São Paulo is considered the cultural capital of Brazil, in addition to being the capital of the homonymous state. At the center of a metropolitan macro-region, it is one of the most populous cities in the world.
It is located on the plateau within the Serra do Mar chain, in turn part of Planalto Brasilero (Brazilian plateau).
The city, in line with the Tropic of Capricorn, is mostly hilly, more mountainous towards the north. The climate of São Paulo is between the subtropical and the temperate, with a very mild temperatures throughout the year, this means that every month is good to visit it!
The history of São Paulo
São Paulo was initially established as a village, founded by two Jesuit missionaries in 1554. The mission thus founded served to convert to Catholicism the indigenous tribe of the Tupi-Guarani. Between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, some explorers known as Bandeirantes reached the city and expanded it during their search for gold and diamonds in Latin America.
In the nineteenth century, São Paulo had become an important center for the export of coffee and in the late nineteenth century it became a destination for Italian and Japanese immigrants, who came to Brazil to work in the plantations. In the twentieth century the coffee trade went into crisis, so San Paolo started to focus on the development of the industry.
In São Paulo there is also an important law school, also called Largo São Francisco, among the first universities in Brazil, founded for the need to have lawyers and judges: it attracted students from all over the country, contributing to the heterogeneous conformation of the population.
Today, the metropolis is inhabited mostly by whites, descendants of European settlers and immigrants, and to a lesser extent by mulattos and mestizos. Asians and African Americans are a minimal component of the population, as are the descendants of indigenous peoples. The Italian community is very large because of the migrations that occurred between 1888 and 1919.
Things to see
São Paulo is considered the capital of Brazil for a reason: it is indeed rich in history, culture, museums, galleries, universities and theaters. The main cultural institutions are located in the so-called Centro expandido.
Metropolitan Cathedral of São Paulo (Catedral Metropolitana de São Paulo): an imposing neo-Gothic church built by the German architect Maximilian Emil Hehl. It was inspired by European cathedrals and inside it houses mosaics and sculptures arrived directly from Italy.
Monastery of St. Benedict (Mosteiro de São Bento): one of the symbolic buildings of the city, founded by Benedictine monks in 1500. It was rebuilt at the beginning of the 20th century on a project by the German architect Richard Berndl.
Obelisk: another symbolic monument, in the Ibirapuera Park, it recalls the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932. With its 72 meters of height, it houses the remains of students and fighters who died in the revolution.
Monument to Ramos de Azevedo: a bronze and granite complex created by Galileo Emendabili in honor of Francisco de Paula Ramos de Azevedo, an important architect of the city.
Museum of Art of São Paulo (MASP): it houses perhaps the most important collection of western art in Latin America, with paintings by Matisse, Bosch, Picasso and Dali.
Can't wait to see it too, can you?
