A visit to Paço Alfândega is highly recommended. Paço Alfândega (Customs' Palace in Portuguese) is a comfortable, modern shopping mall set in the renovated structure of a colonial customs house building from the early 1700s, during which Recife was the largest port in the Americas. There is a permanent historic exhibition on the history of Recife and the customs building. The mall also houses one of Recife's main nightclubs and some good restaurants. You can have a good view of the Capibaribe River and its bridges from the main terrace. Next door, you can visit the wonderful Livraria Cultura bookstore.