Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
5
THE RISE AND FALL OF AMAZONIAN RUBBER
In 1874 an Englishman named
Henry Wickham
settled at Santarém with his wife and went
on to be almost single-handedly responsible for the collapse of the Amazon rubber boom,
smuggling quantities of valuable rubber seed from the heart of the Amazon (at a price of £10
for every 1000 seeds) to the Royal Botanical Gardens in London and from there to British-
owned plantations in Asia that were already prepared and waiting. It took over twenty years
for the first crop to mature to anywhere near peak production, but when it did the bottom fell
out of the Brazilian rubber market.
British plantations in Asia produced four tons of rubber in 1900, but 71,000 tons by 1914.
This was not only more than Brazil was producing, but also a great deal cheaper, since the
plantations were far more e
cient than the labour-intensive wild-rubber-tree tapping
practised in the Amazon. Rubber was to feature again in local history through the
development of the towns of
Belterra
(see p.360) and
Fordlândia
(see p.360), both
accessible from Santarém, set up by automobile tycoon Henry Ford with the intent of
establishing the world's largest rubber production centre (see p.354).
Museu Dica Frazão
Rua Floriano Peixote 281 • Daily 6am-6pm • By donation •
T
93 3522 1027
The unique
Museu Dica Frazão
was founded by its eponymous nonagenarian owner,
who to this day enthusiastically gives tours of her museum that is her life and pride.
On display are stylist and artist Dica's handmade clothes, all made exclusively using
natural fibres such as roots, palm and bark. The pieces on display are replicas of
clothing sold to individuals all over the world - according to Dica, one of her
tablecloths is in the Vatican with the pope. There's a pretty outfit from the 1960s, a
wedding dress and other inventive garb on display; there's also a little shop where you
can purchase handmade accessories.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
SANTARÉM
By plane
Santarém airport (
T
93 3522 4328) is at Praça
Eduardo Gomes s/n about 15km from the centre with a bus
connection to Av Rui Barbosa (every 30min; 20min; R$1.90). A
taxi to the centre is R$60 and to Alter do Chão R$80. Travelling
from the town centre, take the “Aeroporto” bus, not to be
confused with “Aeroporto Velho”, which goes nowhere near
the airport. TAM, Azul and Gol have connections to Belém
(8 daily; 1hr) and Manaus (5 daily; 1hr).
By boat
Boats to Manaus and Belém dock at the Estação
das Docas on Av Cuiabá to the west of the city centre. Vans
connect the port to the city centre (every 45min; 15min;
R$2). Boats to Porto da Santana near Macapá leave by
Praça Tiradentes to the west of town. Note that there's an
additional fee if you pay by card.
Destinations
Belém (Fri & Sun 10am, Sat 10pm, with an
added service every 15 days on Mon at 2pm; 48hr;
hammock R$160, cabin for two R$700); Manaus (Mon-Sat
noon, also Tues 1pm; 42-50hr; hammock R$150, cabin for
two R$600); Porto da Santana (for Macapá; daily at 6pm;
24hr; hammock R$140).
By bus
The rodoviária, 3km from the centre, is connected
to the city by local buses (every 20min; 10min; R$1.80).
Destinations
Cuiabá, Mato Grosso (daily 2pm, 6.30am,
3.30pm & 9.30pm; 36hr; R$357), Campo Grande, Mato
Grosso do Sur (daily 2pm, 6.30am, 3.30pm & 9.30pm;
48hr; R$463).
INFORMATION AND TOURS
Tourist information
The tourist o
ce is at the Terminal
Fluvial Turístico at Av Tapajós s/n (Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, Sat
2-8pm;
T
93 3523 2434).
Tours
The most reliable company in town is Santarém Tur
at Rua Adriano Pimentel 44 (
T
93 3522 4847,
W
Santarémtur.com.br) who organize city tours, FLONA
trips and tours of nearby Alter do Chão.
ACCOMMODATION
The accommodation in Santarém is largely uninspiring, with large concrete blocks dominating the riverfront. It's
much better to base yourself in nearby
Alter do Chão
, which offers a number of pleasant
pousadas
in beautiful
surrounding. If you're just here for a night to catch another boat, there are plenty of centrally located options not too
far from the boat docks.
