Vila handicrafts and Carcará's chickens

The handicraft fair in the Vila (the village center of Porto de Galinhas) is on Rua Beijupirá, near number 168, opposite the sign with the town's name, and usually opens from 14:00 to 22:00. Among the pieces are the small colorful chickens that have become the symbol of the destination.

What you will find

The fair brings together covered permanent stalls, opposite the sign, and stands set up on the street. There are bags, hats, beach cover-ups, bikinis, dish towels with the town's name, paintings, clothes, figurines, cups, keychains and decorative chickens. It gets busier in the evening, when visitors come back from the beach. In the same area there are food stalls, with boiled corn, canjica (sweet corn pudding), crepes, bolo de noiva (Pernambuco's dark fruit wedding cake) and hot dogs. Ipojuca's artisans and street vendors also have their own association.

Carcará's chickens

The chickens scattered around the village came from the work of the visual artist Gilberto Rodrigues do Nascimento, known as Carcará. Born in Piauí and raised in Olinda, he settled in Porto de Galinhas in 1997 and began using coconut palm roots to create the symbol of the place. His pieces, in various sizes and poses, became a trademark of Porto de Galinhas and of the municipality of Ipojuca. The chickens also appear in ceramics, crochet, papier-mâché, wood, terracotta, fibers and fabrics. The artist's studio is on Rua Carcará, with access from km 7 of the PE-009.

Why chickens

The choice refers to the most often told version of the origin of the village's name, linked to the clandestine trade in enslaved Africans. The full story is in Origin of the name Porto de Galinhas.