The best shopping in São Luis is in the centro histórico. The Reviver area features a number of good crafts and art shops, as well as the small but intriguing indoor market called the Casa das Tulhas. Higher up in the old city, the principal shopping street Rua Grande features an intriguing mix of national chain stores and cheaper local stores selling clothing, hardware, refrigerators, and everything else. Rua Grande is pedestrian only for much of its length, making it pleasant for strolling and people-watching.
Gifts and Souvenirs -- In the Reviver area of the centro histórico there are a number of shops selling products unique to the state of Maranhão. Arte Indigena, Rua do Giz 66 (tel. 098/3221-2940), sells baskets, jewelry, and artwork made by Maranhão's indigenous peoples. The shop is associated with the Associação Carlo Ubbiali (www.asscarloubbiali.com.br), a nonprofit organization which works to improve the lives of Maranhão's Indians through education, advocacy, and by providing a commercial outlet for Indian products. Casa dos Produtos Regionais, Beco Catarina Mina 187 (tel. 098/3222-6548), is the place for those with a sweet tooth. The shop features a delicious assortment of local foodstuffs, including sweets, preserves, and liqueurs made from local fruits such as bacuri, cupuaçu, murici, and buriti. It's also a good place to stock up on moisturizing oils made from copaiba and andiroba for R$20 (US$8.50) if you buy it here, or for R$200 (US$85) if you buy it in a fancy eco-shop in New York or Paris. The two shops named above are open Monday through Saturday 9am to 9pm, Sunday noon to 7pm. If you like the tilework you've seen all over the old city, check out Ateliê Mão na Massa, Rua do Giz 117 (tel. 098/3227-0094). In addition to tiles, the workshop also features beautiful pieces of glazed pottery, as well as cheaper souvenirs. Open Monday through Saturday 9am to 6pm.
At the airport, In Natura Handicraft (tel. 098/3226-8435) has sophisticated purses and handbags made from palm and coconut fiber. Prices aren't rock-bottom (R$60/US$25) but the same bags in Rio or São Paulo sell for R$200 (US$83) and up.
Malls and Shopping Centers -- The city's biggest shopping mall, the São Luis Shopping, Av. Euclides Figueiredo 1000, Jaracaty (tel. 098/3251-3621), boasts a six-screen cinema, large food court, and hundreds of shops. It's located a little past the Bandeira Tribuzzi bridge leading out of the centro histórico. Open Monday through Friday from 10am to 10pm and Saturday from 10am to 8pm.
Markets -- In the Reviver area, there's the Casa das Tulhas, also known as the Feira da Praia Grande, a small but bustling indoor market with staples such as farinha and dried shrimp and fish, as well as a selection of herbs, roots, and tree barks used for a variety of medicinal purposes. The market is open daily from 7am to 6pm. At night, the Rua da Alfândega in the Reviver fills up with stalls selling local sweets and pastries and handmade leatherwork and basketry. A little farther from the Reviver, the much larger Mercado Central, Rua do Mercado s/n (corner of Rua Jacinto Maia with Av. Guaxenduba), sells staples, fresh fish, and a wide assortment of local fruits and medicinal herbs. Open daily 6am to 4pm, but best early in the morning.
