For the next two weeks, I have the privilege of being a visiting professor at the Department of Tourism of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte in Natal, Brazil. Among other things, I am teaching on a course on critical tourism studies, undertaking research fieldwork, delivering a keynote at a conference here and leading a workshop and a seminar. It’s a packed agenda but one that offers great learning experience for me. The past 3 days have already been intensive but also exciting in many ways…and I wanted to say “Olá, bem-vindo and welcome to my Natal Notes blog series”. Here I will be sharing regular reflection and updates of my stay in this beautiful and wonderful North-East part of Brazil.

Some quick updates…

Ponta Negra: This is the name of the neighbourhood which serves as my hideout. I have a wonderful view from the 24th floor of the hotel tower I am staying at. I have managed to do a quick 5km run on the city beach from across the road from my hotel and down the built up dunes.

Teaching: It has been an awesome experience teaching and learning with a wonderful group of postgraduate and doctoral students for the first 2 days. We have 4 hours of class each day and with a same number of students, the class is run more like a seminar in which we sit in a semi-circle. Through a mix of English-Portuguese with translation from my host – Mozart Fazito – where needed we managed to learn and exchange ideas about critical tourism research and the nexus between tourism, heritage and memory in relation to slavery and colonial heritage.

Leisure and Food: I’ve now ticked off ‘visit the biggest cashew nut tree in the world’ as noted by the Guinness World Record from my bucket list. It has also been fun having boiled yam, boiled cassava and fried cassava on offer for breakfast at the hotel. I am sure that by the time I leave, I would have packed up some 5kg of extra body weight due to the delicious food I’m enjoying by the time.

Next stop…: After the two days of intensive teaching, we are now going to put our knowledge to the test with a research fieldwork trip to Recife and surrounding areas like Olinda and other places of slavery and colonial heritage. We are basically going on a search for Dutch slavery heritage traces in this part of the North-East of Brazil which used to be called ‘Dutch Brazil’. During this time the capital for Dutch Brazil was  Mauritsstad (which is today part of Recife). In fact Natal which is the capital city of the Rio Grande do Norte federal region and where I am based now was christened as ‘New Amsterdam’ in 1633 when the Dutch invaded and kicked out the Portuguese from the area. As part of my larger project on the geographies of slavery heritage tourism, I am excited to be able to explore together with my wonderful group of students how tourism has/is transforming European (particularly Dutch) slavery and colonial heritage traces in these parts of Brazil and the resulting societal dialogues/tensions on commemoration and memorialisation of such heritage.

Now it’s time for the bus ride along the coast from Natal to Recife…..road adventure stories to follow soon.