Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1982 (Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 8am-noon;
T
55 3312
7000;
W
localiza.com), which rents cars from around
R$100/day (plus insurance), though there are restrictions/
fees for crossing the border.
Tours
Caminho das Missões, Rua Antunes Ribas 984,
Santo Ângelo (
T
55 3312 96 32,
W
caminhodasmissoes
.com.br), runs various hiking and biking tours along the
Rota Missões.
9
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Arena Grill
Rua Marquês do Herval
1780
T
55 3312
4763,
W
grupoarena.com.br.
Popular bar and Brazilian
restaurant, with a decent lunch buff et (by the
quilo
), killer
happy hour
(especially buzzy on Tues night) and à la carte
dishes with especially good pizza in the evenings. Boasts a
surprisingly good line-up of touring bands (Thurs & Fri).
You'll fi nd the Arena Bowling alley next door
.
Daily noon-
3.30pm & 5.30pm-1am.
Kemper's Haus
Rua Marquês do Herval 1763
T
55
3312 3922,
W
kempershaus.com.br.
Enticing café and
bakery with a wide range of cakes, desserts, savoury snacks
and excellent espresso; try the pink “Torta do General”, with
strawberry and whipped cream, a local speciality created in
1957. Also has free wi-fi .
Mon-Fri 7.30am-8pm, Sat
8.30am-7pm, Sun 2-8pm.
Maerkli Hotel
Av Brasil 1000
T
55 3313 2127,
W
versarehoteis.com.br.
Standard mid-range business
hotel with modern, clean a/c
rooms t
hat have cable TV, free
wi-fi and breakfast included.
R$180
Turis Hotel Santo Ângelo
Av Antônio Manoel 726
T
55 3313 5255,
W
santoangeloturishotel.com.
Just
off the main square, this is the standard “budget” choice
in town, though the rooms are rather old and not that
cheap
conside
ring; free wi-fi and a/c are included,
though.
R$100
São Miguel da Missões
São Miguel Arcanjo Rua São Nicolau • Daily 9am-noon & 2-6pm, Oct-Feb to 8pm • R$5 • Espetáculo de Som e Luz Feb-April & Aug-Oct
8pm; May-July 7pm; Nov-Jan 9.30pm; R$5 •
T
55 3381 1294
Th e most accessible and best preserved of the Jesuit missions in Brazil is
São Miguel
Arcanjo
in the village of
SÃO MIGUEL DA MISSÕES
, 60km southwest of Santo Ângelo
(16km south of BR-285 on RS-536). Despite vandalism and centuries of neglect,
São Miguel's ruins off er ample evidence of the sophistication of Guaraní Baroque
architecture, and of
redução
life generally. Founded in 1632, to the west of the Rio
Uruguai, São Miguel moved only a few years later to escape
Paulista
slavers, and then
a few years after that it was destroyed by a violent windstorm. After being rebuilt, its
population increased rapidly and in 1687 it was relocated across the river to its
present site.
Th e mission's initial priority was to provide housing, so not until 1700 did work
begin on the
church
, designed by the Milanese Jesuit architect Giovanni Baptista
Prímoli, the ruins of which still stand; the facade is a handsome example of colonial
architecture. One of the church's two towers is missing, but otherwise its stone
structure is reasonably complete, the lack of a vault or dome explained by the fact
that these would have been fi nished with wood. Other aspects of the ruins are of less
interest, but the outline of the mission's
walls
provides a guide to the former extent
of São Miguel, which, at its peak, was home to over four thousand people.
Guided tours are available, and the small
Museu das Missões
(same times)
has an excellent collection of stone and wood sculptures, which are beautifully
displayed in Jesuit-infl uenced but stylistically modernist buildings designed by
Lúcio Costa, the urban planner of Brasília. Every evening a kitschy
sound-and-light
show
brings the story of the Jesuits to life, with simultaneous translation in English
and Spanish.
ARRIVAL AND ACCOMMODATION
SÃO MIGUEL DA MISSÕES
By bus
The bus station (
T
515 3381 1457) at Av Antunes
Ribas 1525 is within walking distance of the ruins. Antonello
(
W
turismoantonello.com.br) runs 3-4 buses daily to and
from São Miguel from Santo Ângelo (see p.630).
★
the ruins, this is a smart choice if you intend stay for the
sound-and-light show. It's an excellent HI hostel that has
clean dorm rooms as well as doubles (with a/c and TV) and
a relaxing pool. Price for HI members is given in brac
kets -
note th
at there i
is only
one rate for doubles. Dorms
R$65
(R$56)
; doubles
R$160
Pousada das Missões
Rua São Nicolau 601
T
55
3381 1202,
W
pousadadasmissoes.com.br.
Right next to
