Sightseeing in Brazil

The Amazonas Theatre in Manaus is a must visit for its Italian neoclassical architecture, its free trade zones for excellent and cheap shopping and some fine restaurants. Belem with its splendid churches and a beautiful park also has an unusual museum of tropical plants that is the largest collection in the world. This museum called the Goeldi Museum is worth visiting for its sheer variety of fauna. Salvador has the beautiful market of handicrafts in Mercato Modelo that is a listed UNESCO heritage site. The variety of churches in Salvador is staggering! Diamantina National Park with its underground lakes is an interesting visit. And of course, there is the scenic city of Rio de Janeiro that has a beautiful harbour, gorgeous beaches and breathtaking views from peaks. Rio also has several interesting Museums. April to October are cooler months and most suitable for hiking and climbing. Rio de Janeiro is the Brazilian rock-climbing centre. Sao Paolo is famed in the continent for its shopping and nightlife. It is just the place to chill out but beware the thronging crowds and impossible traffic jams! Priceless literary, artistic and scientific treasures are kept in museums and libraries of the country. Old colonial towns throughout the country, such as Sao Luis, Olinda, Salvador, Parati and especially Ouro Preto, represent a priceless cultural heritage from the past chiefly because of the artistic treasures kept in their centuries-old churches. Sculptures by the 17th-century artist known as the 'Aleijadinho' (the little cripple) are outstanding. A group of distinguished architects, under the inspiration of the aesthetic ideals of Le Corbusier, started more than thirty years ago an experiment in the blending of new techniques and materials with the traditional characteristics of Brazilian architecture. The Ministry of Education building in Rio de Janeiro, now called the Palace of Culture, stands as a monument to this new architectural style. Visitors will particularly like to see the Amazon Basin and the Iguaçu and Paulo Affonso Falls in the States of Parana and Bahia respectively; a cattle ranch in the south and a sugar cane plantation in the state of Pernambuco; a cocoa plantation in the state of Bahia; a rubber plantation in the northernmost part of the country or a wheat field in the south; a coffee plantation in the states of Sao Paulo, Parana and Espirito Santo; the fisheries on the coast or the thinly populated areas in the hinterland.