Belo Horizonte

From Freepedia

Belo Horizonte
State	Minas Gerais
Area:	332 km²
Population:	2 305 812 (Estimate: 07/2003)
Height:	858 m above sea level
Postcode (CEP):	30000-000
Geographic location:	19°55.148′ S 43°56.32′ W
Address of the local government:	Prefeitura Municipal de Belo Horizonte Av. Afonso Pena 1212 Centro
Website:	www.pbh.gov.br
Contact:	scomarh@pbh.gov.br
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Image:Belo Horizonte in Brazil.png
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Belo Horizonte (a Portuguese name meaning beautiful horizon) is among the most important cities in Brazil. It is the capital of Minas Gerais state, located in the southeast of the country. With a population of slightly more than 2 million, Belo Horizonte – or "BH" as it is more familiarly known – is a place of intense economical and cultural activity.

Contents 1 History of Belo Horizonte 2 See also 3 Picture Gallery 4 External links

History of Belo Horizonte

The metropolis was once a small village, founded by a prospector from São Paulo named João Leite da Silva Ortiz, who found a location with agreeable weather, decided to stay, and built a farm called "Curral del Rey" (archaic Portuguese for "Corral of the King"). The farm's wealth and success encouraged more people into the region, and Curral del Rey became a village surrounded by farms. Several of these were built by the Faria family.

In 1889 Brazil became a republic. And to enter the new era, leaving behind the monarchical past, the name "Curral Del Rey" was changed to Belo Horizonte on April 12, 1890. Later, on December 17, 1893, Belo Horizonte was chosen as the construction site of the new capital of Minas Gerais, that would replace the previous state capital of Ouro Preto. The new capital would be the first planned city of Brazil and was to be called "Cidade de Minas" after its construction. It was inaugurated on December 12, 1897, the city's official birthdate, under the name of "Cidade de Minas". But this name was never popular, and in 1901 the city's name was definitively reverted back to Belo Horizonte.

One interesting feature of Belo Horizonte is the downtown street plan, featuring a regular array of perpendicular and diagonal streets designed by town planner Aarão Reis. However, the city's growth — which was especially intense in the last twenty years of the 20th century – far surpassed its planning, and the city now faces a number of infrastructure problems. About 20% of the population has no access to the sewage network, like many brazilian cities, and floods are a problem in the slums, destroying houses and killing people in the rainy season (November to March).

==Places to Located in the nearby suburb of Pampulha is a collection of important buildings, including one of the biggest soccer stadiums in Brazil, called Mineirão, and the pretty Capela de São Francisco de Assis (Igreja da Pampulha), designed by the famous Brazilian architect of the modern school, Oscar Niemeyer. Also there is the famous near-downtown area called Savassi, where most gastronomic and cultural activities take place.

While in Savassi, one of the city's main nightlife points, it is worth looking at Praca de Liberdade (Liberty Square) and the beautiful buildings surrounding it which include the old Governor's house and another Niemeyer design and Parque Municipal (The Municipal Park) offers a refuge from the heavily built up city.

For a spectacular impression of the whole city, Praça do Papa (The Pope Square) located in Mangabeiras lets you see a panoramic view of the city and is close to another park, just outside the city, which is so huge it has an internal bus service and if you're lucky you may also see the monkeys.

See also

Tancredo Neves International Airport

Picture Gallery

External links

• Pictures of the City in 2005 : [1] [2] [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]

• City Hall Web Page
• Picture of the city
• Picture of Pampulha
• Picture of fountain at Praça da Liberdade
• 'BeloHorizonte.com' Portal for Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil