Nazaré da Mata - Nazareth of the Forest

One of our Carnaval excursions was a road trip on Carnaval Monday [Feb. 19] to the town of Nazaré da Mata [pop. 30,000; 65km NW from Recife]. Known as the home of Maracatu Rural - a Pernambucano ceremony/dance which evolved from the sugarcane workers - Nazaré is the gathering point for more that fifty different Maracatu Rural Nations - or groups - that will dance from mid-morning to past midnight over Carnaval.

Maracatu Rural is a blur of colour and percussion, in which the most striking participants are the Caboclos da Lança, the colourful sugarcane workers come swordsmen with elaborately sequined and cow-belled ponchos, two-metre lances and big tinsel heads, who dance and stomp around the ex slave-based version of the Portuguese Court. Already seeing one is pretty neat. Seeing hundreds all at the same time is a sight that is nearly indescribable.

Next to the Carnavals of its famous cousins Recife and Olinda, Nazaré's is relatively unknown, even by locals themselves. Spending several hours there watching group after group assemble and then perform was definitely one of this year's highlights.