Santarém is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Pará, which can be accessed by river. The city is known poetically as “Pérola do Tapajós”. The name was recognized because of the crystal clear waters of the Tapajós River. The region has more than 100 km of beaches that most resemble the sea, it is the third most populous in the state, behind only the capital Belém and Ananindeua, being the main urban, financial, commercial and cultural center in the west of the state.
It was founded on June 22, 1661, it is one of the oldest cities in the Amazon region and in 1758 it was elevated to the category of Village and, almost a century later, as a result of its remarkable development, it was elevated to the category of City on 24 October 1848. Santarém is included in the plan of the historic cities of Brazil, as it is one of the oldest and culturally significant for the state of Pará.
Culture of Santarém
In the region of the lower Tapajós River, the so-called Santarém culture flourished, which was notable for the production of ceramics of a very peculiar style, based on the use of modeling, incision, stippling and application techniques. The santarena ceramics have a very complex decoration, because in addition to painting and drawings, the pieces have embossed ornaments with figures of humans or animals. Unlike the Marajoara figurines, those from the Santarém culture have greater realism, as they reproduce humans and animals more faithfully. The main cultural manifestation is the Festa do Sairé that takes place in Alter do Chão and is a reproduction of the local and regional culture of the city, there is also the festival of the Círio de Nossa Senhora da Conceição which is a religious party that adds a lot to the culture local.
Typical gastronomy of Santarém
The local cuisine made Santarém included in the select Caminhos do Sabor Program that aims to add tourist value through gastronomy, colors, flavors and smells, cuisine is one of the most striking characteristics of Santarém, in western Pará.
Some specialties of the local cuisine are:
Tacacá
Tacacá is a typical dish of indigenous origin, it is prepared with a yellowish broth, called tucupi, it is over the cassava gum, also served with jambu and dried shrimp.
Açaí
It is an Amazonian fruit and is widely consumed as juice or mush, and can be consumed in the form of functional drinks, sweets, jellies and ice cream. The fruit is harvested by workers who climb the palm trees with the help of a braid of leaves tied to the feet.
Caruru
It is a stew of okra or carurus that is usually served with acarajé or abará, contains pieces of meat, chicken or fish, dried shrimp, palm oil and pepper.
Maniçoba
It is a dish of indigenous origin, also called Feijoada Paraense, because it contains practically the same ingredients as traditional Feijoada and because it comes from the state of Pará, its main ingredient is manioc, and ground cassava leaf.
In addition to cuisine, culture and history, it is important that you get to know other attractions in Santarém.
On board a RBarcos vessel it is possible to visit several incredible places in the vicinity of the city and even go on sport fishing trips.
