Colourful houses
On the river.
Tuliooliveira95 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Walter Antonio do Livramento — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Walter Antonio do Livramento — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tuliooliveira95 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Walter Antonio do Livramento — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Tuliooliveira95 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Glauco Umbelino from Diamantina, Brasil — CC BY 2.0
Piranhas is a colourful town on the São Francisco River in the dry backlands of Alagoas and the gateway to boat trips through the Xingó canyons. It was the first town in Brazil's semi-arid region to have its historic centre listed by the national heritage institute, in 2004, a listing covering the 19th-century core, the village of Entremontes and 13 kilometres of the river. The city repaints the colourful facades of its colonial-style houses from time to time. The old railway station houses the Museu do Sertão, with weapons, clothing and original photographs from the era of the cangaço, the backland bandit gangs, and the story of the railway that linked the town to Bahia and Pernambuco. The town is tied to the story of Lampião, the most famous cangaço leader: in July 1938 the expedition that killed him at the Grota do Angico, across the river, set out from Piranhas. It suits a walk before or after the canyon trip; check the museum's hours.
On the river.
In the station.
1938.
Piranhas, São Francisco River, Alagoas
Many boat trips to the canyons on the São Francisco start here.
