Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Food is very definitely Brazilian in Santa Maria, though one odd German legacy remains; at the handful of
buffet/ churrasco canteens along Av Frederico Grulke, surprisingly good sauerkraut is served (with the usual, bland,
local sausages).
Pommer Haus Hotel Av Frederico Grulke 455 (above
the Banco do Brasil) T 27 3263 1718. If you want to stay
over, this excellent-value hotel is right in the centre, with
fairly basic rooms and an eas y-to-s pot “German” facade. No
lift, so be prepared for stairs. R$95
2
Santa Leopoldina
From Santa Maria it's an incredibly winding 33km to SANTA LEOPOLDINA (commonly
known as just Leopoldina), through thickly forested hills and gorges (you can also
drive straight from Santa Teresa, skipping Santa Maria, but only on a dirt road).
Leopoldina is lower down, more tropical and subsequently hotter than its neighbours,
and the town is smaller and more sleepy, laid out along one street and the Rio Santa
Maria. The centro histórico is a small but oddly compelling strip, with a Lutheran
church high above and a smattering of 1920s buildings. While the town's German
character has faded almost entirely, the outlying parts of the município are still mainly
inhabited by descendants of Germans, many of whom have retained the language or
dialect of earlier generations.
Museu do Colono
Av Presidente Vargas 1501 • Wed-Sun 9am-5pm, holidays 1-5pm (sometimes closes noon-1.30pm) • Free • T 27 3266 1250
The interesting Museu do Colono is housed in a mansion built in 1877 for the
Holzmeisters, who were once the leading German family in town. Today the museum
spotlights the early decades of German settlement with photographs - including some
fascinating ones of the construction of the road to Santa Teresa in 1919 - along with
relics and documents.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION
SANTA LEOPOLDINA
By bus The bus drops you at one end of the main street,
Rua do Comércio (aka Av Presidente Vargas); Lírio dos Valles
( W viacaoliriodosvales.com.br) runs the most useful buses.
Destinations Santa Teresa (6.50am, noon & 3.30pm; 1hr
20min); Vitória (8.20am, noon & 3.30pm; 1hr 10min).
Domingos Martins and around
The oldest and the most German of the inland towns is DOMINGOS MARTINS , 42km
west of Vitória on the north side of the Belo Horizonte highway (BR-202) - as soon
as you turn off the main road you are greeted by the obligatory “wilkommen” sign.
The town's name was changed from Santa Isabel in 1921 in honour of Brazilian
freedom fighter Domingos José Martins. Though it's a modern, typical Brazil country
town these days, its Pomeranian roots are very much in evidence, through a
sprinkling of triangular wooden houses modelled after alpine chalets, well-
maintained German strasse name tiles on every street and the odd bit of German
kitsch along the main drag, Avenida Presidente Vargas . Halfway along lies Praça
Arthur Gerhardt , the immaculately manicured main square with a colonists'
monument , and ringed by faux Bavarian hofs (even the public toilets) and the
genuinely Hanseatic tower of the Igreja Luterana , dating from 1887 and said to have
been the first tower permitted on a Protestant place of worship in Brazil (the church
dates from 1866). Running parallel to Vargas, pedestrianized Rua João Baptista
Wernersbach is lined with small shops and restaurants.
Almost completely surrounded by steep hills, Domingos Martins is high enough to
be bracingly fresh by day (542m) and distinctly cold at night - if you stay the night,
your pousada will fill you in on all the hiking trails and waterfalls in the area.
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search