

Geographical notes

Recife is located on the Atlantic coast at the estuaries of the Capibaribe, Beberibe and Jordão rivers. The city is close to the easternmost point of the South American continent.

The center and neighboring districts are spread over rivers, canals and islands that have earned Recife the nickname of Veneza Brasileira (Brazilian Venice). Its 1.5 million inhabitants (3.5 million in the metropolitan area "Grande Recife") are called recifenses. Services are the foundation of the economy. Despite the high incidence of poverty, the human development index (HDI) in 2000 (0.810) was above the national average (0.800).

When to go

Recife is characterized by a tropical climate, with two distinct seasons in relation to the rainfall regime: The dry season runs from September to March and the wet season from April to August. The average annual temperature is 26 ° C. with little annual hikes.

Background

Between 1535 and 1537 a first nucleus was formed inhabited by fishermen and consisting of shacks leaning against a long cliff (actually a petrified sand bank) called Recife. The locality became the port of Olinda. In 1630 the Dutch arrived and sacked Olinda after having besieged her. The Dutch established a permanent colony on the island of Antônio Vaz, right in front of the Portuguese settlement and named it "Mauritsstadt", in honor of the count Johan Maurits van Nassau-Siegen. The Dutch governor's palace was located on the spot where Piazza della Repubblica stands today. The Dutch were driven out by the Portuguese in 1654 and the sizable community of resident Sephardi Jews moved to New Amsterdam to escape the Portuguese inquisition.

How to orient yourself

Neighborhoods

Recife can be divided into four main areas:

• Center - It consists of the districts of Recife Antigo, Santo Antônio, São José, Santo Amaro and Boa Vista, all scattered between a couple of islands and the mainland and connected to each other by a series of bridges over the Capibaribe River. Most of the historic and government buildings are located in this area. The port of Recife Antigo was once the busiest in all the Americas.

• South Zone (Sul area) - The South Zone it is the most touristic part, since it stretches over vast sandy shores whose bottoms still have coral reefs that gave the city its name. The airport and large shopping centers are located in this area. The most interesting district of Zona Sul is Boa Viagem, located on the beautiful beach of the same name and nicknamed the Copacabana of the North East. Most of the most famous hotels, restaurants and nightclubs in Recife are located in Boa Viagem.

• West area (West area) - The West area it is the greenest area. It contains parts of the Atlantic forest that once covered most of the Oriental Coast of the Brazil. There are also two famous museums (Instituto Ricardo Brennand and Museu-Oficina Francisco Brennand), the Federal University of Pernambuco and the cadet school, second best military institute in the Brazil.

• North area (North area) — North Zone it is mainly a residential area. In the past, the neighborhoods along the Capibaribe River housed many aristocratic mansions.

The term Great Recife is used to indicate the metropolitan region, the largest in the North East and fifth on a scale national, after St. Paul, Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte is Porto Alegre.

Great Recife has its attractions, mostly centralized in the two centers of Porto de Galinhas is Olinda. The first is famous for its natural setting, colonial architecture and carnival, while Olinda it is consistently voted best beach in the Brazil.

How to get

By plane

• -8.126389-34.9227781 Recife-Guararapes-Gilberto Freyre Airport. To 2020 Air Europa operated a flight from Madrid is TAP Air Portugal one from Lisbon.

Airlines Azul Brazilian Airlines operate the largest number of domestic flights plus one international for Montevideo.

The airport is located close to the tourist area and the Boa Viagem beach. Buses of line 033 lead to the district.

The metro station is 500 meters from the terminal exit -8.13412-34.9146382 Estação Airport, reachable with an elevated pedestrian walkway. The station is on the southern metro line and is useful for those who have the city center or other areas of Recife as their final destination. Buses of line 161 and 163 also pass through the center.  

By bus

• -8.06445-34.981833 Long Distance Bus Station - TIP (Terminal Integrad de Passageiros - TIP), Rod BR 232 - Coqueiral (Metro Station 'Estação Rodoviária do Recife'), ☎ 55 81 3452-1999. 

How to get around

By public transport

• Recife Metro (MetroRec). Currently the route is 39.5 km long and has 28 stations. The network consists of the Linha Center, divided into two lines (Center 1 and Center 2), and by Linha Sul.

The Centro 1 and Centro 2 lines have a common route between the Recife and Coqueiral stations. From this last station the lines divide and have different terminus: Camaragibe (Center 1) and Jaboatão dos Guararapes (Center 2). Linha Centro also shares two stations with Linha Sul: Recife and Joana Bezerra.  

Buses are the most used form of collective transport. The 'Integrade Estrutural System' (Integrated structural system - SEI), has 119 bus lines with terminus at the 13 busiest metro stations.

What see

Religious architectures

• -8.062417-34.8773611 Francisca de Santo Antônio convent, Rua Imperador Pedro II (Santo Antônio). R $ 2. One of the major attractions of the city is the convent of Sant'Antonio which contains the famous 'Capela Dourada' , a Baroque church from 1588, one of the most beautiful of Brazil. Its name derives from the great use of gold foils used in the coating of the carved wood that practically fills all the spaces of the walls and vaults. Over time, the temple was enriched with other decorations by different artists. The vaults, the side wall niches and even the furniture are the work of Luís Machado, a 17th century artist. The ceiling is divided into panels painted in oil.

The convent also houses the 'Museu Francisca de Arte Sagrada' .  

• -8.064223-34.8738982 Madre de Deus, Rua Madre de Deus (Next to the Paço Alfândega shopping center, in the central district of Recife Antigo), ☎ 55 81 3224-5587. Tue-Fri 08: 00-12: 00 and 14: 00-17: 00; Sat-Sun 09: 00-12: 00.  
• -8.066015-34.8800583 Nossa Senhora do Carmo, Avenida Dantas Barreto (Central district of Santo Antônio). Mon-Fri 07: 00-19: 00, Sat 07: 00-12: 00, Sun 08: 00-12: 00 and 18: 00-21: 00. Baroque style church, built between 1710 and 1767 on the site of the Dutch Governor's Palace. The main altar has bas-reliefs with floral motifs. You can also visit a religious art collection.  
• -8.064313-34.8801554 Nossa Senhora da Conceição dos Militares, Rua Nova, 309 (Central district of Santo Antônio), ☎ 55 81 3224-3106. Built in 1726, the church has a frescoed ceiling with scenes from the battle of Guararapes, fought by the Portuguese against the Dutch. The temple is attached to the 'Father Roberto Barbalho Museum of Sacred Art' .  
• -8.056157-34.870195 Nossa Senhora do Pilar, Praça Monsenhor João Castilho Barbosa, ☎ 55 31 3551-4736. From 1680.  
• -8.065447-34.877866 Our Lady of the Rosary of black men (Nossa Senhora do Rosário dos Homens Pretos), Rua Estreita do Rosário (Central district of Santo Antônio). Mon-Fri 09: 00-13: 30 and 14: 30-18: 00, Sat 08: 00-12: 00. 17th century church built by Afro-Brazilian slaves.  
• Santa Cruz, Pátio de Santa Cruz (Central district of Boa Vista). Church built between 1725 and 1732. Scenes from the film Lisbela e o Prisioneiro (2003) were shot in the square opposite. 
• -8.064212-34.8789087 Blessed Sacrament - Matriz de Santo Antônio, Praça da Independência (Central district of Santo Antônio). Daily 07: 00-12: 00 and 14: 00-18: 00. Built between 1753 and 1790, the church is in the Manueline / Baroque style. Interior decorated with a huge crystal chandelier and images of Saint Anthony and Saint Sebastian.  
• -8.067155-34.8791258 Co-cathedral of San Pietro dei Chierici (São Pedro dos Clérigos), Pátio de São José - Center.  

Museums

• -8.05686-34.909019 Museum of the Abolition (Museu da Abolição), Rua Benfica, 1150 (Madalena (Zona Norte)), ☎ 55 81 3228-3248. Museum documenting the period of slavery and the abolitionist movement Brazilian 19th century.  
• -8.059689-34.88122310 Manuel Bandeira House / Espaço Pasárgada, Rua da União, 26 - Boa Vista (Center) (next to the Joaquim Nabuco Palace), ☎ 55 81 3231-3994, @[email protected]. Mon-Fri 08: 00-18: 00.  
• -8.020259-34.93891111 Gilberto Freyre House-Museum, Rua Jorge Tasso Neto - (Apipucos neighborhood - Zona Norte), ☎ 55 81 3441-1733. Mon-Fri 09: 00-16: 30.  
• -8.052897-34.87086312 Brum fortress museum (Museu Militar Forte do Brum), Praça da Comunidade Luso-Brasileira - (Recife Antigo - Center), ☎ 55 81 3224-7559. 
• -8.061667-34.88444413 Museum of the Archaeological, Historical and Geographical Institute of Pernambuco (Museu do Instituto Arqueológico, Histórico and Geográfico de Pernambuco), Rua do Hospício, 130 (Boa Vista - Center), ☎ 55 81 3222-4952. Mon-Fri 13: 00-17: 00, Sat 08: 00-12: 00.  
• Archaeological Museum of the Catholic University of Pernambuco (Museu de Arqueologia from Universidade Católica de Pernambuco), Rua do Príncipe, 526, Bl G, 1 ° Andar (Boa vista (Center)), ☎ 55 81 3216-4192. Archaeological museum focusing on indigenous artifacts. Located at the Catholic University of Pernambuco. 
• Louis Jacques Viget Museum of Natural History (Museu de História Natural Louis Jacques Brunet), Rua da Aurora (Located in Ginásio Pernambucano Boa Vista - Centro), ☎ 55 81 3303-5315. Created in 1861, it is one of the first natural history museums in Latin America. The collection includes archeology, botany, geology and zoology. 
• -8.030278-34.92514 Northeast Man Museum (Museu do Homem do Nordeste), Avenida 17 de Agosto, 2187, Casa Forte (North Zone) (take the), ☎ 55 81 3441-5500, @[email protected]. Tue-Fri 08: 30-17: 00; Sat-Sun 13: 00-17: 00. Part of the 'Fundação Joaquim Nabuco' , the museum features popular arts collections documenting the traditions and history of northeastern Brazil.  
• -8.044722-34.90166715 Pernambuco State Museum (Museu do Estado de Pernambuco), Avenida Rui Barbosa, 960 (Graças - Zona Norte). Tue-Fri 10: 00-17: 00, Sat-Sun 14: 00-17: 00.  
• -8.07176-34.8808716 Recife City Museum (Museu da Cidade do Recife), Forte das Cinco Pontas (São José - Center), ☎ 55 81 3224-8492. Mon-Fri 09: 00-18: 00, Sat-Sun 13: 00-17: 00. Inside the 17th century five-pointed Fort, the former Frederik Hendrik Fort.  
• -8.068748-34.87884517 Ricardo Brennand Institute (Ricardo Brennand Institute), Alameda Antônio Brennand - (Várzea - ​​Zona Oeste), ☎ 55 81 2121-0352, @[email protected]. Tue-Sun 13: 00-17: 00. Collections of Brazilian and European historical artifacts from the 15th to the 19th century with particular attention paid to the period of Dutch occupation of Recife and northeastern Brazil.  
• -8.06747-34.8835918 Train Museum (Museu do Trem), Visconde de Mauá Square - (Estação Central - São José (Center)), ☎ 55 81 3224-4620. Mon-Thu 13: 00-18: 00, Fri 08: 00-12: 00. The Train Museum is located in the old central train station, which now also serves as the central station for MetroREC, Recife's metro system.  

Events and parties

• Carnaval do Recife.  
• June party (Festa junina). 

What to do

Shopping

• -8.066061-34.8833921 House of Culture, Rue Floriano Peixoto, (Opposite the old central railway station, now a train museum. Santo Antonio neighborhood), ☎ 55 81 3224 0557. Mon-Sat 09: 00-19: 00, Sun 09: 00-14: 00. It was once the city prison, today it is a maze of small shops (one in each cell) selling handicrafts from various regions of the State of Pernambuco.  
• -8.06852-34.877682 Mercado de São José.  

Shopping centers

• -8.11885-34.903923 Shopping Recife, Rua Padre Carapuceiro, 777 (Boa Viagem), ☎ 55 81 3464-6464. Mon-Sat 10: 00-22: 00, Sun 12: 00-21: 00.  

How to have fun

Theaters

• -8.060706-34.8784391 Teatro de Santa Isabel, Praça da República.  

• -8.06145-34.872592 Apolo Theater, Rua do Apolo, 121 (Center - Recife Antigo), ☎ 55 81 3224-1114.  
• Hermilo Borba Filho Theater, Rua do Apolo, 121 (Recife Antigo), ☎ 55 81 3424-5429. 
• Armazém Theater 14, Rua Alfredo Lisboa (Cais do Porto, Recife Antigo), ☎ 55 81 3424-5613. 
• Universidade Federal de Pernambuco Theater (Cidade Universitária - Zona Oeste).  
• Valdemar de Oliveira Theater, Praça Oswaldo Cruz, 412 (Boa Vista - Center), ☎ 55 81 3222-1284.  
• -8.09066-34.883893 Barreto Júnior Theater, Rua Estudante Jeremias Bastos, 121 (Sul area), ☎ 55 81 3326-4177. 

• SESC Casa Amarela Theater (Capiba Theater), Rua Professor José dos Anjos, 1109 (Zona Norte - Casa Amarela), ☎ 55 81 3441-8900. 
• SESC Santo Amaro Theater, Rua Marques do Pombal (Santo Amaro), ☎ 55 81 3216-1616. 

Sports shows

• -8.026711-34.8911754 Estádio do Arruda.  

• -8.040722-35.0082615 Itaipava Arena Pernambuco.  

Where to eat

High prices

• Assucar, Rua da Alfândega, 35 - Recife Antigo (Paço Alfândega Shopping Mall, 4th floor), ☎ 55 81 3419-7582. 
• -8.064984-34.8813241 Leite, Praça Joaquim Nabuco, 147 (Santo Antônio), ☎ 55 81 3224-7977.  
• -8.097789-34.8845592 Mingus, Rua Atlantico 102 - Boa Viagem. 
• -8.046364-34.8978183 Nova Bridge, Rua Bruno Veloso, 528 - Boa Viagem, ☎ 55 81 3327-7226. 

Where stay

Safety

How to keep in touch

Keep informed

• Jornal do Commercio. The most widely read newspaper.  

Around

Other projects

• Wikipedia contains an entry concerning Recife
• Commons contains images or other files on Recife

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