The best moments

The best moments of the journey to Minas Gerais was in the church where there was a light show, because we learnt a lot and had fun at the same time.

Another special moment, which got everybody emotinal, was when we visited Tião Painera who is an artist who makes pottery in his atelier .

Tião Painera

A moment that we also liked a lot was when the guide explained to us the seven sacred moments in the life of Christ, showing each statue in the chapel, and the statues were made of wood and sculpted by Aleijadinho with the help of other artists because he was already ill.
These masterpieces are really very beautiful.

What to do - Where to go

It is cool to go into the  mine of Chico Rei, that is a mine that belonged to a Portuguese family, but after years the slave Chico Rei could buy not only his freedom  but the mine as well. And with the money he  got from the mine, he financed the building of the Church of Santa Efigênia and bought the freedom of other slaves. 

Mine of Chico Rei

  
Another place to go is the Teatro Municipal of Ouro Preto, which is one of the oldest theaters in South America, and has a beautiful Baroque architecture.

Municipal Theatre

How to get there

There are several ways to get there, the first is by plane. If you get a

plane from Sao Paulo to Minas Gerais, it will take an hour and seventeen minutes,

but then you have to take a car or bus that will take another hour and 

forty minutes, because there aren't  any flights to the interior of Minas Gerais.

The second way is by bus which takes approximately eight hours.

And the third way is by car, it takes about six to seven

hours.

Tips

- Go with very comfortable shoes that does not hurt your feet because you will walk a lot!
- Bring a raincoat if it rains
- If you decide to go to the pool it is good to bring bathing suit.

What to take

You should take, sweatpants and jeans, shorts and light shirts. Take two pairs of tennis, and a pair of sandal.  Take also a fleece sweater or sweatshirt, and take underwear and personal hygiene products.

Where to eat/ What to eat

In Ouro Preto we suggest the restaurant "Casa dos Contos", and I advise you to eat the typical dishes of Mina Gerais, they are: beans (feijão tropeiro), chicken in brown sauce, chicken or ribs  and tutu. Here are the websites if you want to take a look, http://www.casadoscontosrestaurante.com.br/?op=conteudo&id=132&menuId=148.

In Congonhas do Campo I suggest the restaurant "Churrascaria Zé Dias", the food is very good, there is a variety of food in self-service, and also there is a steakhouse with many varieties of meat. The website is http://www.churrascariazedias.com.br/churrascaria.php. 

In Tiradentes I recommend eating at the restaurant "Divino Sabor", have a self-service and a very good steak house, typical food from Minas. The site of the restaurant is, http://www.tiradentesgerais.com.br/divinosabor/.

The other restaurant  are"Panela de Minas," which offers a good food from Minas, served in a stone pots on the stove  of firewood. The site of the restaurant is, http://www.tiradentesgerais.com.br/panelademinas/. 

What to see

Museu da Inconfidência

   In Ouro Preto  there is the church of St. Francis of Assis, who is considered the masterpiece of Brazilian baroque. Alejadinho and his team made the project construction of the church, and Manuel da Costa Athaide did the painting of the church.
  Museu da Inconfidência is a historical museum that occupies the former home of the chamber of Vila Rica, the museum was created to preserve the memory of the Conspiracy of Minas Gerais, Brazil's Independence movement.
 Church of Nossa Senhora do Pilar, in this church  it was used a lot of gold and silver. Under the church there is the Silver Museum, with rare pieces.

Twelve Prophets

 In   Congonhas do Campo it is cool to see the twelve prophets and the Via Sacra. The twelve prophets are soapstone sculptures made by  the sculptor Alejadinho, which are located in Santuário Bom Jesus de Matos.
 The Via Sacra shows six chapels with the steps of  the Passion of Christ,  and are representing the biblical episodes, these sculptures were made of wood by Alejadinho.

Church of Santo Antonio

 In Tiradentes  there is  the Church of Santo Antonio, which is very beautiful, it is one of the most beautiful baroque buildings in Brazil. Inside the temple there is an organ which is considered one of the fifteen most important worldwide.

Where to stay

In Ouro Preto it's very difficult  to find a hotel, so you can stay in Providência hotel, in Mariana, a small city close to Ouro Preto. Providencia is a Simple hotel, but very comfortable and beautiful. It 's located in the historic town of Mariana. Here's the website if you want to take a look,
http://www.hotelprovidencia.com.br/apresenta.htm.

In Tiradentes we suggest the hotel Pouso das Gerais, which has some characteristics of  the Baroque architecture. The hotel is very comfortable and pretty. Here is the site if you want to learn more about it.  http://www.pousodasgerais.com.br/index.php?secao=pousada&lin=por.

Weather

  The weather in Ouro Preto can vary. In the morning it's very cold. The temperature is between 10°C and 15°C with mist. In the afternoon the temperature goes up to more than 20°C. At night the temperature goes down again.
The weather in  the other cities are  the same of Ouro Preto.

Location

We went to  the historical cities in Minas Gerais. The first city we visited was Ouro preto that is known for its colonial architecture.

The second place was Mariana, in the XVII century  it was the first village, town and capital of state of  Minas Gerais, because it was one of the largest producers of gold.

Tiradentes was one of the cities that produced more gold in Brazil, because of that the village has developed becoming a city.

Congonhas  has the most famous sculptures of  the artist  :Alejadinho.

            All the cities we have visited are in the interior of Brazil, and are  two hours from Belo Horizonte the  capital of Minas Gerais.