Eastern Brazil
Our journey continues on today, with another trip to Brazil - this time, exploring sights along the country's impressive eastern shoreline and some of the most unique natural landmarks and landscapes in the region.
The trip begins with a look back in time for one of Brazil's most important historical scenes. In 1500, Portuguese conquistador Pedro Alvares Cabral was on route for India - but westerly winds carried his ship across the Atlantic and he mistakenly landed on the shorelines of Eastern Brazil instead on April 22nd, 1500. He is regarded as the first European to reach Brazil and spread Christianity to the region during his short stay in Brazil.
Brazil's eastern Atlantic coastline has a rich colonial history - since the Portuguese first colonized the area, many small towns, outposts, and ports covered the waterfront. Here we see a scene from Salvador in 1758, when the city was still the capital of Brazil and a vibrant port city.
And now we see Salvador from above in modern times - although it's no longer the capital of Brazil, it's still the capital of the Bahia state and home to some 4 million people.
We continue our journey along the Atlantic - until we reach the small fishing port of Paraty. This quaint village is one of Brazil's most beautiful, and the colonial housing and churches along the waterfront date back centuries.
We hop aboard a plane to now cover one of Eastern Brazil's most unique natural landscapes - the vast sand dunes of Lençóis Maranhenses National Park. Protected on June 2, 1981, the 155,000 ha (380,000-acre) park includes 43 miles of coastline, and an interior composed of rolling sand dunes. During the rainy season, the valleys among the dunes fill with freshwater lagoons, as seen below - prevented from draining due to the impermeable rock beneath. The park is home to a range of species, including four listed as endangered, and has become a popular destination for ecotourists.
We head back south across the country towards southeastern Brazil - which is home to a number of amazing natural wonders as well. The rocks at Vila Velha are among one of the region's most remarkable sights - and their distinctive shape is due to constant wind and rain erosion from across the Atlantic.
The last stop on our tour across Eastern Brazil is none other than the massive city of Sao Paulo. We'll be taking a brief journey through time to see the expansive growth of the city over the decades - beginning with a look at the city in 1900 when many of the city's most important districts were still in their infancy. Famed avenues like the Paulista and Tiradentes were once neighbored by luxurious mansions - today, modern skyscrapers cover them entirely.
The 1940's brought another big wave of construction to the city - while many of the world's largest cities' skylines were still frozen in time due to World War II and the effects of the Great Depression - Sao Paulo continued to grow upwards. The 528 foot tall Altino Arantes Building became the city's tallest skyscraper, seen here in construction in 1946 - and was the tallest building built in the world during the 1940's.
Moving ahead to modern times, the skyline of Sao Paulo is now cloaked in heavy smog and endless high rises.
Our trip through Eastern Brazil finishes up with one more look at Sao Paulo's skyline through the years - the city's extensive growth over the last century has been truly staggering.
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-korver
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