Fortaleza

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We had an extended stay in Fortaleza due to the Easter holiday - everywhere else was booked out or too expensive over the Easter break. Happy to stop and recharge our batteries for a few days we were sure there were things that would keep us entertained - turns out there were good cinemas, malls and eateries in the city, but not a lot else. If you’re looking for some historical, cultural or archaeological things to do or see then Fortaleza is definitely not for you.

The area we stayed in was pleasant enough, full of high rises and hotels, just like any other beachside city. Sadly the beach wasn’t particularly clean and we were advised not to take Amy swimming there.

We did venture out to the Cultural Centre on Easter Saturday but found it closed until mid-afternoon, but even if it had been open we’re not sure how interesting it would have been... The cathedral and market were close by so we walked the few streets through Centro to get there - it was soon clear that Centro deserves its dodgy reputation as the streets were all but deserted apart from a few drunken people sleeping. We walked fast!

The market was OK but as we were not planning to buy anything it was a bit pointless.

The cathedral is just “gothic-ugly” from the outside and just plain dull on the inside.

So, we got in a taxi and went off to our favourite shopping mall, ate Chinese food and caught another movie (our third in as many days!).

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