Recife, PE
Autor: Valerie de Estados Unidos | Publicado: 2012-03-04T17:46:00-08:00

Hello all.&nbsp; I just came back from a week in Recife (meaning reef) in the state of Pernambuco with a new tan and lots of great memories and pictures.&nbsp; Recife is located in the northeast of Brazil and is about 2000 miles north of Pelotas.&nbsp; My travel partner is a friend who I met through Samanta and Mario (Mario's mom, Nica) and the two of us had&nbsp;a very laid-back time seeing several beaches in the surrounding area.&nbsp; We left Pelotas late Thursday night to catch an early flight Friday morning in Porto Alegre.&nbsp; We ended up in Recife late afternoon. Saturday we went to Praia dos Carneiros, which I will say, was my favorite of all of our "passeios".&nbsp; We took&nbsp;a boat to go to this beach; the tide was low and the reefs were high out of the water, creating a barrier between the ocean and the area where we ate lunch.&nbsp; In these reefs, the water has, over many years, carved out natural pools where some people chose to get in.&nbsp; The tour guide warned us of sea urchins that if you step on one, you would need to be taken to the hospital.&nbsp; Therefore, I decided early in the day that I didn't need to get in the natural pool that bad....

Before enjoying a satisfying lunch (I think we had carne do sol, french fries, and rice), we went on a two hour boat ride where we laid out in the sun and took in our surroundings.&nbsp; We stopped where many people were using a natural clay that is said to be a skin rejuvenator and rubbing all over their bodies.&nbsp; Once dry, the clay appears like a white paint.&nbsp; We must have looked very...well...tribal, running around with this, covered from head to toe.

Towards the end of the afternoon, Nica and I strolled down the beaches, the water was&nbsp;a beautiful aquamarine and tall palm trees cast long shadows that made for some good photos.&nbsp; I also reconsidered my earlier decision to skip on going into the natural pools and with my sandals on, took a dip.&nbsp;Not 10 seconds of wading around did I feel a prick on my big toe.&nbsp; When I got out, a tiny piece of what appeared to be that "dangerous" sea urchin quill was lodged into my toe.&nbsp; Despite my nervous anxiety about what reactions I might soon be facing, we walked back to the beach and removed it with some tweezers.&nbsp; Needless to say, nothing happened.&nbsp; I think the tour guide just tells people to wear sandals in the pools because of the scary sea animals so that people will actually listen and avoid stubbing their toes on the rocks.&nbsp; Who knows...
Sunday, we took a city tour of Recife and Olinda.&nbsp; Many of the decorations for carnaval were still up and it seemed like carnaval in Recife is probably a cool thing to do for sure.&nbsp; A British tourist came on this tour as well, so the guide said most things in English as well as Portuguese.&nbsp; Not wanting the whole group to know that I am American, I didn't say much and when I spoke to Nica of course, we spoke in Portuguese.&nbsp; However, when the guide was telling histories of buildings, stories of carnaval, or other miscellaneous facts to the Brit, I lurked around to listen.&nbsp; To my surprise, I confirmed that I had understood much of what he said in Portuguese!&nbsp; Weekly meetings with friends in Pelotas to exchange conversations in Portuguese are paying off!
Monday, we headed to Porto de Galinhas (Port of Chickens).&nbsp;&nbsp; Story of why the city is called Porto de Galinhas: After slavery was outlawed in Brazil, many people continued to ship slaves in as this was an important piece of the very lucrative sugar cane business. Because of the illegal nature, slaves were hidden under chicken crates and when the ships came into port, "The new chickens are here!" would be called out to announce that another shipment of workers had arrived. 
The city&nbsp;had large sculptures of chickens that were each painted differently much like the guitars around Austin.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The waterfront in Porto de Galinhas is really interesting.&nbsp; In the morning, the tide was high and nothing seemed to separate the beach from the ocean but as the day wore on and the tide went out, reefs began to jut out of the water.&nbsp; While the area was absolutely beautiful, I was a little annoyed by the many people who would pass by trying to sell things.&nbsp; The place had a very tourist-y vibe that I do not prefer.
Tuesday, we went to Itamaraca.&nbsp; That day was very calm, nothing but sun tanning and a caipirinha to relax.&nbsp; There was an old fort (Forte Orange) that was built in 1631. I snatched a rock from it for Laura :)&nbsp; Wednesday, we travelled about 2 hours out of the city to Maragogi.&nbsp; What a tropical place!!&nbsp; The water was crystal clear and gorgeous.&nbsp; We took a boat out to a really nice area where the sand is more white and the water is very transparent.&nbsp; Another of these boats had its very own fitness instructor and many people&nbsp;exercised with noodle floats in the&nbsp;heavenly waters.&nbsp; I decided not to join in the activity, as I was on vacation!&nbsp; 

Wednesday night I convinced Nica to wake up with me and see the sunrise.&nbsp; We asked the reception desk at the hotel what time it came up and he said 4am. Yikes! Determined as I was, I set my alarm for 3:45 am and as we learned at 4am the next morning (thanks google, no thanks reception guy) the sun doesn't actually come up until 5:20am.&nbsp; So we went back to sleep for an hour and then headed out to Praia de Boa Viagem, a block from our hotel.&nbsp; There is something very peaceful about watching the sun rise up over the water, city still asleep, the world seemingly calm and ready to start fresh.&nbsp; 

Afterwards, we went back to sleep for a couple of hours then had breakfast and headed out to walk down Boa de Viagem.&nbsp; After an hour of walking, we finally stopped to sun bathe.&nbsp; We found some reefs (safer area, away from the sharks!) and laid out to take in some rays.&nbsp; Once we got back to the hotel, we discovered that we had walked a total of 10km (6.2 miles).&nbsp; So much for not exercising on vacation :)

We arrived back in Pelotas safe and sound on Friday.&nbsp; I had a great time.&nbsp; Thank you for inviting me Nica!&nbsp; Tomorrow I'm headed to Brasilia (the nation's capital) for a meeting.&nbsp; I will update you all next week!!