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Pantanal North
Brazil's undiscovered wilderness, the world's biggest floodplain is an ecological sanctuary with extraordinary bio diversity and abundance of wildlife. Click on Images on the menu bar and see what incredible fauna expects you. The Gateway is Cuiaba. |
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| The City |
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Cuiabá, the capital of the state of Mato Grosso, is not the place you are probably heading to. Apart some interesting agricultural aspects it doesn't offer turistical attractions.
You might stay there for the night in order to bring your flight schedule in agreement.
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| History |
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The first settlers - bandeirantes and adventurers - to arrive in the hinterlands of South America were attracted by the amazing tales about the huge wealth of the region. A Portuguese man by the name of Pedro Aleixo was the first explorer to arrive, in 1525, in what is today the state of Mato Grosso. According to the Treaty of Tordesillas, the region belonged to Spain and therefore, since the beginning of the 17th century, Spanish Jesuits began to found missions between the Paraná and the Paraguai rivers. From then onward, the discovery of large amounts of gold began to attract more and more explorers, speeding up settlement in the area. In 1748, Portugal expanded its territory and established the capitania of Mato Grosso, building villages and forts to protect it from the Spaniards, until boundary disputes between Portugal and Spain were finally settled by the Treaties of Madrid (1750) and Saint Idelfonse (1777).
With the decline of gold production, as of the early 19th century, the region went through a period of decadence. In 1892, Mato Grosso experienced an unsuccessful secessionist movement against the government of President Floriano Peixoto. In 1917, the state suffered federal intervention due to serious disputes between the north and the south. In the first half of the 20th century, owing to the arrival of rubber tree trappers, cattle raisers and erva-mate growers, economic growth was restored in the state. In 1997, the state was dismembered, with the establishment of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul.
Cuiabá - Mato Grosso’s capital since 1823, the municipality of Cuiabá occupies an area of 4.940 sq.mi.(12.790 km2), at an altitude of 564 ft. (176 m). It is 704 mi. (1.133 km) far from Brasilia, the country’s capital. Cuiabá’s economy is based on agriculture, livestock raising, trade and on the service sector. Among the region’s main agricultural products are cassava, sugarcane, maize (corn), soybeans and orange.
Main tourist attractions in the city of Cuiabá comprise the Museum of Sacred Art (Museu de Arte Sagrada), located in the Church of Nossa Senhora do Bom Despacho, in Seminar Square (Praça do Seminário); the Museum of Art and Popular Culture (Museu de Arte e Cultura Popular), linked to the Federal University of Mato Grosso; the Museum of Natural History and Anthropology (Museu de História Natural e Antropologia); the Historical Museum of the Mato Grosso Cultural Foundation (Museu Histórico da Fundação Cultural de Mato Grosso); the Craftsmanship Museum (Museu do Artesanato), located in the Artisan’s House (Casa do Artesão); the Rondon Museum (Museu Rondon), also known as the Indian Museum (Museu do Índio), with a vast collection of weapons and instruments used by local Indians; the Artíndia House, a store managed by the National Indian Foundation (FUNAI), where handmade items manufactured by the Indians can be found; and the Saint Benedict’s Chapel (Capela de São Benedito), a colonial temple, built in 1722.
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| General Inf |
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TELEPHONE AREA CODE
Cuiba – 065
CLIMATE
Cuiabá’s climate is hot throughout the year, with a mean temperature of 86F (30ºC) and annual rainfall of approximately 55 in. (1.400 mm).
October to March is the rainy season so much of the low-lying Patanal is under water during these months. The water starts receding in March and then comes the dry season when the lagoons and marshes dry out.
CLOTHING
Should you be for business in the city, long trouser and a good shirt are usually enough. Don’t overdress, Brazilians, especially from this rural region, wont find you smart.
In the lodges feel free to dream your dream of Indiana Jones.
ELECTRICITY
Cuiba 110V
AIRPORT
International Airport of Campo Grande, 7km from down town, Tel 763-2444
HOTELS
City Hotels offer a vast range of options, some of them being really high standards in Brazilian terms. Frequented often by business men, it may be necessary for you to stay overnight, since your flight’s arrival may be late, too late, to go to the distant lodges the same day.
BUSINESS HOURS
09:00-19:00, Banks 10:00-16:00
TAXIS
Easy to stop from the pavement, but should you be in rural area, start planning your departure a bit in advance.
MEDICAL
Good private clinics in the cities. Lodges are equipped for smaller incidents.
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| How To Get There |
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The Pantanal is roughly divided into two parts: The South and North. Apart from ecological nuances the main distinction is the gateway to access the Pantanal In the case of the North it is Cuiabá.
Intersecting the Pantanal is the Transpantaneira, a bare-earth highway, interspersed with wooden bridges, which presents along its length a parade of birds and mammals from the region. Built during the 1970s, the Transpantaneira has never been completed and is now mainly used for tourist excursions. The 145 kilometre journey is full of surprises, such as flocks of macaws and processions of herons, cavies, alligators, deer and many other animals. The region is home to at least 650 species of bird, 80 mammals and 50 reptiles.
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| Restaurants |
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The region offers some great fish dishes typical of the Pantanal. Pintado and Pacu are the two most popular fish and these are prepared in different ways and served in the many restaurants. One of the most traditional dishes is mojica , a type of fish soup with pieces of pintado cooked together with manioc, spring onion and coriander. Another speciality is Pintado a Urucum; the fish is fried lightly and served with a sauce made from cream, coconut milk, sometimes a tomato sauce, and grated cheese. Pacu frito is also popular but watch out for the bones and piranha soup is worth trying – beware though - they say it is an aphrodisiac!
The other specialty from the Patanal is crocodile meat, which you may want to try if you feel it is ecologically acceptable.
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| Night Life |
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Unless you feel this urgent need to dive into the night we consider it a better idea to save your strengths for the next days transfers and excursions. However, the city of Cuiba comes to life at night. A great place to go is Ninho’s Bar, Rua Laranjeiras, where you can enjoy a fantastic view of the city and live music. Also Avenida CPA has some good bars with live music - and this is about it.
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