Caruaru

Caruaru is a city in Pernambuco, Northeast Brazil. It is famous for its huge São João (St. John's) celebrations in June. The city claims to have "the world's largest São João festivities".

Get in

By plane

• Aeroporto de Caruaru (CAU)
• Recife's airport is at accessible road distance.

By bus/car

• Along BR-232 - from Recife - travel by bus (about 1 hour 30 minutes) is simple and comfortable. I took the Caruaruense line and spent about R$20,00 each way.
• Along BR-104 - from Campina Grande

Main Distances:

• Recife: 137 km
• Garanhuns: 106 km
• Campina Grande: 173 km
• Maceió: 240 km
• Serra Talhada: 299 km
• Salgueiro: 404 km

Get around

See

• Alto do Moura, recognized by UNESCO as the largest center for figurative arts in the Americas. Home to famous ceramist Mestre Vitalino and other artists
• Casa-Museu Mestre Vitalino (Mestre Vitalino's House), open Monday through Saturday, 8AM-noon and 2PM-5PM; Sunday, 8AM-noon. At Rua Mestre Vitalino, Alto do Moura
• Memorial Mestre Galdino, open Tuesday through Saturday, 8AM-noon and 2PM-5PM; Sunday, 8AM-1PM; at Rua São Sebastião, 181, Alto do Moura
• Museu do Barro e da Cerâmica (Clay and Ceramics Museum). Open Tuesday-Saturday, 8AM-5PM; Sunday, 8AM-1PM; at Espaço Cultural Tancredo Neves, bloco B. Praça Cel. José de Vasconcellos, 100, Centro; tel.: [phone] 
• Memorial de Caruaru, a multifaceted cultural center with three key components: the City Museum (Museu Celso Galvão or Museu da Cidade), Memorial da Feira de Caruaru and an exhibit on popular folk art. Open: Tuesday through Saturday, 8AM-5PM, at Rua Duque de Caxias, 1000, Centro; tel.: [phone]
• Museu do Forró Luiz Gonzaga (Forró Museum)
• Museu do Cordel (Cordel Museum). Museum dedicated to "Cordel" literature, a traditional pamphlet literature that was typical in Europe in the Middle Ages. Northeastern Brazil is one of the few place in the world where this type of literature is still alive.
• Feira de Caruaru (Caruaru Street Market), Brazil's largest street market (handicrafts, lace and embroidery, leather products, traditional medicinal products, typical food, and almost anything you might want)
• Feira do Troca-Troca (Exchange-Exchange Street Market), a street market in which you can exchange the most strange goods, such as chickens for a watch, a parakeet for a bicycle, and the like. Takes place on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
• Museu da Fábrica de Caroá (Caroá Factory Museum), installed in what used to be Fábrica Caroá (1935-1978), Brazil's first factory to produce fiber products from the caroá plant.
• Pátio do Forró, where all the action is. Main attraction during São João (Saint John's) and São Pedro (Saint Peter's) festivals. Lots of forró dancing going on with live music on three stages.

Do

June Festivals (primarily St. John's)

• St. Gonçalvo - First Saturday in June
• St. Anthony - June 13
• St. John's celebrations (São João) - June 24
• Sts. Peter & Paul - June 29
• St. Martial - June 30

Buy

• Handicrafts (pottery art) from one of the 200 artists at the Alto do Moura neighborhood.
• Feira de Caruaru: Brazil's largest street market (handicrafts, lace and embroidery, leather products, traditional medicinal products, typical food, and almost anything you might want)
• Caruaru has a very active commerce downtown. It serves as a commercial and services hubs for an important part of the interior of Pernambuco. Outside the city center, Caruaru Shopping is a modern shopping mall with movie theaters and fast-food restaurants.

Eat

Local gastronomy includes several goat and bovine meat dishes, such as "buchada", "carne de sol", "chambarril" and "sarapatel". Green beans and melted butter are also typical.

Restaurants (Typical Northeastern Food):

• Bode Assado do Luciano, R. Mestre Vitalino, 511, Alto do Moura
• La Carne, Av. Cícero José Dutra, s/n, Petrópolis
• Mestre Vitalino, Rua Leão Dourado, 13, São Francisco
• Mandacaru, R. São Domingos, 160, Pinheirópolis
• Rei do Bode, Rua Mestre Vitalino, 570, Alto do Moura
• Gostim de Feira, Caruaru Shopping

Restaurants (Other Food):

• Bistrô do Chef Adolfo, Caruaru Shopping
• O Nelore, R. Bogotá, 50, Divinópolis (feijoada)
• Papillon, Av. Prof. José Leão, 425, Maurício de Nassau (local and international food)
• Mister Pizza, Av.Agamenon Magalhães, s/n, Maurício de Nassau (fast food pizza)
• Chinatown, Caruaru Shopping (Chinese food)

Drink

Bars:

• Bar da Perua, R. Aliança, 175, Cohab I
• Mulungu, R. Mestre Vitalino, 595, Alto do Moura
• Universidade da Cerveja, Av. Agamenon Magalhães, 1351, Maurício de Nassau

Sleep

• Grande Hotel São Vicente de Paulo , Av. Rio Branco, Centro; tel.: [phone]
• Caruaru Park Hotel , BR-232, km 128, Agamenon Magalhães; tel.: [phone]
• Hotel Village , BR-232, km 129, Petrópolis; tel.: [phone]
• Hotel Central , Rua Vigário Freire, 71, Centro; tel.: [phone]
• BR Palace Hotel , Avenida Campina Grande, 241, São Francisco; tel.: [phone]
• Hotel Eduardo de Castro , Rua Amélia Maria da Conceição, 148, Pinheirópolis; tel.: [phone]
• Maysa Plaza Hotel , Rua Teófilo Dias, 93, Maurício de Nassau; tel.: [phone]
• Vila Rica Hotel , Rua Dalvino Alves Pedrosa, 160, Pinheirópolis; tel.: [phone]
• Hotel Caruaru , Rua Mestre Pedro, 77, Centro; tel.: [phone]
• Camping Empetur, Rua Dois Irmãos, tel.: [phone]

Go next

• Tracunhaém, one of Brazil's most important ceramic art production centers.
• Lagoa do Carro, famous for its tapestry. You can also visit the Cachaça Museum.
• Recife, vibrant capital of Pernambuco state.
• Olinda, beautiful colonial town in the Atlantic coast. UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Igarassu, colonial town, home to Brazil's oldest church and Latin America's largest collection of baroque art.
• Porto de Galinhas, consistently voted Brazil's best beach.