Spotlight: Ouro Preto, Brazil

Amazing town.  Architecture dates to the Brazilian Gold Rush, mid-19th c.  Nearby Belo Horizonte, a pre-planned city, replaced it as the capital of Minas before industry or growth set in.  Check it out in Google Street View.

One thing that’s really captivating about this town’s plan is the natural way in which it was built into the wild contours of the land.  For example, take a look at the 0-200 blocks of Ruo Claudio Manoel, and note how the dense buildings of the town center are worked into the steep hillside, without any sacrifice to the quality of architecture on a lot-by-lot basis.  A little further up the hill, near where the map is centered, the Praça Tiradentes represents an almost perfect adaptation to the land of a classic plaza or forum that one might find in a small European city.

Photos remain the copyright of Google, and are used in accordance with the principles of Fair Use.  Explore the streets of Ouro Preto, yourself, here.

Rua São Francisco.

Praça Tiradentes.

Rua Conde de Bobadela.

Ruo Claudio Manoel.