Our time in Brazil was split between Santos, two hours south of São Paulo on the Atlantic Ocean, and São Paulo itself. Having visited Rio de Janiero many years ago, we decided that this visit to Brazil should include some other cities. But visiting Brazil without visiting the ocean just wouldn't do! So we decided to combine Sao Paulo with the sea-side city of Santos and to get two different perspectives of the country.
We landed at Sao Paulo’s Gaurulhos Airport at 7:40PM and by 8:30PM were in a car arranged through our hotel. (The driver had driven the two hours from Santos and turned around to take us back there.) It was an uneventful drive, which provided nighttime views of both Sao Paulo and Santos. We arrived at the hotel in Santos around 10:45PM.
The next morning, we were up fairly early and took in as much of Santos as we could. It really is a pleasant city, and we felt quite safe there. It was a great place to start our Brazilian exploration, if for no other reason than to become acclimated while feeling safer than Sao Paulo would have afforded. (Sao Paulo, with 22 million people, is definitely overwhelming and intimidating!)
The hotel, which was a luxurious new tower opened in 2019, allowed us a complimentary 6PM check-out time -- which is unheard of in the hotel industry! So, after touring all day, we had a couple of hours of rest before packing up again. We enjoyed a complimentary happy hour in the hotel bar (and 'happy hour' in Brazil means lots of amazing food!) before getting a ride back to Sao Paulo at 6:45PM. The timing of all this was strategic, so as to ensure rush-hour traffic between the two cities had died down. As a result, the drive to our hotel was as quick as possible. We slept most of the way and pulled into the Marriott Sao Paulo Airport at 8:30PM.
The next morning, we were delayed somewhat in getting started (details contained below). But once we finally made it to the center of Sao Paulo, we jumped into the city's crazy pace and saw as much as we could, given the insane traffic. Never before had we been so aware of our surroundings in a city. The number of people was somewhat overwhelming, but we kept our focus and our wits about us and trudged onwards throughout the day, ending the exploration in the tranquil Parque Trianon. We then took an Uber back to the hotel (which was located in Gaurulhos, near the airport) during rush hour and spent an hour by the pool, feeling quite relieved and proud of ourselves, that we had survived Sao Paulo without being mugged.
We took in a meal at the hotel that night and listened to a Brazilian guitar player/singer in the lobby before calling it a night. It was an early rise to get to Guarulhos Airport the next morning for our flight to Bogota and onwards to Mexico City.
Santos
The trip from São Paulo to Santos is through the mountains. It used to be a windy, treacherous route, but 20 years ago, the government built the Plinion Marcos Tunnel, a 3km series of massive tunnels through the mountains to establish a more efficient and safe route.
We arrived in Santos in the dark, so it was amazing to open the curtains in the morning and see this view of our surroundings.
Santos is a city of 433,000 (population-wise, about the same as Halifax), located on the Bay of Santos, 90 minutes from the heart of São Paulo and two hours from Guarulhos Airport. You can see its 7km of beach in the photo above. The body of water extending inland on the right of the photo is the Port of Santos, a 15km-long port, which is the largest in Brazil.
Monte Serrat, its funicular and mountaintop church
Our Lady of Mount Serrat Diocesan Shrine, atop Monte Serrat, is a small and cozy church with a 400-year history.
The view of Santos from atop Monte Serrat
I swear, Pam grew a foot in Brazil! Just kidding, a neat mirror atop Monte Serrat alters reality!
Brazil has lots of graffiti, but it also has lots of amazing murals and art in the streets.
Coffee Museum
The chamber where coffee auctions were held
Santos’ tourist tram and station
The Sanctuary St. Antônio do Valongo shows the decorated Baroque Colonial style of the 17th century.
Some statues in Santos’ old city
Some examples of the architecture in Santos’ old city
Santos City Hall
Examples of architecture in the old city of Santos.
There’s always time to stop for ice cream. Especially when it’s 32C and the humidity is high, as it is in Santos.
Our Lady of the Rosary Cathedral (view from Monte Serrat (above), and the view on the ground (below)). Construction started in 1909 and continued until 1924.
Santos’ 7 km of Beachfront is the modern heartbeat of the city. It was fairly quiet on a weekday, but it is packed on weekends, as the folks from Sao Paulo pour into Santos.
One of Santos' most famous landmarks is this red sculpture by Tomie Ohtake commemorating 100 years of Japanese immigration to Brazil. It is located in Roberto Mario Santini Municipal Park, along the Santos beachfront.
Amidst the dense high-rise construction of Santos' waterfront sits Urubuqueçaba Island. It is a beautiful little island just off José Menino Beach. There is a road to it, but most of the time the road is underwater.
Examples of the dense high-rise construction all along Santos' 7km of beachfront.
Adjacent to the 7 km of beach is a nonstop botanical garden - the world’s longest.
The beaches are incredibly wide. Here, you see beach volleyball nets on José Menino Beach. My friend, Fernando, used to play beach volleyball here as a kid.
Some beachfront statues
The Minor Basilica of St. Antônio do Embaré sits like a very out-of-place piece of classical architecture along a beachfront development filled with modern condo and apartment towers.
In front of the Basilica is a fountain showing St. Antonio blessing the fish. The fish all seem so attentive! Hmm, but is he praying that they will be caught by the local fisherman of the day, or that they will escape their nets?!
The Sheraton Santos, where we stayed.
We could not get over the number of workers in the streets of Santos. Hundreds of people keeping the city tidy. We’re not sure, but we speculate that the government, instead of handing out welfare checks, requires people to work for them.
A Brazilian peculiarity: you will not find a napkin in Brazil that is not individually wrapped. I’ve never seen anything like it anywhere. Not exactly the most environmentally friendly approach.
São Paulo
Our day started with an encounter with a massive caterpillar at the hotel.
The Marriott São Paulo Airport, where we stayed.
We didn’t quite experience at all, as the sign indicates. The city is simply too overwhelming and massive. And we had a rough start to the day: we waited 40 minutes for an Uber that never showed up, then we re-ordered an Uber and ended up breaking down on the freeway in the middle of rush-hour traffic. Fortunately, we were able to eventually get off the freeway and get another Uber in a very sketchy neighborhood. Another hour later, we finally arrived in the centre of São Paulo to visit the tallest tower in the city, only to be told it was closed until 4 PM. so it really wasn’t until noon that we got underway with our city visit.
Christianity is alive and well in Sao Paulo.
Teatro Municipal
In the heart of the city, the Corridor Norte-Sul freeway goes underground for a distance, providing open space in the core of Sao Paulo to accommodate celebrations and events. On this day, it was fairly empty. The Brazilian flag was flying proudly over it.
It’s always rush-hour in São Paulo. The Corridor Norte-Sul as it dives underground in the city core.
Shortly after arriving in the centre of the city, we came across a major protest. There was a mobile stage set up in the middle of the street and some very angry people chanting with signs.
The first church constructed in São Paulo, the Church of Santo Antonio, dates back to 1592.
The Parish of St. Francis of Assisi. Built at the end of the 17th century and into the 18th century, this is a classic example of Portuguese Baroque architecture, just west of the Catedral de Se (see below).
Catedral de Se de Sao Paulo - the city’s most celebrated church. It is a massive 20th century cathedral with soaring Gothic architecture and a Renaissance-style dome.
In front of the Cathedral is a monument to St. Paul, for whom the city was named.
This statue and the adjacent Jesuit school and chapel (below) marks the place where São Paulo had its beginnings.
These two monks seemed somewhat out of place. Yet, among the masses of people, nothing is really out of place.
Farol Santander
This building, model after the Empire State building, was the headquarters of the Bank of Brazil. It was the tallest building in South America until the 1960s. The observation deck provides sweeping views of the city. There are also several floors dedicated to, art and history, and even the world’s highest skateboard park!
These are some of the views from a top Farol Santander. The city of 22 million goes as far as I can see. There are literally thousands of high-rise apartment buildings and towers.
The former boardroom of the Board of Directors of the bank.
The exquisite chandelier in the foyer of the building.
Edificio Italia is the second highest building in São Paulo.
One thing you are struck with around the city is the amount of graffiti. But not just a typical approach to graffiti: somehow, they find a way to spread graffiti to the highest storeys of buildings.
The Monastery of Saint Benito, in the center of the city.
The Mercado Municipal (municipal market) is quite the showpiece.
The displays of fruit and food are nothing short of exquisite.
There were so many stalls of dried cod in the market. Quite incredible.
I include these photos, not to invade on the privacy of individuals, but simply to show the terrible conditions of homelessness around São Paulo. To do this blog entry without mentioning it would be unfair as an overview of the city.
Parque Trianon
This park is a beautiful oasis in the middle of a high-speed and crazy city. 135 species of trees and flowers typical of an Amazon rainforest. Brazil used to have 340,000,000 acres of rainforest, but these are disappearing quickly.
Monument to Anhanguera, just outside Parque Trianon. He was a pioneer who explored the interior of Sao Paulo state.
The renowned Museum of Art of São Paulo (MASP)
Another Brazilian peculiarity: fire extinguishers are all placed on the floor in racks like these.
And the sun sets on our time in Brazil.
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