Praca do Ferreira is Fortaleza's old civic living room, a central square where politics, commerce, street life, and city gossip have overlapped for generations. It is surrounded by the bustle of downtown rather than beach-resort Fortaleza, which is precisely why it matters.
Go in daylight and fold it into a walk through the historic centre, nearby theatres, churches, and markets. The square is not polished in the way the seafront is, but it gives a better sense of Fortaleza as a working northeastern city.