São Paulo – In a Northeastern Brazilian state, as is the case in the Arab world, it is possible to go on rides on dromedaries, also known as Arabian camels. This kind of activity is usually offered to tourists in countries like Morocco, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, and came to Brazil due to the entrepreneurialism of a Brazilian and a Swiss. Philippe Landry, while still living in Switzerland, had already travelled to Morocco and done a tour on camel back. When visiting Genipabu beach, in Brazil, he decided that the site, with its dunes, would be ideal for the activity.
"We are the only company breeding dromedaries for tours. In other parts of Brazil, the animals are bread, but only in zoos," said Cleide Batista, who, together with Landry, owns Dromedunas, the company that offers Arabian camel tours in Rio Grande do Norte. The Swiss and Brazilian have the dromedary breeding farm at Genipabu beach, in the city of Extremoz, 25 kilometres away from Natal, the state capital.
Cleide tells that Landry had already moved to Brazil and was prepared to invest in the idea of tours on dromedaries when he met her. At the time, the entrepreneur taught Portuguese in Infant Education and his daughter was her student. They later moved in together and started the company in 1998. "It was camels and marriage, all together," she jokes. Initially, they imported six dromedaries from Spain. Later, another four animals were purchased.
That was when they noticed they would not manage to make the business grow without breeding the animals themselves. So they started breeding dromedaries. "Ten were born here," said Cleide. The last animal born, a female, in fact, had its name selected through a poll on the Internet, on the Dromedunas site. It was called Zatara. Cleide and Landry ended their personal relationship in 2004, but continue partners. They have 12 people to work on the outings and to on dromedary breeding. Their eldest kids – each had two kids from previous relationships – help in the business.
In the Dromedunas tours, the company offers headscarves to tourists, so that they may wear them, imitating Arabs. The company animals are those with just one hump and are originally from the Arabian Peninsula. There are also Bactrian camels, originally from Asia, which have two humps.
Cleide explains that taking care of the animals is troublesome. According to her, Dromedaries eat industrialized feed, hay and carrots, among other foods. And the business as a whole does not generate much profit, she adds.
However, the entrepreneur believes that she is not in the area by cancel. She is of Portuguese origin, and, despite not having official family confirmation, believes she has Arab blood. "Even before all of this I already felt a great connection with the region," she said, regarding the Arab world. Her features, similar to those of Arab women, made it possible for her to play a background part in soap opera "The Clone", which tells the story of a Moroccan and which was partly shot in Rio Grande do Norte.
Apart from managing Dromedunas, Cleide also teaches, but now in the area of Tourism, at institutes like National Service of Commercial Education (Senac). She graduated in Tourism, is post-graduated in Business Pedagogy and plans to start a masters in Environmental Management in the near future.
Contact
Dromedunas
Site: www.dromedunas.com.br
Telephone: (+55 84) 3225 2053
*Translated by Mark Ament
