[gn_spoiler title=”Franciso Brennand Ceramic” open=”0″ style=”2″]
Greatest sculptor Francisco Brennand has works scattered throughout Recife – the most famous is the obelisk at Ground Zero. The artist’s works can be appreciated up close in his pottery studio, open to the public. Set in an area of 15 thousand square meters of an old colonial plantation, it displays hundreds of sculptures with fantastic themes exposed in sheds and a huge garden with lakes.
Address: Property Saints Cosmas and Damian, s / n – Lowland – Recife
Directions: Access by Av Caxangá
Phone: (81) 3271-2466
The most beautiful church in Recife, the ceiling and the walls are filled with religious paintings with golden frames – they form a frescoes mosaic reminiscent of the Sistine Chapel, Vatican. At the side altars, there are arcs and columns typical of the first phase of the Baroque. In the background is the Church of St. Anthony (1804), Rococo style. The Portuguese tile panels go from the church courtyard to the convent (1606).
- Address: Rua do Imperador (Sto. Antônio), Sto. Antônio
- Phone (81) 3224-0530
- Open to the public: Mon to Fri – 8h/11h30, 14h/17h, Saturday – 8h/11h30
Considered the richest church in Olinda, the Monastrey Sao Bento is totally baroque style – hewn cedar walls covered with gold, panels on the roof, sandstone columns, pulpits worked and a sumptuous sacristy. The greatest treasure is the altar, with 14 meters high and gold plated from one extreme to other. On Sunday mornings, the monks themselves open the heavy doors of rosewood and invite the public to the mass.
Every day in the late afternoon, the courtyard in front of the church becomes a meeting point for locals and tourists.
Address: R. St. Benedict, s / n – Olinda – Phone: (81) 3429-3288
It is one of the most beautiful beaches of Brazil. Full of coconut trees and calm crystalline seawater and surrounded by reefs, Calhetas is very popular for scuba diving and fishing.
Distance 49 km from Recife. Access: BR-101 Sul, PE-60 and PE-29.
[/gn_spoiler] [gn_spoiler title=”Boa Viagem beach” open=”0″ style=”2″]The Beach Boa Viagem is the most famous beach in Recife. Seven kilometers (4.5 miles) long in the district of Boa Viagem, it is in between Pina Beach and the Piedade beach. Most of Boa Viagem beach is protected by a natural barrier reef (Recife in Portuguese), which gave the town its name.
[/gn_spoiler] [gn_spoiler title=”Old Recife area” open=”0″ style=”2″]The neighborhood of Old Recife, where the city began, was revitalized with the restoration of the past century mansions and improvement of the sidewalks, lighting and gardens.
Some of the attractions of the district are the White River Square, ground zero of the city, the port of Recife and the mansions of the last century. There is also the Customs, the Malakoff Tower, the Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue (the oldest in the Americas) and the Brum Fort.
The best way of exploring the neighborhood is on foot for its cobblestone streets and Portuguese stones. The tour should include the Bom Jesus Street houses Dutch and quirky art galleries, the Malakoff Tower Cultural Centre that reveals one of the most beautiful views of the city, and the Apollo Theatre, opened in 1846 and is one of the busiest theaters in Recife today.
[/gn_spoiler] [gn_spoiler title=”Itamaraca beach” open=”0″ style=”2″]A distant 49 km from Recife, the island offers the tourist beaches with calm and crystalline waters, palm trees, natural pools, reefs and shoals.
At the southern end of the island stands the Fort Orange, built by the Dutch in the context of the second invasions of Brazil, and an islet known as Crown Plane, this island constitutes a sandbar formed by sea currents and currently houses small restaurants with regional food.
Access: BR-101 and PE-35 North after Abreu e Lima
[/gn_spoiler] [gn_spoiler title=”Marco Zero” open=”0″ style=”2″]Ground Zero is the site where Recife begun. From this landmark all official measures of local road distances were made. Officially called the Baron of Rio Branco Square, it is located at Avenida Alfredo Lisboa Marquis connected to the streets of Olinda, Rio Branco and Barbosa Lima.
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