Recife (population 1.3 million, 3.5 million in the metropolitan area) is a city in the Northeastern Region of Brazil. It is the capital of the Pernambuco state and is a port on the Atlantic Ocean.

History

The settlement was established by the Portuguese in 1537 and remained Portuguese until the independence of Brazil, with the exception of a brief period of Dutch occupation in the 17th century between 1630 and 1654.

Images

Geography

Within its metropolitan area are the cities of Jaboatão dos Guararapes , Olinda, Paulista, Abreu e Lima , Igarassu , Camaragibe, Cabo de Santo Agostinho , and São Lourenço da Mata .

Information

Its main tourist atractions are:

• Churches and historical monuments
• Francisco Brennand's atelier of ceramic art
• Ancient Recife buildings
• Boa Viagem Beach (the main city beach)
• Olinda - a UNESCO World Heritage Site
• Casa da Cultura: souvenir shops
• The Carnival at Recife Antigo
• Cuba do Capibaribe, a mix of Cuban and Brazilian culture in a sightseeing restaurant & dancing club at Paço Alfândega http://www.cubadocapibaribe.com.br (In Portuguese)

There are many wonderful beaches surrounding Recife, such as:

• Porto de galinhas, Ipojuca, Pernambuco (60 km to the south)
• Maracaípe, Ipojuca, Pernambuco (65 km to the south)
• Serrambi, Ipojuca, Pernambuco (70 km to the south)
• Tamandaré, Barreiros, Pernambuco (110 km to the south)
• Itamaracá, Pernambuco (40 km to the north)
• Maragoji, Alagoas (150 km to the south)
• Praia de Pipa, Rio Grande do Norte (280 km to the north)
• Tambaba, Conde, Paraíba (115 km to the north)
• Serrambi, Ipojuca, Pernambuco

Music

• Frevo
• Maracatu
• Forró
• Manguebeat
• Baião
• Xaxado

Main Neighborhoods

• Torre
• Ipsep
• Boa Viagem
• Boa Vista
• Bongi
• Brasília Teimosa
• Cidade Universitária
• Cordeiro
• Aflitos
• Casa Forte
• Derby
• Tamarineira
• Espinheiro
• Graças
• Ibura
• Ilha do Leite
• Iputinga
• Pina
• Recife Antigo
• Santo Amaro
• Santo Antônio
• Setúbal
• Várzea
• Beberibe
• Casa Amarela
• Afogados
• Imbiribeira
• Muribeca
• Estância