Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Teatro Alberto Maranhão
Praça Augusto Severo •
T
84 3222 3669,
W
www.teatroalbertomaranhao.rn.gov.br
he restored
Te a t ro
Alberto Maranhão
,
a Neoclassical gem built between 1898 and 1904,
is arguably the most elegant building in the city, and still hosts concerts and shows.
Praça Albuquerque
Igreja Nossa Senhora da Apresentação
daily 4.30-6pm • Free
Memorial Câmara Cascudo
Tues-Sat 9am-4.30pm • Free •
T
84 3222 3293
In languid, almost half-forgotten Praça Albuquerque, you'll find the
Igreja Nossa Senhora
da Apresentação
, once Natal's cathedral and built in 1862, with a fairly unexceptional
interior (the bewilderingly ugly hulk of a modern cathedral opened at the end of Rua
João Pessoa in 1988). At the southern end of the plaza the
Memorial Câmara Cascudo
celebrates the life and work of
Luís da Câmara Cascudo
, the beloved
natalense
folk writer,
housed in a Neoclassical mansion built in 1875 with a statue of the great man outside.
Igreja de Santo Antônio
Rua
Santo Antônio 683 • Mon-Fri 8-11.30am & 2-5.30pm, Sat 8-11.30am • Free
Museu de Arte Sacra
Tues-Sat 8am-5pm • Free •
T
84 3211 4236
The most historical and photogenic church in Cidade Alta is the
Igreja de Santo
Antônio
, a Baroque gem in white and blue also known as the Igreja do Galo, after the
eighteenth-century bronze cock crowing on top of its Moorish tower.
Completed between 1766 and 1799, it features a relatively humble interior with a
wood-carved
retábulo
. Next door is the
Museu de Art Sacra
, a relatively small collection
of religious art work, oratorios and statuary, with much of the upstairs dedicated to
Padre
João Maria
(1848-1905), who was beatified in 2002.
4
Museu Café Filho
Rua da Conceição 601 • Tues-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 11am-5pm • R$1 •
T
84 221 2938
Just off Praça Sete de Setembro is the
Museu Café Filho
, dedicated to the only
rio
grandense
to become president of Brazil, local boy
João Café Filho
, who became Vargas'
vice-president in 1950 (he became president in 1954 after Vargas' suicide, but only
lasted two years) - a corrupt and incompetent paternalist, despite the attempts by the
museum to present him as a statesman. But he had the good taste to live in a fine
two-storey mansion (completed in 1820), which is worth seeing - more than can be
said for the yellowing papers and heavy furniture of the long-dead president.
Centro de Turismo
Rua Aderbal de Figueiredo 980 • Mon-Sat 8am-7pm, Sun 8am-6pm •
T
84 3211 6149 •
Casa de Milagros
• Tues-Sat 10am-5pm •
Free •
T
84 9984 8530
Located in the old city prison, perched on top of a hill in Petrópolis (surrounded by
favelas
), the
Centro de Turismo
boats a lovely café,
Marenosso
(see p.295), as well as scores
of quality arts and crafts stalls, with an emphasis on cotton products. The complex dates
back to the late nineteenth century, becoming a poorhouse in 1911 and a prison between
1945 and 1969. Part of the same complex but with a separate entrance, the
Casa de
Milagros
is a small but fascinating collection of ex-votos and religious statuary from all over
Rio Grande do Norte housed in an old chapel; no English labels, but the walls of wooden
legs, arms, breasts, animals and actual photos of gruesome injuries more than compensate.
This is currently the venue for the Thursday-night
Forró com o Turista
(see p.296).
City beaches
Parque das Dunas Av Alexandrino de Alencar • Tues-Sun 8am-6pm • R$1 (R$2 with trails) •
T
84 3201 3985,
W
parquedasdunas.rn.gov.br
Natal's beaches are the main tourist draw, though the primary city beaches have waned
in popularity in recent years. Beginning at the Forte dos Reis Magos, arcs of sand
sweep along the bay between land and an offshore reef, with a small collection of stalls
