20 June 2012 - Olde Town Olinda

Today was a great day of learning about the culture and history of Brazil.  In class in the morning we learned about José Mauricio de Nassau, who was the Dutch governor of Recife and the surrounding areas for most of the Dutch occupation of Brazil.  He was a good governor and helped the area develop into a very cultured part of Brazil.

In the afternoon we traveled to see the historic area in Olinda which is the city directly north of Recife.  It is in fact older than Recife is, but not by much.  We visited many old catholic cathedrals in the area and took a scenic elevator to the top of a building that was on the highest hill so that we could see all of the surrounding areas and take pictures from the top.  Most of the cathedrals had been originally built in the late 1500s.  It was an amazing trip and a great cultural experience.