If the word Sertão is generally linked to a region in the Northeast, its original meaning referred to an area that was far from the urban centers, way out in the country (it can be compared to the Outback in Australia).
The Sertão in the Northeast is characterized by a semi-arid climate and alternating periods of rain and drought.

Some of them are terrible. Lasting several years, ravaging their depleted resources, decimating the skinny herds, and causing the exodus of the Sertanejos (the people of the Sertão).
On this miserable land covered by Catinga (an ecosystem typical to the Sertão, composed of thorny shrubs, cactus and thick grass) they have developed beautiful craftwork and greatly diverse folklore, both exceptionally creatively rich.

Wooden figurines, ceramic statues, literature, forró; the Northeast is rich in traditions and is represented by some veritable legends such as J. Borges, master of literature, or still Luiz Gonzaga, nicknamed the King of Forró, and inspiration of the young generation of Brazilians.

At the heart of this formidable popular culture are two unmistakable and almost haunting figures
The first of these figures are the remote, displaced, half starved people fleeing the drought, abandoning all their possessions to travel on foot, a bundle of clothes on their shoulder, to make it to one of the nearby cities.

The other is the cangaceiros, the fabulous bandits of the highways, who plundered the huge desert spaces until 1930, terrorizing the powerful and humble alike.

The history of man was bound up in a thankless and hostile land, which taught them to survive the hard way and on practically nothing.

If the Sertanejos conjure up this deprived and isolated image, it is important to remember an infallible solidarity towards their neighbors and an admirable hospitality to strangers.
This is what makes such a visit so powerful and fulfilling to the curious traveler.

This program allow you to discover the heart of the Nordeste, the Sertão, a hostile and little populated universe, cradle of the local Brazilian culture. We discover the wealth of this area via its scenery, its handicraft, its music, its gastronomy and the warmth of its inhabitants.
Departure from the pousada at 09:00, in private transportation with our English-speaking guide in the direction of Caruaru (85 miles away from Recife).
On the way, we stop at Bezerros, birth land of the prestigious poet sculptor Jota Borges. We visit the workshops of Jota Borges, of Jota Miguel as well as the very interesting Handicraft museum of Pernambuco (closed Mondays).
We then get back on the road and head to Caruaru where we visit the famous Feira de Caruaru considered like the largest open handicraft market in the Nordeste. All kinds of things are sold there: the most diverse handicraft, leather, wood, terracotta figurines, furniture, and tools… This market is particularly interesting on Saturday as we can witness there the diverse and colorful traditional occupations of the Nordeste.
After lunch (not included), we visit the village of Alto do Moura located 3 miles from Caruaru. It is the birthplace of Mestre Vitalino, famous sculptor ceramist of the Nordeste, creator of the terracotta figurines representing the typical people inhabiting the Sertão or those of the folklore (maracatu, bumba meu boi).
In the middle of the afternoon, we leave for Pesqueira 50 miles away.
Entrance to museums and sites included.
Lunch not included. Dinner included. Night in a hotel.

Departure at 09:00 in the direction of Serra Talhada (126 miles away) where we visit the house where Virgulino Ferreira da Silva, called "Lampião", the King of the cangaçeiros, the highwaymen of the time, the emblematic figures of the Sertão, was born. Son of a peasant assassinated by landlords, "Lampião", driven by vengeance and accompanied by a gang of desperados, for 20 years (from 1920 to 1938), he sew terror from Alagoas to Ceará. A type of local Robin Hood (in a lot more cruel), he defended his friends against injustices and distributed food from his pillages to the poor. Him and his spouse, Maria Bonita, very quickly became mythical personality of the Sertão.
On the way, we stop at Cruzeiro do Nordeste, the modest village where was filmed Central do Brasil, one of the last few years Brazilian successes. After lunch (not included), we climb to the charming town of de Triunfo (22 miles), perched on a hill, true oasis in the heart of the Sertão.
Meals not included. Night in a pousada (basic).

After breakfast, we descend to the Serra pour reach Sertânia (87.5 miles away), remote village only known for its handicraft. We visit the workshop of Mestre Carlos Fernando, talented woodworker who acquired an international reputation with its statuettes, these scrawny men and women escaping the drought of the Sertão to find nourishment elsewhere.
In search of a better future, a lot of them went to enlarge the favelas of the big cities such as Recife or São Paulo.
Finally we head for São João do Cariri (73 miles away) and its typical landscape of caatinga: cacti, dry trees and scorching heat. We spend the night in a fazenda.
Meals not included. Night in a fazenda.

After a delicious sertanejo breakfast, we leave with a local guide for a walk across the fantastic scenery of this area, the Cariri. Here, in the heart of the Sertão, nature has sculpted gigantic rocks to give them the strangest shapes.
We return to the fazenda, before the heat becomes unbearable, to cool ourselves on the shores of the swimming pool. After a nap, we leave again for a walk to the stone du Pai Mateus, in remembrance of a "shaman" who lived there like a hermit in the 18th Century. From there, we watch the beautiful sunset over the caatinga.
Meals not included. Night in a fazenda.
Option lunch: traditional meal cooked in the earth, ancestral indigenous recipe (10 person minimum).
Evening option: Forró concert (10 persons minimum).

In the morning, we leave the fazenda to return to Recife (or Olinda). On the way, we stop near Campina Grande to visit la Pedra do Ingá, a stoned covered with prehistorical inscriptions which meaning and origin still raise controversies among the international scientific community. After lunch (not included), we leave the national road to cross the magnificent region of sugar cane plantation and arrive, in the late afternoon, in Recife (or Olinda).
Meals not included. Night in a pousada in Olinda or Recife.