Recife

Culture

The capital of Pernambuco is crossed by the Capibaribe and Beberibe rivers and dozens of bridges, which earned it the nickname of the Brazilian Venice. Between 1630 and 1654 the city was under Dutch rule, and the government of Maurice of Nassau left its mark on the layout of the centre. On Rua do Bom Jesus, in Old Recife, stood Kahal Zur Israel, considered the first synagogue in the Americas. A few kilometres away is Olinda, a historic town listed by UNESCO. Carnival is the highlight of the year. Galo da Madrugada, which parades through the centre on Carnival Saturday, has entered the Guinness World Records as the largest carnival group in the world. In the streets, dancers with colourful little umbrellas dance frevo, and maracatu groups play big alfaia drums and agbê shakers.

Things to see

Local food

• Bolo de rolo — Paper-thin layers of sponge rolled with guava paste. Official heritage of Pernambuco.
• Cartola — Fried banana with melted cheese, sugar and cinnamon.
• Tapioca — Made to order, with coconut, coalho cheese or sun-dried beef.
• Sun-dried beef with cassava — With clarified "bottle butter" and green beans.
• Caldinho — Bean or fish broth served in a small cup, at the beach or the bar.

Local music

Frevo was born in Recife in the late 19th century and was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2012. Maracatu, coco and caboclinho also come from here, and in the 1990s Chico Science & Nação Zumbi mixed them with rock and hip hop in the manguebeat movement. Pernambuco radio plays lots of forró, brega and piseiro, and frevo at Carnival.

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