Brazil - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget

Travel Reference

In-Depth Information

MARIANA

A thirty-minute bus ride from Ouro

Preto, lovely MARIANA , founded in 1696

and named after King Dom João V's wife

Maria Ana de Austria, is home to two of

Minas's most elegant town squares and

a beautifully preserved colonial centre.

The town can be visited as a day-trip

from Ouro Preto, but it's also a great

place to stay should you wish to escape

the hordes of tourists elsewhere.

on the street, while there are a couple of options along Rua

Barão de Carmargos, and weekly late parties are held at

school and university halls elsewhere (look out for flyers).

Café Choperia Real Rua Barão de Camargo 8. A few

psychedelic paintings decorate this popular joint with

tables on the cobbled street in front, perfect for a chopp

on a warm evening. Live bossa nova or MPB most nights

from 8pm, plus a decent prato executivo for R$13. Daily

noon-2am.

Consola's Rua da Conceiçao 18, behind the Matriz N.S. da

Conceiçao. You can't argue with the value of this place,

serving reasonable pizza for R$13, plus the usual steak

dinners and excellent (huge) comida mineira at R$28 for

two. Closed Tues.

Do Tomáz Rua Senado Rocha Lagoa 75. Very simple place

with paint wearing off the walls, but the lunch dishes

change daily, it's super-friendly and the price hits the spot

at R$9. Lunch only, closed Sun.

Forno do Barro Praça Tiradentes 54. Good (if a little

salty) range of mineira specialities kept warm on the

stove; lunch & dinner buffet R$19, plus pizzas and bar vibe

at night. Daily.

Ì O Passo Rua São José 56 T 31 3552 3716. Upmarket

dining with excellent large pizzas (R$28) and pastas,

buzzing most weekend evenings for a pre- or post-dinner

drink on the terrace, often with live jazz. Delivery available.

Noon-midnight daily.

O Sótão Rua Direita 124. Fun, colourful paintings decorate

this smarter student-friendly place with straw lightshades

casting shadows on the walls. Nice cocktails and light bites

such as filled pancakes. Live and relaxing bossa nova sets

the mood from 8pm. Closed Mon.

Satélite Rua Direita 97. Good place to grab a snack (try the

batatas recheadas for R$11); gets really lively late at night,

with locals sipping on beer and cheap caipirinhas . Daily.

Ulysses Rua Bernardo Vasconcelos 25. Family-run place

with the cheapest lunches in town (11am-2pm) served

on a little terrace for an incredible R$7. You can see the

eponymous owner at work in the little kitchen at the back.

Closed Mon.

WHAT TO SEE AND DO

Once more important than Ouro Preto

and home to the first governors of the

state, Mariana today is no more than a

small town. Head first to the impressive,

elaborate Catedral de N.S. da Assunção

(Tues-Sun 7am-6pm) on Praça Cláudio

Manoel. The church was designed by

Aleijadinho's father and contains many

carvings by the man himself; in addition,

the tapa o vento door, painted by

Athayde, is considered by many to be

the most beautiful in South America.

Further riches include 365kg of gold and

a beautiful German organ with 1039

flutes and a keyboard made of elephants'

teeth. Organ concerts are held on Friday

at 11am and Sunday at noon.

Not far away, at Rua Frei Durão 49,

the former bishop's palace now houses

the Museu Arquidiocesano de Arte Sacra

(Mon-Fri 8.30am-noon & 1.30-5pm,

Sat & Sun 8.30am-2pm; R$5), a lovely

building holding religious treasures

and more paintings by Athayde and

sculptures by Aleijadinho. Two stunning

Baroque churches stand on the Praça

Minas Gerais : the Igreja de São Francisco

de Assis (daily 8am-5pm), with more

Aleijadinho carving, is the final resting

place of Athayde; the relative restraint of

the Igreja do Carmo (daily 9am-4pm)

makes an interesting contrast.

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