Our Town

The Municipality of Recife

Parks Sculpture by Francisco Brennand

Has its origin closely related to Olinda. In charter (letter of feudal rights) from Olinda, granted by Duarte Coelho in 1537, there is a reference to "Arrecife of ships, a village inhabited by sailors and fishermen. Recife remained colonized by the Portuguese Brazil's independence, with the exception of a period of Dutch occupation between 1630 and 1654.

During the years prior to the invasion of the West Indies Company, the town of Recife existed only as in function of the port and the shadow of the headquarters of the city of Olinda, where the local aristocracy chose to reside due to its elevated location, which facilitated the defense. They rose in defense fortifications and palisades of the town and the port of Recife, all facing the sea. The fears turned to the ocean due to the constant attacks on the American coast by the Portuguese navigation privatizing and piracy. In the late sixteenth century the "people of the reefs" was attacked and looted by English pirate James Lancaster, with three ships defeated a small garrison in charge of defending the port. Between the years 1620 and 1626 the then governor Matias de Albuquerque sought to establish fortified positions in the port of Recife in order that it could prevent another attack like that as well as deterring the West India Company of the idea taken in Bahia in 1624.

Culture

Recife is the birthplace of writers, poets, musicians and various artists from many forms of expression. Manuel Bandeira, João Cabral de Melo Neto and Carlos Pena Filho are famous Brazilian poets whom describe Recife in their works. Besides poetry, other artists appeared, like Nelson Rodrigues in literature, Lenin, Antonio Nobrega, Robby Recife and Reginaldo Rossi's music, Francisco Brennand, Vicente do Rego Monteiro and Villares Lauro in fine arts, among others.

The city houses several museums, cultural centers and institutions dedicated to promoting artistic and cultural activities such as the Centennial Pernambuco Academy of Arts, Academy of Arts and Letters from Pernambuco and Instituto Ricardo Brennand, one of the most important museums in Brazil with important collection of prints and other works of art from the seventeenth century in Brazil.

The most important cultural events take place in the capital of Pernambuco, emphasizing the Movement of Independent Writers of Pernambuco in the 1980s that brought together a large number of poets. The April Pro Rock that arises as a developer of motion manguebit revealing national bands like Nação Zumbi and Mundo Livre S / A.

The Museum of the State of Pernambuco holds historical collection of the state, the Museum of the City of Recife installed in the Five Points Fort (Forte das Cinco Pontas) holds much of the history of Recife and the Museum of Abolition which was established in 1957 by the federal government to tell the story of slaves in Brazil and abolition.

Teatro Santa Isabel is the main theater of Recife is located with its important architectural and landscaping monuments in the Republic Square with the Campo das Princesas Palace, Palace of Justice and the School of Pernambuco.

Climate

The city of Recife has a tropical climate with high relative humidity. It has balanced temperatures throughout the year due to its proximity to the sea. January has the highest temperatures, with a maximum of 30 ° C and minimum 25 ° C, sunny. July has the lowest temperatures, with a maximum of 27 ° C and a minimum of 20 ° C, getting a lot of precipitation. The average annual temperature is 25.2 ° C.

Vegetation

Recife has a small area of Atlantic Forest in the neighborhood of Dois Irmãos, where the Dois Irmãos park is located, the largest park in the city. In addition, several areas of the county are mangrove. The majority are close to Capibaribe River in the south and bordering the city of Olinda.

Hydrograph

Recife is known as "Venice of Brazil" thanks to fluvial resemblance with the European city of Venice. Surrounded by rivers and crossed by bridges, composed of islands and mangroves. Here the Beberibe and Capibaribe rivers meet and flow into the Atlantic Ocean. The city has dozens of bridges, including the oldest in Brazil; Maurício de Nassau Bridge built in 1644.

The average elevation relative to sea level is 4 feet, but there are some areas of the municipality that is located below sea level. The city is located at latitude 8 ° 04 '03''S and longitude 34 º 55' 00''O.

Rivers

• Capibaribe (main)
• Beberibe (bordering Olinda)
• Jiquiá
• Tejipió
• Jordão
• Pina

Beaches

• Boa Viagem
• Pina
• Brasília Teimosa

Touristic Attractions

Recife attracts tourists from around the world. Prominent among the reasons are Carnival and St. John Celebration (São João). Recife is a hub city in the coast of the state of Pernambuco for tourists arriving by plane.

Recife is a multicultural city, with songs and dances of African, Indian and Brazilian in its carnival. The neighborhood of Old Town of Recife is the main architectural and cultural city housing galleries, museums and other cultural venues. Other neighborhoods and areas of interest are Poço da Panela, Derby, Ponte d'Uchoa, Casa Forte, Santo Antonio, among others.

The city hosts the largest concentration of world carnival - the Galo da Madrugada, which involved an estimated two million people (more than the population of the city) from all over Brazil.

A boat trip is possible to know the Sculpture Park of Francisco Brennand. There is also the museum of the Instituto Ricardo Brennand. Throughout the year, there are several exhibitions at the Convention Center, which is the second largest in Brazil, including the Book Biennial.