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Northeast Brazil: Overview The nine states that comprise this large region all have Atlantic beaches as well as capital cities that double as ports, the only riverine harbor among them being Teresina, which is the capital of the Brazilian state of Piaui. Because Salvador da Bahia, Recife and Fortaleza enjoy good reputations in the tourist industry, they are popular charter-flight destinations. But relatively small Sergipe and Alagoas are as little known as Maranhao, the northernmost of the nine states, which is nearly as large as Germany. Of the 30 percent or so of Brazil's population that lives in this region (which occupies a fifth of the country's land mass), over half live in poverty; for this region bears the stamp of sugar-cane production and the slavery that accompanied it. Here the structures of colonial society are largely intact. The yearning of these impoverished Nordestinos to escape drought, hunger and misery has transformed vast numbers of them into cheap and willing workers in the metropolises of Sao Paulo, Rio and Belo Horizonte. The region can be divided into four geographical zones. The 150-kilometerwide strip that runs along the coast and which was once covered with lush tropical forests is known as Zona da Mata. Brazil's colonial masters cut down these forests, first to export the brazilwood they found there, and later to create arable land for sugar-cane production, which was followed by cocoa, cotton, tobacco and beans. The most populous cities are in this zone, making it the most densely populated in the region. | |
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