Clearly ranked one of the top places to live in Mato Grosso, Tangará is located about 3 hours from the Mato Grosso capital of Cuiaba, and has capitalized on its rise in popularity by continuously offering more. Women can find the latest fashions in its many stores, whether along the busy Avenida Brasil or inside its large air-conditioned shopping.

While Tangará may seem like a modern Mato Grossense’s paradise, the city has managed to hold onto parts of its past, too. Surrounded by several Indian reservations, Tangará da Serra is a prime location for a visitor to encounter the Indian way of life. Stores like Tangarártindia provide customers with a wide variety of Indian artifacts, some of which have even been used in ceremonies previously.

Interested parties can pick from anything from wondrous basket weavings, beaded jewelry and accessories to authentic headdresses, armbands and ankle jewelry, all made of things gathered on nearby lands.

Rich in color and texture, the artifacts give buyers a peek into how life must really be for the tribes of Irantxe, Bororo, Umutina, Paresi, and Aruniná who remain and how life really was for those who came before.

They line their walls with Indian masks, bows and arrows, use woven baskets for their dirty laundry and let their children play with authentic wooden flutes and noisemakers.

A Tangaráense can combine their chic Victor Hugo handbag with a beaded necklace made of coco and be out the door.

So next time you are looking for a balance of modernity and the wild, wild West of Brazil, think Tangará da Serra. I mean, who wouldn’t like a necklace made of dried armadillo skin anyway?

For more information, including photos and ordering opportunities, concerning Indian art, jewelry and artifacts from Tangará da Serra, contact Ashley Riley Lopes at ashleyrileylopes@hotmail.com.