Girls participate in a procession in the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis A Portuguese priest brought the tradition to Brazil in the 1800s to celebrate the Holy Spirit and to commemorate the victory of Iberian Christian knights over the Moors A boy take parts in a procession during the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis Flag girls take part in the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis Residents perform Emperor of the Divine Holy Spirit procession during the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis Girls protect themselves from the sun under the Holy Spirit flag during the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis Residents perform the Emperor of the Divine Holy Spirit procession in the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis Girls take part in the Cavalhadas festival in Pirenopolis Brazil (AP) — People in the heartland Brazilian city of Pirenopolis took to the streets on Sunday in a procession of the traditional Cavalhadas festival The tradition began in the 1800s with a Portuguese priest who wanted to celebrate the Holy Spirit — one of the entities of the Roman Catholic Church’s trinity — and also commemorate the victory of Iberian Christian knights over the Moors The Emperor of the Divine Holy Spirit procession started in the early hours in Pirenopolis a city of 25,000 residents 150 kilometers (93 miles) west of the Brazilian capital Brasilia Other countryside cities across the South American nation also celebrate the Cavalhadas festival The festivities include an open air reenactment of a battle between Christian warriors and Muslims the defeated Moors are converted to Catholicism Brazil, the largest country in South America, is known for its culture, landscapes, and history. With a vast territory that encompasses the Amazon Rainforest Brazil offers an array of travel experiences Beyond the well-known cities like Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo there are many smaller towns that showcase the country’s welcoming spirit and heritage These towns often retain much of their traditional architecture making them inviting destinations for those looking to explore Brazil's lesser-known gems Paraty, established in 1667 in the state of Rio de Janeiro, played a key role in Brazil's colonial economy as a major port for gold exportation to Portugal The town's significance grew with the Caminho do Ouro (Gold Trail) a historic route that facilitated the movement of gold from Minas Gerais to Paraty’s port This historic pathway and the town’s well-preserved Portuguese colonial architecture including the cobbled streets and churches set Paraty apart as a living museum of Brazil’s colonial era Paraty's welcoming nature is reflected in its blend of cultural heritage and the natural surroundings of the Atlantic Forest and the Bay of Paraty fostering a community that values both preservation and hospitality Founded in 1727 during the Brazilian Gold Rush, Pirenópolis in Goiás emerged as an important mining hub The town is also notable for its colonial architecture including the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary exemplifies the town's historical significance Pirenópolis is also renowned for its cultural traditions which reenacts the medieval battles between Moors and Christians It shows the town's commitment to preserving its cultural heritage and welcoming visitors to partake in these traditions Cachoeira do Abade is a private natural reserve in Pirenópolis It gives visitors a chance to experience the region’s biodiversity evidences the town's colonial architecture and houses religious artifacts that date back to the 18th century For those interested in geology and hiking Serra dos Pireneus has trails that lead to the peak of Pico dos Pireneus makes it a welcoming destination for nature enthusiasts and conservationists where visitors can observe stalactites and stalagmites formed over thousands of years Campos do Jordão, located in the state of São Paulo was established in the 19th century as a health resort due to its high altitude and cool climate it had gained popularity as a retreat for those seeking relief from the summer heat and a place for patients with respiratory conditions What sets Campos do Jordão apart is its distinct European architectural influence often earning it the nickname "Brazilian Switzerland." This Alpine-style town attracts visitors year-round particularly during the winter festival in July when the town becomes a hub of cultural activities Horto Florestal (State Park), established in 1941, spans over 8,000 hectares of preserved Atlantic Forest and features hiking trails, picnic areas, and a range of native flora and fauna. The Amantikir Gardens, inspired by various international garden styles, is a diverse botanical experience with over 700 Brazilian plant species spread across 60,000 square meters has panoramic views of the town and surrounding Serra da Mantiqueira mountain range São Miguel dos Milagres, a small town on the northern coast of Alagoas, is known for its beaches and tranquil environment. Unlike many coastal destinations in Brazil, São Miguel dos Milagres has remained relatively untouched by mass tourism, which has preserved its nature and local culture. The area is part of the Coral Coast, home to one of the largest coral reefs in Brazil The welcoming nature of São Miguel dos Milagres is evident in the town’s small-scale family-run accommodations and community-focused tourism efforts Among the attractions in São Miguel dos Milagres, the beach of Praia do Toque is a place for visitors to enjoy warm, clear waters and explore the coral reefs at low tide. Foz do Rio Tatuamunha, a protected area, has guided boat tours to observe the native manatee population part of a conservation program aimed at protecting these endangered marine mammals is a coastal road that connects a series of small Founded in 1875 by German and Italian immigrants Gramado in Rio Grande do Sul is recognized for its European architectural influence and well-preserved traditions The town’s development as a tourist destination began in the mid-20th century with the establishment of parks such as the annual Festival de Cinema de Gramado one of the most significant film festivals in Brazil and culinary offerings make it a welcoming destination that feels distinctively different from other Brazilian towns Key attractions in Gramado include the Mini Mundo, a miniature park created in the 1980s. It has meticulously crafted replicas of world-famous buildings and landmarks. Lago Negro, an artificial lake surrounded by pine trees brought from the Black Forest in Germany is great for paddle boating and also has scenic walking paths It is a cozy spot for visitors to enjoy Gramado's culinary offerings and artisanal goods especially during the town's festivals and events located in the state of Rio Grande do Norte was originally a quiet fishing village that gained recognition in the 1970s when surfers and backpackers discovered its beaches and waves derived from the Portuguese word for "keg," comes from a rock formation along the coast that resembled a barrel to the early Portuguese explorers Its welcoming atmosphere is enhanced by the town's laid-back vibe a mix of local and international influences and a community that is open and accommodating All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions © 2025 worldatlas.com PIRENOPOLIS, Brazil -- Over the course of nine days, a religious procession known as the Folia of the Divine Holy Spirit brings messages of faith and song to farms... Copyright © 2025, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. The Worldfolio provides business industrial and financial news about global economies with a focus on understanding them from within With a title taken from a text by Júlio Pomar – Em Matéria de Matérias-Primas – the exhibition at Atelier-Museu Júlio Pomar is based on the understandings and disagreements about raw materials used by André Romão Jorge Queiroz and Susanne Themlitz in relation to Júlio Pomar’s work The artists engage in conversation with Pomar’s work in particular the series Mascarados de Pirenópolis (1987-88) the artist addresses the theme of the Whitsun festivities where the inhabitants of the town of Pirenópolis ride decorated horses wearing masks in an allusion to death and the devil Pomar captures this atmosphere in the colour festival in each of the series’ paintings: colours that challenge us like a jaguar According to the artist “all the work points outwards it feeds on the other’s so as to search for its own truth” If we think of the way the exhibition was made we can pinpoint this idea – finding the world’s materials that bring energy into the work The works in the exhibition dialogue with each other according to these ways of making composed of bits of the world – pieces of cloth not only by the scenes portrayed – human figures mounted on horses that threaten to run us through - but also by the coloured work in which we discover a tension between figure and background solved through the dilution that produces that (con)fusion – the figures get lost in the background contributing to accelerate or heighten the colour throbbing in the different mediums with which she works echoes Pomar’s appeal concerning the making of the work The works presented by the artist clearly dialogue with the colours of Pomar’s Mascarados a potential three-dimensional expression of the atmosphere of Pomar’s paintings extend the painting universe to other realms emphasising the notion of contamination and movement something that can be seen not only in the ceramics but also in the glass pieces where the artist accumulates oil on paper under the magnifying glass the artist’s textile work is all over the exhibition Susanne Themlitz has hung coloured fabrics in shapes similar to the spots in Pomar’s paintings with the fragments of sleeping bodies and the natures surrounding them (Dick-sonia antartica) also adds an object-based profile to the festival 2022) in dialogue with an 80s mask collected by Pomar is a symptom of an affinity with the collecting gesture that draws both artists together the natural world is also in the exhibition confirming once again that artwork and world have a close connection Also on the subject of heads – or masks - the exhibition shows several of André Romão’s drawings The vegetal forms are blurred with faces – eyes made of shells something that seems to recapture an ambiguity similar to that in Pomar’s paintings there is no dilution exercise like in Pomar’s chromatic efforts a sober ambiguity – already at the end of the festivities establishes a point of contact with André Romão’s drawing series They are also drawings of plant landscapes Jorge Queiroz presents a group of paintings in which the dilution of the figures in patches of colour establishes formal connections with Pomar’s series There is also an ambiguity in the paintings presented by the artist this time shattered – in comparison with Pomar’s vibrant works A splintering arising from the scenes and planes dissolving into each other – shifting patches that are figures All the layers of Queiroz’s paintings share the same starting point – the paint becomes body The blurring of the represented (or presented) where a colour fever is the painting’s main subject – blotches masquerading as body and situation Em Matéria de Matérias-Primas is at Atelier-Museu Júlio Pomar until March 12. Postgraduate in Philosophy (Aesthetics) and Master in History of Contemporary Art from the Faculty of Social and Human Sciences of Universidade Nova de Lisboa She has been part of the research group in Literature She is interested in the intersections between visual arts Subscribe to the Newsletter (EN Version)! I accept the Privacy Policy Subscribe Umbigo the pavements of Rua do Rosário are packed with people drinking cold beer and caipirinhas Music throbs from bar to bar and outside the street's most expensive-looking house two armed guards stand solemnly looking on Soon the carousing is interrupted again when three men on horseback appear draws catcalls from the intoxicated crowds as he fights to keep his skittish horse under control It's a battle between man and beast all the way downhill as the horse bucks and lurches but the rider wins just - and then races back up for a victory lap Welcome to a regular Saturday night in Pirenópolis With a name like something from a graphic novel and a claim to fame as home to more VW Beetles per capita than any other town in Brazil you might think Pirenópolis would be better known in a country as big as this one it is easy for places to go undiscovered Goiás doesn't often feature on the tourist circuit With its vast inland plains and big skies spreading east from Brasilia All of which have played a part in drawing the state's other big signature feature: hippies Although the region is home to such counter-culture hubs as the Vale do Amanhecer (Sunrise Valley) a religious community started by a clairvoyant truck driver where a self-styled 'psychic surgeon' calling himself John of God claims to heal cancer alcohol abuse and 'spiritual desperation' with invisible operations a less extreme alternative scene can be found around the town of Alto Paraiso locals like to call Alto Paraiso the Brazilian capital of the third millennium which crosses Machu Picchu in Peru and zips through the town is to blame for the high number of UFO sightings in the area But travelling there by bus from Brasilia felt less like a mission to Mars than a journey to the centre of the earth The 225km route carves a path through endless fields and red earth deep into the Brazilian interior That Alto Paraiso isn't your average hilltop hangout quickly became clear when I got off the bus to be met by a man in dreadlocks playing a flute I wasn't there to buy beads or bongs but to visit the nearby Parque Nacional da Chapada dos Veadeiros this 65,000 hectare park (only a small part of which is open to the public) was listed as a Unesco world heritage site in 2001 in the hope of protecting the unique cerrado ecosystem from encroaching cattle and now biofuel farming; the rate of habitat loss here is said to be even greater than that in Amazonia What remains is an impressively rich biodiversity Of the 10,000 plant species found here - including 25 different orchids murity palms and babaçu palms - 44 per cent exist only in the cerrado Though rarely spotted in the areas tourists are allowed into the park also attracts some of Brazil's most unusual - and in some cases endangered - animals The catch is that you can't enter Chapada dos Veadeiros without an accredited guide So the next day I met Marcelo from Travessia Tourism and what appeared to be the only two other tourists in town - Yaz from Australia and Maggie from Switzerland - for the drive to the park Access is via one of two trails - either 'canyons and rocks' or 'waterfalls' - and we opted for the waterfalls Setting off for a five-hour hike past towering waterfalls it wasn't long before the scrubby vegetation opened out and we were confronted by a spectacular view across a vast criss-crossing a stream over natural stepping-stones From feathery grasses to colour-splattered bushes flowers that looked like exotic sweet peas bright lichen-mottled driftwood and the region's signature chuveirinho or 'shower flower' (imagine a football-sized dandelion) the plants were so beautifully bizarre that it was like walking through a children's storybook Eventually we came out at the largest waterfall a 120m-high cascade that thundered so hard into the bottom of the adjacent canyon that it seemed to be falling in slow motion Just as mesmerising was the multi-coloured quartz crystal in the park's rocky ground it is now left to provide a glimmering carpet crouching down to stroke the ground as we came to a particularly sparkly spot He didn't feel quite as enthralled after lunch when having nonchalantly stripped and dived into the nearest pool Marcelo suddenly shouted across to him that he should get out of the water unless he wanted an athletic-sounding organism to swim up his penis I thought back to Yaz a few days later when I headed back south to Pirenópolis and went for a swim at Cachoeiras Bonsucesso Judging by the number of people taking a dip I don't think there could have been any underwater nasties there though the family crowds might not have appreciated his casual approach to swimwear a farm surrounded by rolling green meadows and grazing horses that look so English that if it weren't for the odd termite mound or palm tree you might think you were tramping through the grounds of a stately home The forest trail that spools out from the back of the farm is more exotic if you're lucky you may catch a glimpse of a morpho butterfly whose huge electric-blue wings shimmer against the muddy background The Vagafogo brunch is an institution among tourists from Brasilia I spent an hour working my way through mangaba juice starfruit chutney and sanclish (a tasty mix of curd cheese I seemed to be the only non-Brazilian visitor But then Goiás has always been off the map a group of 4,000 people who live around 100km from Alto Paraiso when the construction of Brasilia started opening up this region the Kalungas had lived hidden from the outside world ever since their ancestors had run away from their colonial slave owners hundreds of years earlier Apparently they stayed undetected only because this part of Goiás was so neglected This is the archive of The Observer up until 21/04/2025 The Observer is now owned and operated by Tortoise Media.