When travelling by cruise ship, the first views of most cities are from the ocean as the ship approaches the dock. Getting to the dock is usually assisted by a few smaller watercraft and their specially trained operators.
The Pilot boat waits for us at the entrance to the harbour. 
Guided in by the Pilot.
The pilot boat often brings a special captain to the ship with the intimate knowledge of the local harbour. He often has to make a jump from the safety of the small pilot boat to a rope ladder or moving platform on the side of the cruise ship.
Tug boats are often push boats. 
Doing a dance for the tourists.
Tug boats are usually standing by to help maneuver the cruise ship into place at the dock. Although tugging implies pulling with a rope, these mighty little crafts often spend as much time pushing with the bow of their boat against the side of the cruise ship. This clever fellow entertained us with a little dance while he waited for us to need his powerful push. The dance involved rotating the agile craft to the right and then to the left while staying in the same spot.
The long pier connects the city with a special oil terminal dock, out in the bay, at a safe distance from the city.
Connecting the city on the left, 
with the oil tankers on the right
A new terminal building has just been completed for the tourists coming to the northern part of Brazil by cruise ships to visit the city and the local beaches. It has been constructed on a reclaimed spit of land.
The position of this land is an ideal location in the path of the prevailing winds to generate electric power. There is a road that the buses use to pick up tourists for other destinations and sightseeing adventures.
There is also a dock area for loading and unloading other ships of their cargo.
– Where do you want to go today? –
For a peek inside the terminal building follow this link:
Here is a link to learn more about Fortaleza from Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fortaleza
Wow, that’s so interesting. I would think that you’d have to be very skillful to make the boat dance! I have enjoyed tagging along with you on your adventure. Your posts are always delightful. Welcome back to the challenge.
welcome back to UBC and Brazil is definitely another must do (well most of S America!) and your posts always make me even more eager to head out to wherever you feature
As usual, you start the challenge with awesome photos and interesting narratives! I even like how the sky looks in you photos! Absolutely stunning, glad to see you back in the 2020 challenge!