Cultural Synopsis - Brazilian Castles

This castle, built by Zé dos Montes (85) is located in the town of Sítio Novo, 100km from Natal, the capital of the state of Rio Grande do Norte. The castle is administered by his son,  Joseildo who explains that the whole construction was inspired by European and Arabic influence. This unfinished building sits on top of a rock, with many stone altars inside, and a curious outdoor earth and mud labyrinth which represents the Via Crucis . The whole project started off with José Antonio Barreto, who, in 1941, as a  child, had a vision of a lady asking him to build seven churches. This apparition repeated itself 12 more times. Eventually,as  an adult,he found the exact place where he then had his castle built.

Calçada do Lorena is located in the Parque Estadual Serra do Mar and was the first road built in 1792, connecting the capital of São Paulo to the seaside.  In September 1822, Prince Dom Pedro I rode along it on horseback on his visit to São Paulo to declare the independence of Brazil from Portugal. It is 50 km long, paved with rocks, chiseled manually, which are still usable after almost one century. One can still walk it untill it reaches the SP 148-Caminho do Mar. 4.5 km  and you can appreciate the various  monuments built in 1800 . It is open for tourists, Thur to Sun at 9h at the price of R$31,00. Booking: Tel. 2997-5000 extension 356 or by e-mail: agendamentocaminhosdomar@fflorestal.sp.gov.br. More information: www.parqueestadualserradomar.sp.gov.br 

Christina Thornton