Recife – 100 Places to Remember

Posted by Anto on May 3, 2010 in Environment, Photography | 0 comments

100 Places to Remember > Recife

Brazil ■ This commercial centre of north-eastern Brazil is also a prime destination for tourists thanks to its pleasant weather and 187 kilometres of white beaches. Located close to the Equator, the coastal city of Recife enjoys a year-round warm climate and gentle trade winds from the Atlantic Ocean.

The city’s past as one of the first Portuguese colonies in Brazil and a main port for the slave trade has left an indelible mark on Recife. Nowadays it is a cultural melting pot with an ethnic mix of Indians, Africans and Europeans. African culture is particularly visible in the local religion, music, dance and cuisine. When the Dutch took control of Recife from 1630 to 1654, it also became home to the first Jewish community and synagogue in the Americas. Some of those early Jewish settlers later fled to North America, founding the first Jewish community in New Amsterdam – now known as New York.

A line of coral reefs protects the shoreline of Recife and gives the city its name, which is Portuguese for “reefs”. Water covers the reefs at high tide but at low tide, natural pools form along the shoreline. Inland, Recife is full of waterways due to its location at the point where the rivers Beberibe and Capibaribe converge and flow into the ocean. Due to its low-lying coasts and dense coastal development, Recife – like Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires – is highly vulnerable to rising sea levels, hurricanes, and storm surges. Any rise in sea surface temperature, combined with the increasing acidity of the ocean, is likely to damage Recife’s natural barriers – the coral reefs – leaving the city even more exposed to flooding.

Photography: Andy Caulfield