!!!Sao Paulo

by Stas Sedov and
Dmitry Moiseenko,
members of the [AirPano Team|Geography/About/Consortium/AirPano,_Team] that is a member of the [global-geography Consortium|Geography/About/Consortium]. \\

19 November 2014

with kind permission of [AirPano|http://www.AirPano.com]

The city of São Paulo is the largest city not only in Brazil, but also
in the entire western hemisphere. The other famous cities of the
continent, such as Mexico City and New York take only the second and the
third places respectively. São Paulo is the seventh largest city in the
world.

Approximately 12 million people live here. And these people own 6
million cars. Such concentration of people and machinery causes serious
air-pollution: smog in the streets of São Paulo is a common thing. But
it couldn't prevent us from making panoramas of this wonderful city.

[{Image src='01_Sao Paulo.jpg' caption='Sao Paulo, Brazil' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='428'}]

The settlement of São Paulo was found by the group of
Jesuit-missionaries in 1554. Actually, these were the first Jesuit
missions on the lands of Brazil. So since then the city has grown,
developed and changed. Comparing to Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo has no
luck having extremely long beaches and magnificent nature. But this city
has a very unique atmosphere; it is interesting for its local colour,
urban quarters, mixture of styles and cultures.

[{Image src='02_Sao Paulo.jpg' caption='Sao Paulo, Brazil' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='538'}]

Here one can find tightly intertwined streets, where cars have barely
enough space to squeeze through, respectable business quarters made of
glass and concrete, slum areas called ‘favelas', ultra-modern industrial
complexes which form half of the industrial potential of the country.
There are also a lot of striking sights in São Paulo.

For example, one of them is The Octavio Frias de Oliveira bridge, opened
in 2008 and considered to be a wonder of engineering. The bridge is 138
metres tall, the two curved towers form the X-shaped support, so it is
the only bridge having this kind of support in the world. And being 290
meters long, The Octavio Frias de Oliveira bridge can be called the
longest curved suspension bridge in the world. In 2008 the towers and
cables were equipped with LEDs, which create different effects depending
on the season and events in the city.

[{Image src='03_Sao Paul.jpg' caption='Sao Paulo, Brazil' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='566'}]

Ibirapuera Park - another remarkable place - was inaugurated for the
400th anniversary of the city: the most famous designers and architects
had worked to create the buildings and the landscape of the park.
Ibirapuera Park covers an area of almost 1,6 square kilometres: here one
can find lakes with romantic bridges,  twisting paths with benches,
splendid fountains, picnic spots, as well as museums and  stylish works
of art.

[{Image src='04_Sao Paul.jpg' caption='Sao Paulo, Brazil' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='633'}]

In the valley of The Anhangabaú River one can find the Mirante do Vale
Building, which is a 170-metre office skyscraper built in 1960. It is
the tallest building in São Paulo. And here is Paulista Avenue, the most
important street in São Paulo: it is a business centre headquartering a
large number of banks, offices, as well as being home to an extensive
shopping area. The project was created by an engineer Eugenio Joaquim de
Lima, who was focused on the most famous streets of Europe, such as
Kurfürstendamm avenue in Berlin or Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris.
But, actually, Paulista Avenue looks like The Wall Street in New York.

[{Image src='05_Sao Paul.jpg' caption='Sao Paulo, Brazil' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='741'}]

Paulista Avenue is a good landmark, it joins the modern district full of
skyscrapers and the area of old quarters, where one still can find
classical edifices. One of them is The São Paulo Cathedral. This solid
temple is one of the largest Neo-Gothic cathedrals in the world. As well
as Ibirapuera Park, the Cathedral was inaugurated for the 400th
anniversary of São Paulo. The church is 111 metres long, 46 metres wide;
it has a total capacity for 8,000 people. More than 800 tons of marble
were used to complete the interior. The inner capitals are decorated
with sculpted Brazilian produce as coffee branches, pineapples and
native animals. The Cathedral is also famous for having one of the
largest organs in Latin America: it has five keyboards, 329 stops, 120
registers, and 12,000 pipes.

São Paulo is one of the most multicultural cities in the world: it is a
home for more than 100 ethnic groups. Each community has brought
different elements to the appearance and traditions of the city. And
perhaps, one of the most remarkable places of this kind is the Liberdade
district - the largest Japanese community outside Japan in the world.

[{Image src='06_Sao Paul.jpg' caption='Sao Paulo, Brazil' alt='' width='900' popup='false' height='527'}]

And one even more peculiar feature of São Paulo is the total absence of
outdoor advertisement. The respective law was passed in 2006, so since
then it has been observed strictly. There are no flickering screens,
commercial banners and motley advertisements. We can enjoy the sights of
São Paulo following the ideas of the designers and architects, so that
nothing can divert our attention. We invite you to take a virtual trip!

\\ \\
[10 Panoramas of Sao Paulo|Geography/America/Brazil/Pictures/Panoramas_of_Sao_Paulo]











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