Curitiba

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Curitiba
View by the Botanic Garden of Curitiba
Flag Seal
Nickname: Ctba; CWB
Motto: A cidade sorriso ("The smiling city")
Map of Paraná with the location of Curitiba
Map of Brazil with the location of Curitiba in red
Location of Curitiba in the world
Coordinates: 25°25′S 49°15′W / -25.417, -49.25
Country	Brazil
State	Paraná
Region	South
Boroughs	Matriz, Santa Felicidade, Boa Vista, Cajuru, Fazendinha/Portão, Boqueirão, Pinheirinho, Bairro Novo and Cidade Industrial de Curitiba
Founded	29 March 1693
Incorporated	1842
Government
- Mayor	Carlos Alberto Richa (PSDB)
- Vice Mayor	Luciano Ducci (PSB)
Area
- Capital	430.9 km²  (166.4 sq mi)
- Metro	15,416.9 km² (5,952.5 sq mi)
Elevation	934.6 m (3,066.3 ft)
Population (2006)[1]
- Capital	1,788,559
- Density	4,159.4/km² (10,748.5/sq mi)
- Metro	3,261,168
- Metro Density	210.9/km² (546.2/sq mi)
- Demonym	Curitibano
Time zone	UTC-3 (UTC-3)
- Summer (DST)	UTC-2 (UTC-2)
Postal Code	80000-XXX to 80240-XXX
Area code(s)	+55 (41)
HDI (2000)	0.856 – high
Gini	0,5[2]
Patron saint	Our Lady of Light of Pine Forests
Website: Prefeitura Municipal de Curitiba

Curitiba is a Brazilian city, capital of the state of Paraná. It has, approximately, 1,800,000 inhabitants and an area of 430.9 km². The city has the largest population and also the largest economy in Southern Brazil.^[3] The metropolitan area of Curitiba, formed by 26 municipalities, has 3,335,588 inhabitants. According to the recent study by the IBGE, Curitiba is the fourth largest Brazilian GDP and the largest in the southern region, representing 1.39% of total wealth produced in the country.^[4] Many multinationals automotive (car) industry are installed in the Greater Curitiba, in addition to forming the second largest automotive center of the country, bring to the city an cosmopolitan aspect. Large companies change the headquarters to the city taking advantage of the structure, technical level, the main international airport of the southern region (the Afonso Pena International Airport),^[5] proximity to the Port of Paranaguá and the junction of highways and railroads linking the south region directly to the southeast of the country. Curitiba is an important cultural, political and economic center in the country. The city is home to the Federal University of Paraná, the oldest Brazilian university.^[3]

Contents 1 Etimology 2 History 3 Geography 3.1 Localization 3.2 Relief 3.3 Climate 3.4 Hydrography and Pluviometry 3.5 Vegetation 4 Panorama 5 Architecture 6 Demographics 6.1 Population growth 7 Economy 7.1 Gross domestic product 8 Education 9 Tourism 9.1 Gallery 10 Culture 10.1 Gastronomy 10.2 Events 10.3 Cultural spaces: 10.4 Museums 10.5 Presentation spaces 10.6 Cinema theatres 11 Sports 12 Government 13 Greater Curitiba 14 Twin towns (sister cities) 15 References 16 Other websites

[change] Etimology

The name Curitiba comes from the large number of Brazilian "Pines" - or commonly called as "Parana Pine" too - (Araucaria angustifolia) in the region prior to its foundation. There are two acceptable versions for the name's origin: the indians of the Tupi nation, namely the Jê and the Guarani, employed the word corae ("pine seed") atuba ("a lot"). The other version, also from the Tupi language, comes from the combination of kurit ("pine tree") and yba ("large amount"). So, "Curitiba" means something as "Land of Abundant Pines".

[change] History

In the past, the region where today is the city of Curitiba was a region of exuberant forest, where the parana-pine was dominant. The first inhabitants of the region were the indigenous tribe Tingüi, by the Tupi-Guarani nation.

At the beginning of the Christian Era, the Plateau Curitibano (also know as First Plateau of Paraná) was inhabited by peoples potters. Subterranean houses, found at archaeological sites on the outskirts of Curitiba, show the adaptation of native to the adverse conditions of climate, as the cold wind, frost and snow.^[6]

In time of arrival of the Portuguese to Brazil, the Plateau Curitibano was occupied by groups of linguistic families Jê and Tupi-Guarani. The first decades of the 16th century marked the beginning of a war of conquest of Europeans against the indigenous peoples who inhabited the plateaus of southeastern and southern Brazil. Were Portuguese and Spanish expeditions in search of precious metals and stones, and Indians to enslave.

The region of Curitiba began to be populated by non-Indians around 1630, by people from Paranaguá, where the alluvium gold had been discovered, forming the village of "Our Lady of Light and Good Jesus of Pine Forest", which was became in town in 1693. The Portuguese who founded a village in 1693 gave it the name of Vila da Nossa Senhora da Luz dos Pinhais ("Our Lady of the Light in the Pine Forest"). The name was changed to Curitiba in 1721.

There is a legend telling that around 1648 a group of pioneers founded a small village near the Atuba River while searching for gold. These pioneers venerated Nossa Senhor da Luz and made a special place there for her statue. The legend tells that every morning the image turned her eyes to a pine tree forest, which the pioneers knew was a sacred place of the indians. The explorers took this as a sign that Nossa Senhora was showing them a special place for their village. Even though they knew that the indians took them as enemies, the pioneers took the risk and went in to the forest to find this special place. When the pioneers got close to the tribe, a miracle happened: the indians were peaceful and expecting them to come. Done contact with the leader of the Tingüi tribe, the cacique Tindiqüera would have said the new location and put a stick in the ground, saying "Coré Etuba" ("many pines"). By this stick would have grown a great tree, where today is the the zero mark of Curitiba. At that place the pioneers built a chapel in honor of the saint, now called Nossa Senhora da Luz dos Pinhais ("Our Lady of the Light in the Pine Forest").

Curitiba officially became a town in 1812, orthography its name as Curityba. An alternative orthography also came up: Coritiba. This orthography looked to become dominant for it was used in press and state documents, but a state decree in 1919 decided the dispute by orthography the city name Curitiba. Growth was based on the cattle trade, being a way between cattle breeding country to the South and markets to the North. Developing effective started from the beginning of the 19th century, with the exploitation and exportation of Yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis), and the elevation to the condition that city in 1842.

Waves of European immigrants started arriving after 1850, mainly Germans, Italians, Poles and Ukrainians. In 1853, the south and southwest of the province of São Paulo are separated, forming the new province of Paraná, and Curitiba has become capital. The Universidade Federal do Paraná (Federal University of Paraná), the first in Brazil, was established in Curitiba in 1913, the same year in which electric streetcars were first deployed.

As most of Southern Brazil's population, Curitiba is mostly inhabited by Brazilians of European descent. The first Europeans to arrive in the region were of Portuguese origin, during the 17th century. They intermarried with the native people and with the African slaves.^[7]

In the 19th century, the influx of immigrants from Europe increased. In 1828, the first German immigrants settled in Paraná. However, large numbers of immigrants from Germany only arrived in Curitiba during the 1870s, most of them was Volga Germans from Russia.^[8]

Immigrants from Poland first arrived in 1871, settling in rural areas near to Curitiba. They largely influenced the agriculture of the region.^[9] Curitiba has the second largest Polish diaspora in the world, second only to Chicago,^[7] and is the only Brazilian city to have orthography in Polish language: Kurytyba.^[10]

Italian immigrants started arriving in Curitiba in 1878. They came mostly from the Veneto and Trento regions, in Northern Italy and settled mostly in the Santa Felicidade neighborhood, still today the center of the large Italian community of Curitiba.^[11]

Large numbers of Ukrainian immigrants settled in Curitiba, mostly between 1895 and 1897, when 20 thousands arrived. They were peasants from Galicia, who immigrated to Brazil to become small farmers. Nowadays there are 300 thousand Ukrainian-Brazilians living in Paraná.^[12][13]

Japanese immigrants starting arriving in the region in 1915. Curitiba received significant numbers of immigrants from Japan. Nowadays, there are about 40 thousand Japanese-Brazilians living in the city.^[14]

Other immigrants, such as jewishes, Arabs from Lebanon and Syria, English,^[15] French,^[15][16] Russians and other Eastern Europeans^[17] also settled in Curitiba.

During the 20th century, especially after the middle, the city is going through a large increase in population and is consolidating as regional hub for trade and services, becoming one of the richest cities in Brazil and pioneer in urban solutions. Currently, the immigration of foreigners is small - is common only immigrants from China^[18] and South American countries -, has been replaced by migration of Brazilians from other regions of the country (it is estimated that nowadays about half the population of Curitiba is composed of migrants).^[19]

[change] Geography

[change] Localization

Curitiba is located on the first plateau of Paraná, in the most flat area, also called plateau curitibano. Occupy an geographical area of 432.17 km², in the latitude 25º25'40"S and longitude 49º16'23"W. The coastline of the state is a distance of 70 km from the city (Atlantic Ocean). The capital has a north-south length of 35km, and 20 km east-west.

Distance from Curitiba to some cities of Brazil and Mercosur:

• São Paulo: 335 km/ 208 miles

• Foz do Iguaçu: 523 km/ 288 miles

• Rio de Janeiro: 671 km/ 417 miles

• Belo Horizonte: 834 km/ 518 miles

• Asuncion (Paraguay): 846 km/ 526 miles

• Brasília: 1077 km/ 669 miles

• Montevideo (Uruguay): 1244 km/ 773 miles

• Buenos Aires (Argentina): 1331 km/ 827 miles

• Salvador: 1781 km/ 1107 miles

• La Paz (Bolivia): 2194 km/ 1363 miles

• Santiago (Chile): 2254 km/ 1400 miles

• Manaus: 2722 km/ 1691 miles

[change] Relief

The city has surface of 432.17 km² in the First Plateau of Paraná. The relief of Curitiba is just a little wavy. The average altitude of the city is 934.6m above sea level, ranging between minimum and maximum values of 900 and 1,000 meters, approximately.

Curitiba has a wavy topography of smooth rounded hills, an terrain a little wavy, giving a relatively regular physiognomy.

The municipality of Curitiba has an average altitude of 934.6 m above sea level, where the highest point is to the north (1.021,00m). To the south is the situation of lower altitude (864,9m).

There are mountain ranges and sets of rocky elevations in practically all around the city, being the most remarkable and impressive of the Serra do Mar (portuguese for "Mountain Range of the Sea"), located in the east that separates the plateau from the coast of Paraná.

[change] Climate

Curitiba's climate is generally pleasant all year round though locals complain that the weather is unpredictable. Heat waves occur during winter and cold waves occuring during summer are not uncommon – so perhaps they are justified. Even within a single day there can be great variation, a typical feature of subtropical climate. The flat terrain, lakes and marshland contribute to its mild damp winters, where the average temperature of 13°C (57°F) in the coldest month falls slightly below 0°C (32°F) on the coldest days. During summer, the average temperature is around 21°C (70°F), but sometimes gets around 32°C (90°F) on hot days – occasional in the upper 30s °C. Anyway, located in Southern Brazil, Curitiba is a somewhat humid city in Subtropical zone and, of Brazil's twenty-six state capitals, Curitiba is the coldest due to altitude (The city is on a plateau 932 m above sea level). The city is in the Subtropical region, within the Atlantic Rainforest region that extends along the eastern side of Brazil, and is sited on a plateau 932 m (3107 ft) above sea level with the upper peaks of a mountain range creating a barrier that separate it from the Atlantic Ocean just 105 km (65 miles) away. The average temperature during the summers is 21°C, and during the winter, 13°C.

[change] Hydrography and Pluviometry

The catchment area of Curitiba consists of several rivers and streams that cross the city in different directions, grouped in six river basins. The main rivers that form the watershed of the city are: Atuba River, Belém River, Barigüi River, Passaúna River, Ribeirão dos Padilhas and the Iguaçu River, all with characteristics of dendritic drainage. Since the 1970s, Curitiba has working on alternatives to minimize the negative impacts of urbanization on rivers. An example of this was the construction of parks along the rivers with artificial lakes, which retain the water for longer periods of time, minimizing floods.^[20] Currently, after many studies about the local water passages, almost all the rivers are in canalization process. Other alternatives developed to minimize the effects of urbanization are the implementation of the programs for environmental education, inspection and monitoring, elaboration and application of legislation and infrastructure works.^[20]

The index reaches 1,500 mm rainfall on average per year, because the rains are constant in the climate of the city. It happens, among other reasons, because of the large deforestation of the Mountain Range of the Sea (Serra do Mar), natural barrier to moisture.

[change] Vegetation

Curitiba is located in the area of vegetation called Araucaria moist forests, composed of steppes, Araucaria forest and other formations.

In the local vegetation still appear remnants of the parana pine (Araucaria angustifolia), which resisted the action of modern civilization. The parana pines are in private and public areas, now protected by environmental legislation which prevents it from being overturned. The Municipal Secretariat of the Environment maintains a botanical garden and three green houses for the annual production of 150,000 seedlings of native and exotic tree species, 16,000 seedlings of fruit trees, 260,000 seedlings of flowers, foliage and underbrush, on top of the total maintenance of 350,000 seedlings.^[20] The green area of the city is one of largest in Brazil.

The vegetation of Curitiba is also characterized by the existence of a large quantity of purple and yellow ipês (tabebuias), making a spectacle of beauty to the landscape of the city during the flowering in the end of winter. Currently, the yellow ipê is the most common tree in the city.^[21]

[change] Panorama

Curitiba is known for the urban differentiated solutions, notably for the integrated system of transport of people, together with the regular transit routes, has served, especially from the 1970s, as inducer of the urban development.^[22]

The public transport system in Curitiba is usually remembered for passenger terminals connected by channels exclusive to bus Vermelhos ("Red Buses"), the Expressos ("Express Buses"), Articulados ("Articulated buses") and Biarticulados ("Biarticulated buses") - the biarticulated bus circulates along the longer itineraries, stopping only on the tube-station stops for timely entering/exiting maneuvers; each biarticulated bus can carry 270 passengers - and complemented with the speedy silver Ligeirinho (literally, "speedy"), with an modern design, has fewer stops, therefore shortening distances – when compared to the Linha Direta ("Direct Line") – due to saved time, and feeders differentiated by color.

This model has inspired similar experiments in cities of other countries, such as Los Angeles and New York City, where, in the 1990s, the installation of an experimental line of "ligeirinho" in the city, connecting the city to the World Trade Center. The system is the source of inspiration for the TransMilenio in Bogotá, Colombia, Metrovia in Guayaquil, Ecuador,as well as the Orange Line of Los Angeles, California, and for a future transportation system in Panama City, Panama.^[23]

Around the city and commonly integrated with the terminals of buses, are the Ruas da Cidadania ("Streets of Citizenship"), municipal centers bringing together municipal departments and public agencies, state and federal, points of trade, services, free Internet access and equipment, leisure, as playgrounds, and space of all kind sports.

Recent measurements indicate that the green area of Curitiba is of 51.5 metres per capita^[24] - about three times the minimum area recommended by the UN - one of the highest in Brazil and higher than in a city like London. These areas are composed primarily by municipal parks and forests to protect the forests gallery of local rivers. There are also in a variety of city squares and public grounds, usually associated with public roads and wooded.

The urban zoning of the city, the integrated transport system, has allowed a development architectural and urban taken by some analysts as cohesive and harmony without the main problems of large modern cities.^[25] Curitiba, including, recently recommended by UNESCO as one of the city-model for the reconstruction of the cities of Afghanistan, after the military intervention occurred in that country in 2001.

Curitiba was the inspiration for Francis Ford Coppola,^[26] when looking for the "perfect city" in order to create the Megalopolis (a huge city "which is good for its citizens"^[27] of his new movie).^[28] The director lived in Curitiba for a few weeks and praised the city in several of his lectures around the world,^[29] as the only Brazilian city praised^[30] by this famous producer of films.

In the 1990s, the city was pleasured with the United Nations Environment Program prize - UNEP, from the UN, considered the top prize of the environment in the world. In June 1996, the chairman of the Habitat II summit of mayors and urban planners in Istanbul praised Curitiba as "the most innovative city in the world." In 2003, the city received the title of Capital of Culture of the Americas by the entity CAC-ACC. In 2006, Curitiba hosted the event COP8/COP-MOP3 the UN. Today, Curitiba is considered one of the best examples of urban planning world-wide.^[31]

The capital of the state of Paraná was the only Brazilian city to enter the 21st century as a reference for national and international urban planning and quality of life; a search by the American magazine Reader's Digest, it was the Brazilian municipality better placed in the ranking of the best cities in the world to live.^[32] In March 2001, a poll sponsored by the UN pointed Curitiba as the best capital of Brazil by the Index of Living Conditions (ILC)^[33] and second best among the HDI of brazilian capitals.^[33] The city is the gateway to entering the Mercosur (the southern zone common market of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay).

The city recently was identified as the Brazilian capital with the lowest rate of illiteracy,^[34] and also indicated as number 1 in the national education between the Brazilian capitals,^[35] and one of the five best cities for investment in Latin America.

According study of the América Economia magazine, published in the Special Edition Cities 2006, which has the title "The City Innovative", Curitiba is ahead of important capitals as Mexico City, Buenos Aires and Brasilia, occupying the fifth placing. The magazine considered the main Latin American economies or those that have relevance to the business conducted on the continent. In the front of the Paraná state capital are just São Paulo, Brazil, first in the ranking; Santiago, Chile; Monterrey, Mexico; and Miami, USA.

The city was the first in Brazil to introduce the separation of domestic garbage on a wide-scale basis.^[36] The acclaimed program Lixo que não é Lixo (literally, "Garbage that isn’t Garbage"; a successful recycling program) created in 1989 has become a paradigm of care for the environment. Actually, Curitiba is the Brazilian city that more recycles the garbage: currently, 22% of all the waste produced^[37] - about 450 tons per day - are recycled.^[38]

In 2007 the city was the third place in a list of "15 Green Cities" in the world, according the american site "Grist".^[39] In the same year, the city was featured in the american newspaper "The New York Times"; the reportage, with 8 pages, features many innovations of the city, saying that Curitiba remains a destination for urban planners from various parts of the world, fascinated with the public transport system, program for recycling of garbage and the group of parks in the city.^[40]

[change] Architecture

A variety of architectural styles, ancient and modern, make the urban landscape of Curitiba be very interesting and represent an enormous cultural heritage.

The architecture that is in Curitiba has a strong influence of the culture of immigrants, from various countries, mainly Europe.

Buildings in eclectic architecture, neoclassical, colonial, Byzantine, oriental, and styles inspired by the land of immigrants confirm the diversity and cultural richness of Curitiba. Its possible find places that still keeps lambrequins (short ornaments, typical of some european places in the past, to the top of roofs or windows), palaces in the urban area, buildings made between the nature, and even the first rotating building in the world, who are harmoniously distributed in the city.

Also, buildings that are integrate with nature is a tendency to 21st century and reflect an important style of Curitiba, as can see in some famous places of the city.

Because it is a planned city, the administration uses a rigid plan for growth, aiming to facilitate the use of public transport. The idea was to organize the city along transport corridors. The buildings are close to major bus lines. The rule is simple: buildings with more than eight floors can only be built in the first block, near the corridor. Buildings with less than eight floors, in the second block, and in other, smaller buildings and houses.^[41] This encourages the system bus, that is widely used, reducing the number of cars.^[42]

[change] Demographics

The population of Curitiba in 2007 was 1,797,408 inhabitants. In 2000, the population census put Curitiba in the seventh position among the most populous cities in Brazil. In the same year, the city was a leader in longevity between the Brazilian metropolis, with life expectancy at birth of 71.6 years of age.^[43] According to the IBGE of 2007, there were 3,230,000 people residing in the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba. The population density was 4.159,4 inh./km². The last PNAD (National Research for Sample of Domiciles) census revealed the numbers: 2,503,250 White people (77.4%), 584,000 Pardo people (18.2%), 93,000 Black people (2.9%), 45,000 Asian or Amerindian people (1.4%).^[44]

• Municipal Population: 1,797,408 inhabitants (100% urban; 52.07% men and 47.93% women)
• Total metropolitan population: 3,335,588 inhabitants
• Population density: 4.111,9 inhabitants/km²
• Fertility rate: 1.74 children per woman
• Literacy rate: 96.63%
• Human Development Index (HDI-M): 0856
  • HDI-M Income: 0.846
  • HDI-M Longevity: 0.776
  • HDI-M Education: 0.946

[change] Population growth

Year	Inhabitants
1872	12.651
1890	24.553
1900	49.755
1920	78.986
1940	140.656
1950	180.575
1960	356.830
1970	624.362
1980	1.025.979
1991	1.290.142
1996	1.476.253
2000	1.586.848
2007	1.797.408

[change] Economy

Curitiba is the economic center of the southern Brazil and is among the four largest GDP of the country. The city concentrates the largest portion of the structure of government and public services of the Paraná state and hosts major companies in the sectors of trade, services and financial things. The city has the strongest economy of the south of the country, because the work of export of more than 900 factories located just in the Cidade Industrial neighborhood and major automobile industries which are located in the Greater Curitiba.

The city was elected several times as "The Best Brazilian City for Business", according to rankings done by the Exame magazine, in partnership with the consultancy Simonsen & Associates.^[45] In July 2001, Curitiba has become the first city in the country to receive the prize "Pole of Information Technology", granted by InfoExame magazine, because the performance of their companies of technology. According to the magazine, the number of companies of "Technology and Information Technology" based in Curitiba submitted in 2001 a turnover of US$1.2 billion, representing a growth of 21% over the previous year.^[46] According to a study done by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), Curitiba is the sixth Brazilian city with the largest number of international events.^[47]

In 2007, the respected Veja magazine indicates Curitiba as the best destination for business in Brazil.^[48] Ninety-four experts, chosen by the magazine, show the capital as the best Brazilian city for investment. The city is becoming one of the largest and most important centers of technology, attracting giants of the sector of information technology in the areas of software and hardware, becoming the national pole.

[change] Gross domestic product

Analyzing the GDP of Curitiba, it appears that in the period 1995 to 2000 the economy grew about 3% a year.

About the GDP per capita, in 2000, the city had an income of 37% higher than Brazil. In the same year, the economic sector that compose most of GDP in Curitiba was the service sector with 38.8%, followed by the industrial sector with 36%.

Approximately 40% of GDP comes from the industry and the rest of activities related to the tertiary sector.^[49]

Participation in GDP

• Agriculture/animal husbandry: 0.03%
• Industry: 34.13%
• Services: 65.84%

Gross Domestic Product

$5.573.796.668,02%

GDP per capita

$ 4.038,92%

[change] Education

In the 1990s, the city started a project called Faróis de Saber ("Lighthouses of Knowledge"). These Lighthouses are free educational centers which include libraries, Internet access, and other cultural resources. This community libraries works with municipal schools, have a collection of approximately 5000 books, and be cultural reference and leisure for the community, and are designed to diversify the opportunities of access to knowledge, expanding the area of formal education. In each quarter of the city these "Lighthouses of Knowledge" have been implanted containing library and room of computer science, to public use, mainly by students; job training, social welfare and educational programs are coordinated, and often supply labor to improve the city's amenities or services, as well as education and income.

Among the Brazilian capitals, Curitiba has the lowest rate of illiteracy,^[34] and also number 1 in education between the brazilian capitals.^[35]

Curitiba has many universities, being Universidade Federal do Paraná ("Federal University of Paraná") the most important of the region, and the oldest of Brazil.

Portuguese is the official national language, and is the primary language used in schools. But English and Spanish are part of the official high school curriculum.

[change] Tourism

Every year, tourism grows in Curitiba. To attend this demand, the Linha Turismo ("Tourism Line") started in 1994. Its a special city tour that visits the principal tourist attractions in Curitiba, featuring comfortable white buses with big windows and a shape similar to that of streetcars. The vehicles are equipped with a sound system that plays recorded messages describing sites in three different languages: Portuguese, English and Spanish. It is possible to visit the parks, squares and the rest of the city's tourist attractions. Considered one of the best in the country, the Linha Turismo is available every thirty minutes and has a two and a half-hour tour, which travels around forty-four kilometers. To go on the tour you must buy a ticket with five tickets that give you the right to get on and off bus four times. Users can therefore choose the touristic point where they want to stay longer. Then, they can embark again to complete the remaining part of the itinerary. Today the line goes to 25 key reference points in Curitiba, completing 44 km in 2 and ½ hours.

According to a study done by the International Congress & Convention Association (ICCA), Curitiba is the sixth Brazilian city with the largest number of international events and,^[45] according to the FIPE, is the third city to receive foreign tourists for business.^[50] In 2006 the city was the 6th position among the best Brazilian cities to hold events and tourism business; in the same year, the flow of tourists exceeded the number of inhabitants. About the 2 million visitors, approximately half landed the business.^[48] To attend the growing demand, the number of hotels in the city has developed and is now considered the fourth largest in the country. Curitiba and its Metropolitan Area have a modern hotel infrastructure, with 150 hotels and service flats totaling 18 thousand beds (as per May, 2005). The good restaurants and customized services are approved by 92.4% of those who leave the city, according the Secretariat of State for Tourism of Paraná. In 2007 was elected as one of the 4 best Brazilian cities for travel and tourism, according to a major brazilian magazine about tourism.^[51] In 2008 another important magazine said that Curitiba is the best cultural destination and better cost-benefit to tourism in the South region of Brazil.^[52]

[change] Gallery

Federal University of Paraná	Botanical Garden of Curitiba	Wire Opera House	Oscar Niemeyer Museum
German Woods	Tanguá Park	Cathedral of Our Lady of Light	The biarticulated bus in the tube-station

[change] Culture

[change] Gastronomy

The pine nuts (seeds of Parana Pine) is probably the most characteristic element in the gastronomy of Paraná and Curitiba; its used not only as aperitif, but with traditional recipes that pass from generation to generation. Among the ingredients used, the pine nuts is a major, not only in Midwinter party (Festa Junina, the annual Brazilian celebration which take place in the beginning of the Brazilian winter), but also in the diet of day-to-day. Pancakes, breads, cakes, soups and appetizers are just some of the recipes prepared with this seed. The colonization and migration contributed to the mixture of flavors and dishes found in the state. Indigenous and even Brazilians from other states added its revenue in local cuisine.

In Curitiba is possible find great restaurants, of all kind. There are options for all tastes and palates, the regional to international cuisine. The city have food establishments specializing in German, Polish, Chinese, Arabic, Japanese, Italian, Portuguese, Indian, Mexican, etc., and, of course, regional cuisines of Brazil. For those who like a good Italian food, Santa Felicidade neighborhood is considered the gastronomic district of the city; the place where some of the first Italian immigrants arriving in Paraná settled, where they dedicated themselves to the agricultural production, planting herbs, wine and cheese making and willow tress, the greatest attraction in Santa Felicidade is to be the gastronomic district of Curitiba, with a large number of restaurants offering typical food and wine from the colony. There are also wineries and wine bars, craft stores and willow furniture. According to the Guinness Book, the largest restaurant of Americas is located in this Curitiba neighborhood.^[53]

[change] Events

Every Sunday mornings, in the Historic Area, in the old stoned streets at the Largo da Ordem and the pavement giving access to Garibaldi Square, with the Rosário Church, the Flowers Clock, the Memory Fountain and the Società Giuseppe Garibaldi make the space for the Crafts Fair, an exciting meeting point with live music. The Feira do Largo da Ordem ("Largo da Ordem's Street Fair") it is an open market, where you can find handicrafts, paintings, sculptures, typical foods, street artists, old car exhibition and a lot more. It is also possible to watch live small musical shows from local musicians or see some clowns doing humorous performances. It is quite pleasant and interesting to go there for a walk and buy a few souvenirs of Curitiba.

The Oficina de Música de Curitiba ("Music Workshop of Curitiba") was established in 1983, with the proposal to discover and train new talent. Nowadays its one of the biggest Brazilian events for training, retraining and improvement of musicians. Join the Workshop of Music, held every year in January, students and teachers from all over Brazil (about 2,000 students and more than 100 teachers); among students and teachers, the Office of Music had, over editions, with representatives from throughout Latin America (mainly from Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay), United States, France, Switzerland, Holland, England, Germany, Norway, Spain, Italy, Portugal, China and Israel. The best instrumentalists, conductors and singers of Brazil, by classical music and popular, within the framework of teachers and directors of the workshop. Grand masters of other countries are special guests and, apart from giving lessons, make unprecedented concerts for the public of the city.

Curitiba has a strong relationship with the performing arts and theatre. The city hosts since 1992 a major festival of theatre, the Festival de Teatro de Curitiba, composed of international attractions, large national attractions, local presentations, and alternative exhibitions, which each year attracts a large number of tourists and made an expressive cultural movement. Until 2007, were presented officially 1607 spectacles, to an audience estimated at 1.2 million people. The city has theatres with excellent techno-acoustic feedback, as the Teatro Guaíra, one of the largest rooms in number of spectators by South America.

In December, the city becomes the "Capital of Christmas", and be one of the most tourist place at this time of year, because the mild climate, and has many free cultural attractions. The most traditional is the choir of the Palácio Avenida: 160 poor children of charities institutes sing Christmas songs in windows of a historic building adorned with 90 thousand lamps, attracting thousands of spectators. It is probably the best known Christmas event in Brazil. Moreover, the entire city be decorated in two official events, the "Christmas of Light" and "Enchanted Christmas", where several tourist attractions are decorated for Christmas, as well as free theatre shows on public places and parks, bands and orchestras in public places showing traditional musics, many giant Christmas trees around the city, special fairs with Christmas things, prizes for the most lighted houses, etc.

[change] Cultural spaces:

[change] Museums

Curitiba has several museums. Some of the most important are:

• Museu Paranaense ("Paranaense Museum") - dedicated to the arts and history;
• Oscar Niemeyer Museum - the largest museum of Latin America,^[54] dedicated to plastic arts;
• Museu de Arte Sacra ("Religious Art Museum") - the focus are religious and sacred Christian art in general;
• Museu do Expedicionário ("Museum of Expeditionary") - dedicated to the history of Brazilian participation in World War II;
• Museu de Arte Contemporânea ("Museum of Contemporary Art");
• Museu da Imagem e do Som ("Image and Sound Museum") - about cinema and photography;
• Museu Metropolitano de Arte de Curitiba ("Metropolitan Museum of Art in Curitiba") - modern art;
• Museu de História Natural ("Natural History Museum") - dedicated to the biology and botany.

[change] Presentation spaces

Many space for presentations in Curitiba are tourist attractions in themselves. The Parque das Pedreiras ("Quarries Park"), for example, which includes the area that was once a stone quarry and has now been named the Pedreira Paulo Leminski, as well as a theater called the Ópera de Arame ("Wire Opera House"), has already become a tourist point. The Pedreira Paulo Leminski is an open area where events can be held for large audiences, for it has a capacity of up to 30,000 people. The Wire Opera House was built in a record-breaking period of 75 days to host the first edition of the Festival de Teatro de Curitiba. Its metallic structures, which look like wire, have become an architectural mark in the city and nationwide.

In 1971, was inaugurated the Teatro Paiol - a construction of 1874, which was used by the Brazilian Army as arsenal of gunpowder and ammunition, turned into a cultural and scenic area. The Guaíra Theater is one of the largest theaters in all of Latin America and a point in the itinerary of many large nationwide touring plays and performances. In the city’s historical sector, the Memorial of Curitiba is a new and modern site, which found its inspiration in the Parana Pine.

In all the parks of the city, have places for folklore and cultural presentations by various ethnic groups of Curitiba.

[change] Cinema theatres

The first movie designed in Curitiba was in 1897, shortly after the invention of cinematograph by Lumière Brothers. Currently, the Cultural Foundation of Curitiba runs two movie theaters in the downtown area: the Cine Luz and the Cinemateca (for special movies), which offer many art movie programs at affordable prices. The Cinema a Um Real project ("Watch a movie for one Real") is available every Sunday, featuring movies targeted to a more popular taste with cheap prices (R$1,00 - around US$0,40), allowing citizens from low-income classes to go to the movies. Furthermore, the city runs the Cinema nos Bairros project ("A Movie Theater in Your Neighborhood"), which was designed to allow a larger portion of the population to get to know video productions. The project offers movie sessions for free and schedules weekly sessions at schools, Ruas da Cidadania ("Citizenship Streets"), parish halls, neighborhood associations as well as other institutions that take part in this partnership project. At these places children get a chance to see how movie projectors work and also have a better grasp of each movie, so that they become increasingly interested in the art of moviemaking.

Today, Curitiba has, approximately, 70 cinema theatres,^[55] with daily programming, and is the first city in Brazil to have an IMAX cinema. It is in the Palladium Shopping Center, which is the biggest mall in Southern Brazil.^[56]

[change] Sports

The city offers several options for practice of all kinds of sports. Even sports not very popular in Brazil (like american football or baseball, for example) have practitioners in the city. The golf was introduced around 1904 by English immigrants.^[57] Among the illustrious players, there is Walt Disney, which in 1939, when was in passing in Curitiba, played a match.^[57]

Curitiba also houses the Training Center of the Brazil national gymnastics team.

About the most popular sport in the country, there are several soccer clubs based in Curitiba, such as:

• Coritiba Foot Ball Club;

• Clube Atlético Paranaense;

• Paraná Clube;

Curitiba is also one of the 18 remaining candidates to host games of the 2014 FIFA World Cup to be held in Brazil.^[58]

[change] Government

The executive is currently exercised by the mayor Beto Richa (elected in 2004 and with a mandate until 2008), by the deputy mayor (vice mayor) Luciano Ducci and the municipal secretaries appointed by the mayor. The City Council of Curitiba was created in 1693, and has a total of 38 councillors elected since 2004.

Curitiba is divided into nine regional governments (equivalent to subprefecture), who manage the 75 districts of the municipality. The Rua da Cidadania ("Street of Citizenship") is the symbol of administrative decentralization; it is a reference point and meeting place for the user of municipal utilities, in a regional context, taking into account the needs and rights of the citizen in trade, leisure and services, facilitating the access of the population for different services in the areas of health, justice, policing, education, sport, housing, environment, urban planning, social service and supply, etc. Several units work annexed to the terminals of public transport in Curitiba. Their nuclei offer services in the local, state and federal areas.

[change] Greater Curitiba

The Greater Curitiba is a 118th largest metropolitan area in the world. Estimates from the 2007 Census show that the Metropolitan Area of Curitiba have 3,172,357 inhabitants, the second most populated in the south of Brazil. Have an area of 15.418,543 km².

Created in 1973, the Metropolitan Area of Curitiba is currently composed of 26 municipalities, including the capital: Adrianópolis, Agudos do Sul, Almirante Tamandaré, Araucária, Balsa Nova, Bocaiúva do Sul, Campina Grande do Sul, Campo Largo, Campo Magro, Cerro Azul, Colombo, Contenda, Curitiba, Doutor Ulysses, Fazenda Rio Grande, Itaperuçu, Lapa, Mandirituba, Pinhais, Piraquara, Quatro Barras, Quitandinha, Rio Branco do Sul, São José dos Pinhais, Tijucas do Sul and Tunas do Paraná.

With an industrial park of 43 million square meters,^[48] the Metropolitan Area of Curitiba has attracted large companies such as Audi, VW, Nissan, Renault, New Holland, Volvo, Fiat, ExxonMobil, Sadia, Kraft Foods, Esso, HSBC and Siemens.

The Greater Curitiba is home to the Afonso Pena International Airport (located in the city of São José dos Pinhais) and the motorsports circuit Autódromo Internacional de Curitiba (located in the city of Pinhais).

[change] Twin towns (sister cities)

The twin towns of Curitiba are:

Asunción (Paraguay)[59] Coimbra (Portugal)[60] Guadalajara (Mexico)[59] Hangzhou (China)[59] Himeji (Japan)[59] Krakow (Poland)[61]

Lyon (France)[62] Montevideo (Uruguay)[59] Orlando (USA)[63] Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia)[59] Suwon (South Korea)[59] Treviso (Italy)[64]

[change] References

[change] Other websites

• All about the city
• Official homepage
• An interesting article about the city, written in simple english
• Curitiba on Wikitravel