Belém

We spent one night in neither pretty nor touristy Belém. It was founded in 1616 by the Portuguese and played a very important role as a port during the rubber boom. Still all goods coming from the Amazon have to pass Belém. The relatively dirty city (tons of black vultures everywhere!) consists of old, grey, ugly, tall buildings as well as beautiful old colonial-style houses. We strolled around in town on the mango tree-shaded avenidas, visited the great market with all fresh and colourful fruits and vegetables, fish, herbs and spices, weird nuts from the Amazon jungle....and cought our flight to Santarém -a small town in the jungle- the next evening.