Brazil Guide FINAL:BRAZIL 3 19/9/09 17:32 Page 12
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Belo Horizonte
Minas Gerais
The state of Minas Gerais is one of It is a planned city, laid out in a grid Pampulha, and Belo in general,
Brazil’s best-kept international system, making the centre easy to have many outstanding examples
secrets, but possibly not for long. get around on foot or by public of Niemeyer’s architectural genius.
Perhaps being a landlocked state transport. If you think that being a
has lead to Minas Gerais being “planned” city Belo might have Pampulha is also home to the
overlooked, that and the fact that it something in common with the Mineirão, one of Brazil’s largest
sits in the shadow of its overpowering more modern city of Brasília, you football stadiums, which will be
neighbours in the southeast, São would be right. Especially the area totally refurbished, if not rebuilt, to
Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. known as Pampulha that is often host games during the 2014 World
regarded as the early blueprint for Cup. Belo hosted group games
The state capital, Belo Horizonte, is the Brazilian capital. during the 1950 World Cup,
a vibrant and modern city with a most famously England’s
lively night scene of bars and The driving force in the 1940s for 1-0 defeat to the US
restaurants, especially in the the development of Pampulha was that effectively
Savassi and Funcionários districts. the city’s then mayor, Juscelino knocked them
Rua da Bahia, in the city centre, is Kubitschek. In 1956 he would be out of the cup.
also a good place to party with the sworn in as the country’s president,
locals. a president who made the building Yet Belo Horizonte
of Brasília an absolute priority. is just the gateway
Belo, as it is often referred, is the to the real treasures
third-biggest conurbation in the Many of the architects and of Minas Gerais,
Brazilian southeast and, with a landscapers that Kubitschek was to the state’s
metropolitan population of 5.6 use on Pampulha, would go on to historic and
million, the third largest city in work on Brasília, most notable colonial towns
Brazil. Oscar Niemeyer and Burle Marx. that sprung up
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