Day 7: Jan 10, 2006: Chillin´ in Fortaleza
On this Tuesday Cristiany, Uzi and Laurence went once again back to beach. I was feeling a little beached out, so I rested up at the hotel and later took a walk out to the ´Dragão do Mar´ art and cultural center, an impressive, modern complex with towers and walkways covering more than two city blocks.
The front (south) entrace to Dragão do Mar


A view to the east from the front entrance


One of the shows was a sort of ´who-we- were´ exposition of old portraits.


We (the visiting public) also got to see how the show was produced.





A neat exhibition of sculpture, including this collection of jungle creatures.


Also an interesting exhibit on the lives of the cowboys of Ceara state. Unfortunately my taking this picture coincided with the only earthquake to have occurred in Fortaleza in the last 10,000 years.


View to the east from the walkway at Dragão do Mar with dusk approaching


To give you an idea of the scale of the com- plex the buildings in the back- ground with the red, pyramid- shaped roofs are also a part, connected by a long, raised walkway.



View to the south from the walkway at Dragão do Mar. The tower in the background is a monument (to Jesus, I think, and OUTSIDE the complex).


View of part of the walkway and the northern part of the complex.


View of Fortaleza Cathedral from the walkway at Dragão do Mar.


Partial view of the courtyard on the southern side of the complex. The raised walkway, just visible at the left, cut right through an old row of shops, some of which still serve as restaurants or bars.


My new Brazilian friend Amaury Cândido met me that evening at Dragão do Mar and took me on a neat driving tour all over the city.
Amaury poses next to a statue of Rachel de Queroz one of Ceara and Brazil´s foremost literary figures.


This building on the central square, once a club and casino, is now a bank, but not like our stuffy, North American banks...