What we do if we’ve got a holiday/day off right in the middle of the week? We get out of the house, hauling the 3 kids around! This time, our family decided to take a day trip to a nearby island, named Itamaraca (“rock that sings” in Tupi-Guarany language – there’ll be a later post about it!)
The island of Itamaracá, located 40 km from Recife, is separated from the continent by the Jaguaribe River. It has calm beach waters, with coconut trees, natural swimming pools, reefs, sandbanks and a fort (originally built during the Dutch Colonization Period), Besides the cultural and historical features, its ecological reservations with native forests, the island shelters the Manatee Preservation Center.
The native name for the manatee is “peixe-boi“, an enormous creature that intrigues any curious souls – especially, our toddlers’ curious eyes and minds! 
“Centro de Preservação do Peixe-Boi” (Manatee Preservation Center) – is open for visitors from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10 am to 4 pm, it is an excellent opportunity to see the manatee so closely, this exotic sea mammal..
3rdculturechildren 
I love manatees.
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they are so mysterious, so big, and yet, look so defenseless… I had an idea, before visiting the preservation center, but imagined I’d find “beasts” swimming, but instead, my kids and I encountered the sweetest creatures, dancing in the waters… Very cool.. Very happy we went…
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Fascinating creatures, aren’t they?
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Absolutely! Mysterious, enormous… and yet, sweet! 😮 Thanks for stopping by, Nel!
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