For The Love of Travel

Tiradentes, the man:  Joaquim José da Silva, 1746 – 1792, known as Tiradentes, or the ‘tooth puller’, was a leading member of the Brazilian revolutionary movement known as the Inconfidência Mineira, whose aim was full independence from the Portuguese colonial power and to create a Brazilian republic. When the plan was discovered, Tiradentes was arrested, tried and publicly hanged (drawn and quartered). Since the 19th century he has been considered a national hero of Brazil and patron of the Military Police.
Tiradentes, the town:  is known for its baroque colonial-era architecture, in particular the Church of St Antonio. Sweaty walk to this church which features hundreds of kilos of gold decoration and a gorgeous facade designed by Brazilian sculptor Aleijadinho.  Then, lunch at “Luth”, fabulous and cool restaurant ! Walked past a shop that had a pig in its window…thought it might be a case of ‘pig thinking about flying?’….lastly, stopped off to have a refreshing passionfruit capininha !

Early drive around town before the crowds descend. Pity it was very grey and not much light so photo opp limited. Off to the township of Mariana….my accommodation was off the beaten track and was also quite an effort to find, but really worth while once I got there. Passed a few colourful but dirt poor towns lined on the hillsides of the approach into the Mariana township….

Recanto Aguas de Minas, my Pousada…A family business, with teen age son and daughter translating into English for their parents…really comfortable bed, luxurious towels, onsite parking and a spacious shower, with universal signs for hot and cold water. Perfect!

Weather improved heaps, with a sunny afternoon, so explored the little town of Mariana, the oldest city in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. I remembered that there was a mine (tailings) dam collapse here last year, with over 500 people needing to be relocated and over 20 dead. The down stream city of Governador Valadates, with 278,000 people, was left without fresh water supplies for a week.

It used to be the capital, founded in July 16, 1696. Ouro Preto took over, then finally Belo Horizonte. Mariana retains the characteristics of a baroque city, with its churches, buildings and museums. 

Much more ‘chilled’ than its sister town Ouro Preto! A delight to visit.  But I do have to point out the old stone whipping post to which slaves and miscreants were tied and beaten…uggh!

Then, a return to Ouro Preto in the afternoon, to get better photos than possible this morning.  

 

 

Arrived in Belo Horizonte, capital of the Minas Gerais state, late last night. It has huge reserves of iron ore and manganese!!

Slept well in my minimalist hotel (swear I was in mother Russia!)…and made my way to pick up my rental car from Avis this morning ….just a 100m away. What planning!! It took them an hour to get me away with all the doccos!! $&@?!@&

With somewhat trepidation, made my way into traffic and then found it quite easy to organically ‘sway’ with what was in front of me…you need to keep your eyes peeled for crazy motorcyclists who come out of nowhere…thought I would spend some hours at the Pampulha complex, Brazilian architect’s Oscar Niemeyer’s first project in the late 1950’s, designing a church, museum and house by the lake. I love this architect! Free-flowing sensual curves are his ‘signature’ in buildings since. 

Then managed to navigate the freeway signs to end up on the right road to Ouro Preto, some 90 kms away. Great aqueduct!…

Founded at the end of the 17th century, Ouro Preto (Black Gold), located in the Serra do Espinhaço mountains, was the focal point of the gold rush and Brazil’s golden age in the 18th century. With the exhaustion of the gold mines in the 19th century, the city’s influence declined but many churches, bridges and fountains remain, a testimony to the exceptional talent of the Baroque sculptor, Antônio Francisco Lisboa, known as Aleijadinho. His sculptural and architectural work is highly valued by experts as one of the most refined artistic expressions (of Barroco Mineiro) outside Europe at that time. Ouro Preto was also the symbolic center of the Inconfidência Mineira in 1789, a Brazilian independence movement from the Portugese.

It was a nightmare to find my accommodation in Ouro Preto ( general address of Antonio Dias square), crazy motorcyclists darting in front of your vehicle, you simultaneously having to deal with cobbled stoned narrow streets with very steep descents (think Positano on steroids), and not much sign assistance with one way streets..requiring a gal, to reverse back some 100 m X 2, up a steep gradient, to allow others to pass. It was the first time I ever had to put an automatic car into steep gear mode. Oy vay!!! The above is the view from one of the roads I travelled down to get to my Pousada…….An hour later…And very nice it was. Not so the car parking arrangement (too difficult to describe here, a dinner story!). And then there was a huge storm…decided to park myself in accommodation and not move.