|
Description
|
| |
-
The
capital of Cearα possesses one of the largest and best equipped
networks of hotels and restaurants in the North East Region of
Brazil. The Jangada is a kind of symbol of the city and lobster
is one of its most typical dishes. The city has a hot climate
and affords a warm reception to visitors, attracted mainly by
the beauty of its beaches. Beach Park at Ponta das Dunas is the
largest beach aquatic park in South America. It is one of the
most modern tourist centres in the North East, comprising an aquatic
complex with waterbikes and other modern equipment for watersports.
|
|
|
|
- Fortaleza
is celebrated in verse and prose as the "blonde bride of the sun".
The sea shore, running the length of the city, has a variety of
attractions. Iracema beach is a bohemian enclave, with dozens
of all-night bars situated in buildings which still retain the
architectural features of the turn of the century. Its biggest
attractions are the Estoril, which houses restaurants and an exhibition
gallery, and the Ponte dos Ingleses, from which beautiful sunsets
can be observed.
|
- Mention
should also be made of Meireles, Volta da Jurema and Mucuripe
beaches, connected to each other by the Avenida Beira-Mar. This
avenue is lined by modern buildings, including hotels, bars and
restaurants which serve local cuisine and delicious sea food dishes.
It is also worth seeing the statue of Iracema, a tribute to the
Indian lady who became the eponymous heroine of the book by Jose
de Alencar, an important novelist from Cearα who took part in
the Indianist movement in literature. There is also the colony
of fishermen at Mucuripe, with their jangadas, and Futuro beach,
full of stalls where you can dance forro, one of the traditional
rhythms of the North East Region.
|
|
|
|
- Also worth
seeing is the Josι de Alencar Theatre, constructed in the nineteenth
century, whose rich architecture and internal ironwork is a mixture
of the neoclassical and art nouveau styles; the Museums of Railway
History, the Automobile, Popular Art and Mineralogy; and the Central
Market, where you can buy anything from lace clothing to liqueurs,
cachaηas and cashew nuts. Cearα is one of the main producers of
lace, still largely a cottage industry
|
