Category Archives: Places of Interest

The Theater of Peace – Belém

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Theatro da Paz was built following neoclassical lines, within the golden age of rubber in the Amazon Basin. It is considered the most important culture house in northern Brazil and one of the most luxurious theaters in the whole country. As one can see, it definitely stands out in the modern day city scenario as a beautiful relic of Belém’s past.

The theater originally sat 1,100 people (although today it seats 900) and the curtain was brought in from Paris while the entrance hall is made of decorative materials imported from various regions of Europe. Examples can be found in the English steel in the arcs of the doorways, an Italian marble staircase, French chandeliers and Portuguese stones on the floor. These days, one can find plays, philharmonic concerts and dance recitals going on by checking in with the theater’s calendar of events.

If you would like to see the Teatro da Paz (Theater of Peace) during your trip to Belém, you can find it in the Praça da República (Republic Plaza) in the Centro district. The street it is on is called Rua da Paz.

Narrow-minded Brazilian Architecture

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Somewhere in a small town in Brazil, there’s a pretty narrow-minded architect, I mean don’t get me wrong, I’m sure he’s a real stand up guy but his head was a little in the clouds when he made this one…

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In the small town of Madre de Deus in Bahia, of just about 4 miles squared, there’s a house that’s three stories high and seven feet wide and believe me, it’s an eye-catcher. The residence comes complete with two living rooms, a kitchen, three bedrooms and a varanda. The owners are two 40-somethings, Helenita Queiroz Grave Minho and her husband Marco Antonio and they live with their three children, Helenita’s mother, sister and one dog…go figure!

On the narrow plot of land, when Helenita found herself unemployed, she decided to build a house and rent it out for extra cash. Marco Antonio thought it was a crazy idea but in the end, he gave in and hired a bricklayer who happened to agree with Marco, saying that not even a fridge would fit in a place so narrow. And you know what? He was right. The family ended up having to take apart their appliances and furniture in order to get them in the house.

At the end of two years of work, the owners became satisfied with the house which was bigger than where she lived previously. Upon having this realization, Helenita decided to move to the narrow house and to rent out the old house, which today goes for around $350/month.

The mayor’s office made a fuss at the start but upon seeing the finished work, gave in as well and eventually accepted the new tourism spot where tourists come to sit in front and take pictures. Now, Helenita and Marco Antonio plan to build yet another story, this time without a roof so they can enjoy the sunshine and a nice bbq.

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The Consumer’s Belém – Shop ’til you drop

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If in Belém and in need of a cool place to escape the tropical heat (or the 2PM rain), you have a few options to choose from.

Shopping Pátio Belém

There’s the newly-named Shopping Pátio Belém (formally known during 16 years as the Shopping Iguatemi). Located in the Batista Campos neighborhood of the city, it is pretty centrally located and contains the niceties of most modern malls. Once there, you will find 222 shops and one megastore, a food court and 5 cinematic screens playing new releases, and a 5-story parking garage. Their address on a map is here.

Boulevard Shopping Belém

Yet to be completed, the Boulevard Shopping Belém has a completion date of November, 2009. Located a little bit North of central Belém in the Reduto district, it is only 2.4 miles from its competition. The mall will include 250 shops and 4 megastores, a food court, cinemas and a parking garage on par with the Shopping Pátio Belém. Their address on a map is here.

Castanheira Shopping Center


The first mall in the capital of Pará was the Castanheira Shopping Center located in the Castanheira district along the BR 316 (main highway into and out of Belém) on the outskirts of town. It has 153 stores, a food court and 7 cinemas, as well as ample parking. Their address on a map is here.

Now, if you are searching for a shopping district and not a shopping mall, try the Comércio neighborhood nestled in between Cidade Velha and Campina. For handmade crafts, I suggest visiting Ver-0-peso market.

Salinas – The way to go for weekend fun

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Salinópolis (or simply Salinas, to locals) lies 130 miles up the coast from Belém. It’s the place to be during the month of July (a month off for university students). All in all, there are 12.5 miles of salt-water beaches. The most frequented beach is Atalaia (pictured below), the best for surfing is Marieta, the oldest is Maçarico (although not used for taking a dip), and the most peaceful ones are Pilão and Maria Baixinha.


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Throughout the area, one will find rivers (both large and small), lakes, sand dunes and mangroves. One famous lake is called Coca-Cola Lake (pictured below, with people ‘snowboarding’ down the side) due to the sweet, dark and cold water found within. As for the beautiful views, ask around town for where to rent ultraleves (airborn crafts) and bugs (buggies) to take advantage of the area while you’re there.


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How to arrive/Where to stay

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(Here, you can see Belém in the corner and Salinas marked by an “A”)

As far as how to get there, there are a few options for the 3 hour trip. On wheels, whether by bus, van or car, it’ll cost you about $10. In the case you don’t have your own car, tickets can be bought at the main bus depot in Belém. Once there, you have a choice of hotels and pousadas (bed & breakfast) as well as renting a flat and even staying on a local farm. Important to note, be careful where you park your car, as the tide can change suddenly and you’ll find your car in the water.

The source for most of my information was found at ORM, although translated by me.

The 17th Century Comércio District – Belém

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(The Firefighters of Pará on João Diogo st. on the border of Comércio & Campina)

I was browsing the net, more specifically the site ‘SkyScraper City’, when I came across some photos of beautiful buildings in Belém. The district is called Comércio and is situated next to Cidade Velha (Old Town) in the heart of Belém. In fact, the district is the second oldest in the city and many of the buildings are dated from the 17th century, reflecting the architectural motifs of the time in Lisbon.

After reading through the comments on the site above, I found quite a bit of information. The main avenue of the district is Avenida Presidente Vargas, probably named so due to the fact that the president stayed in the old Central Hotel (now the omnipresent C&A store). The so-called ‘anchor’ of the entire area is the 4-story department store called Yamada Matriz (the fourth floor is the coveted toy store). If you are in Belém and hear someone say they are going shopping “pra baixo” or “em baixo” (below), they are refering to Comércio in downtown Belém.

Batista Campos Plaza – The Best in Brazil

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The Batista Campos Plaza lies in the center of the city of Belém, in between the Old City and the Emilio Goeldi Museum. I would think it to be a top destination as in 2005, it won the “100 Most Brazilian Prize” from the magazine Seleções, for being the most beautiful plaza in the entire country.

In the 19th century, the land belonged to Maria Manoela de Figueira e Salvaterra, and because of this, it was known as the Largo da Salvaterra (Salvaterra Square). When the owner died, the land became property of the municipality of Belém, which named it Sergipe Plaza in honor of the new Brazilian province.

In 1897, during the government of the superintendent Antônio Lemos, the plaza began to honor the principal personality of the Cabanagem Rebellion: Priest Batista Campos, who died in 1834. In that era, the land was just a large square with some mango trees and a general gantry. Three years later, when it was inaugurated on the 14th of Feburary, 1904, it was already one of the most beautiful plazas in Belém.

Staying true to the plan for a ‘garden without gates’, the plaza has 14 entrances. Later on, the walkways of the plaza received reinvestments in the form of Portuguese mosaics with Marajoran motifs. The plaza has a bandstand, waterways, brigdes and it is surrounded by native trees.

In 1983, the Batista Campos Plaza was remodeled by the municipality. In 1986, new equipment was added while it went through a restauration in search of characteristics lost at the start of the 20th century (during the first reform).

Alça-Viária & Bathing at Bica

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Pará’s Alça-Viária (lit. Road Ring) is a set of roads and bridges that cross over a dozen huge amazonic rivers which set apart the wealthy metropolitan region of Belém, the misterious Marajó island and the oceanic northeast Pará from the enormous south of the state. Before then, the trip would depend on the will of the rivers’ tides.

This is the biggest bridge of the set and the only one of them suspended by cables. It crosses the 2km-long Guamá river. In its highest part, it measures almost 600m (a third of a mile) from the water below. Some video animations of the project can be found here.


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Balneário da Bica

Along the Alça-Viária, at kilometer 33, one can find the small bathing resort called Bica, which is about a one-hour trip from Belém. To get an idea of what it looks like, check out the homemade video. All in all, it has three pools full of mineral water.

Museu Tempostal – Pelourinho

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“Did you know the postcard was invented by Emmanuel Hermann? The Austrian professor first put a paper backing on a photograph and tossed it in the mail in 1869. By 1880, they were legal post in Brazil. In 1904 the first colored card appeared. Useless trivia? Well, maybe. But considering how many of these things are sent and received throughout the world, it’s a wonder how little thought they get. This fun little museum boasts a large collection of postcards dating from the 1880s to the 1990s. Most are of Salvador itself; viewing the collection is a wonderful way to see how the city grew and changed. Indeed, it’s much better than the city museum. There’s also a collection of cards from the turn of the last century; even during the Belle Epoque people liked to have photos taken of themselves in silly costumes.” – Source

The Museum Tempostal holds around 45,000 postcards, collected by a native of Sergipe who grew up in Salvador. The postcards mainly cover the transformation of Salvador as a city, including bairros like Rio Vermelho, Cidade Baixa and Graça as well as some areas around Salvador, such as the Recôncavo region. Aside from postcards, one will find old photos and stamps in the restored colonial building which houses the museum.

Open: Tues-Fri 10am-6pm; Sat-Sun 1pm-5pm (call for exact hours)
Address: Rua Gregório dos Matos 33, Pelourinho district
Phone: 071/3117-6383
Admission: Free

The Tororó Jetty – Salvador

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The dique (dam, bank, jetty) was constructed by the Dutch that inhabited Salvador starting from the year 1624. For decades, it was abandoned but in 1998, it was urbanized. The Dique de Tororó (tororó means ‘small talk’, but is also the neighborhood where the lagoon is located) is the only natural spring in Salvador registered by the Institute of Heritage and National Art. It delineates the northern-most region of the Upper City (Cidade Alta) of Salvador.

Aside from the lake which is part of the dique, the area contains a jogging track (called a ‘pista de cooper‘), an area for rowboats, fishing decks, piers for small boats, equipment for sports and gymnastics, playgrounds, as well as a Activity Center and an Events Plaza. The center also has restaurants and parking for 150 cars. In the middle of the lagoon, there’s a floating stage for the implementation of shows and spectacles as well as an architectural ensemble of diverse orixás (African deities) which compliment the beauty of the region and show off the religious aspects of the city.

Historically, the water from the jetty was used by the inhabitants of the city, and there’s even a popular four-verse carol (called a quadrinha) that speaks to the days when the water dried up.

“Eu fui ao Tororó
Beber água e não achei
Encontrei linda morena
Que no Tororó deixei…”

“I went to Tororó
To drink water but all I found
Was a pretty morena
Who I left in Tororó…”

The House of Eleven Windows – Belém

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On the first street in Belém, Siqueira Mendes, the Casa das 11 Janelas (House of 11 Windows) stands. It was built in the 18th century as a residence for a sugar baron. The neoclassical building also served as a military hospital from 1768 for the government of Grão-Pará (present day Belém). From 1870 and onwards, the house was used solely by the military, up until 2001 when it was bought by the government as a future location for tourism. Currently, it holds various classical and modern art exhibitions as well as a photography exhibit upstairs. While there, don’t miss a chance to eat at one of Belém’s best restaurants, Boteco das Onze, which is inside the House.

As Fodor’s says…

“Take a walk through the courtyard and imagine scenes of the past. This is where the aristocracy took tea and watched over the docks as slaves unloaded ships from Europe and filled them with sugar and rum.”

It can be found right on the bay where the Frei Caetano Brandão Plaza sits in the Cidade Velha (Old Town). Entrance is around US$1 although it’s free on either Tuesdays or Wednesdays (I’ll have to get confirmation).