Pipa Beach (Praia de Pipa in
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
) is one of the most famous
beach
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc sh ...
es of
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
. Located next to city of
Natal
NATAL or Natal may refer to:
Places
* Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil
* Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa
** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843)
** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...
, the capital city of state of
Rio Grande do Norte
Rio Grande do Norte (, , ) is one of the states of Brazil. It is located in the northeastern region of the country, forming the northeasternmost tip of the South American continent. The name literally translates as "Great Northern River", re ...
. Is located more precisely in municipality of
Tibau do Sul, exactly 84 km from the capital of the state.
History
The first maps of the coastline drawn by
Portuguese settlers, refer to Pipa Beach as ''Orotapiry'', or "White man's village." In 1626, the beach became known as ''Itacoatiara'', meaning "the painted cliff", later becoming ''Ponta do Cabo Verde'' ("Green Headland"), and is now ''Praia da Pipa'', or "Pipa Beach", which means "Kite Beach" (in a literal translation). "Pipa" is the European Portuguese word for "barrel". The story behind the current name tells that when the Portuguese were sailing close to the beach, they could see a big, barrel-shaped rock and that's how the new name was adopted.
Pipa was a small fishing village until the 1970s. Then it was discovered by surfers and backpackers, attracted by a set of natural attributes rarely found even in other Brazilian beaches: crystal-clear waters, fine, white sand, areas of preservation
Atlantic Forest, 10-meter-high vertical cliffs, and friendly locals. However, one should be very careful with the strong currents in the sea and the huge waves loved by the surfers but really dangerous for those willing to enjoy these warm waters.
After the Brazilians, it was the foreign visitors who discovered Pipa, which grew very fast. Soon, it became not only one of the most popular beaches in Brazil, but also one of the most cosmopolitan.
Today, many businesses in Pipa are run by foreigners who visited the town and decided to stay. Pipa, still small in area (expansion is limited by law, with the creation of
Environmental Protected Areas around the village), has a high density of hotels, restaurants, bars and other tourism-oriented businesses.
Success has also brought problems to the community. The large influx of visitors and new dwellers was not matched by investments in infrastructure. Transit is slow, public sewage is not well established, prices are high and despite attempts of protection by law, the environment is threatened by the expansion. This is due to change as development laws have become even stricter due to the actions of environmentalists and various public works programs such as the construction of a ring road (on existing roads) to ease traffic congestion are going ahead.
Gallery
Image:Praia de Pipa.jpg, Cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...
in Pipa Beach.
Image:Praia Pipa.jpg, Pipa beach
image:Pipa beach.jpg, Pipa Beach.
Image:Santuário Ecológico de Pipa.jpg, Ecological Sanctuary of Pipa.
Image:Praia do Amor, Pipa, Brazil.jpg, Praia do Amor.
External links
Website and travel guideWebsite and travel guide with videosPipa Travel ReportInformation, maps and accommodation Surf information camp and school of stand up paddle *{{in lang, pt}
Iformações e acomodações na praia de pipa Map of Pipa
Beaches of Brazil
Populated places in Rio Grande do Norte
Landforms of Rio Grande do Norte