Paraty (or Parati, ) is a preserved Portuguese colonial (1500–1822) and Brazilian Imperial (1822–1889) municipality with a population of about 43,000. The name "Paraty" originates from the local Guaianá Indians' indigenous Tupi language, named for an abundant local fish native to the region. Paraty is located on the Costa Verde (Green Coast), a lush green corridor that runs along the coastline of the state of Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil. Paraty has become a tourist destination, known for its historic town center and the coast and mountains in the region. The historic center of the city, as well as four areas of the Atlantic Forest, were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2019 under the title "Paraty and Ilha Grande".

Geography

thumb|right|Water floods Paraty's streets during high tide

The town is located on the Bay of Ilha Grande, which is dotted with many tropical islands. Rising as high as 1,300 meters behind the town are tropical forests, mountains, and waterfalls. It is the southernmost and westernmost city in Rio de Janeiro state.

Paraty is listed by IPHAN as a National Historic Landmark.

More than 80% of its territory is protected by conservation units:

  • Cairuçu Environmental Protection Area, where the village of Trindade is located
  • Tamoios Ecological Station
  • Serra da Bocaina National Park
  • Baia de Paraty, Paraty Mirim and Saco do Mamanguá Environmental Protection Area
  • Juatinga Ecological Reserve

Nearby is the Serra do Mar State Park of São Paulo.

The municipality also includes an indigenous village and an Afro-Brazilian quilombo settlement.

Climate

Paraty exhibits a humid subtropical climate. Temperature lows range from , while highs range from . Its wettest month is January, with an average of 19 rainfall days. Sea temperatures remain consistently warm, ranging from .

Municipal symbols

Flag

The flag of Paraty was adopted on August 12, 1967. The overall colors of the flag represent the following traits: gold signifies strength, silver represents innocence, red is bravery, blue serenity, and green is the color of abundance.

Red, white, and blue are the three colors that have traditionally been used to decorate the historic houses of the city. The colors are displayed in three vertical stripes, with a coat of arms on the center. The large white star on the red stripe symbolizes the first district, and on the blue stripe two small stars represent the second and third districts. The three stars are placed in a triangular form, in homage to the strong presence of Freemasonry in the architecture of the city. The crown represents the royal traditions that discovered the country and founded the independent country. The real reason for green is the Portuguese house of Bragança and yellow for the Austrian house of Habsburg (Dom Pedro I and Dona Leopoldina).

Coat of arms

The coat of arms shown on the flag was adopted on November 30, 1960. The four quarters of the coat of arms symbolize the following:

  1. The first green-colored quarter on the upper left-hand side with a feathered headdress above two crossed arrows, represents the original inhabitants of the region, the Guaianás tribe.
  2. The second quarter in red with a white oval seal with the royal Portuguese coat of arms surrounded by the word "Remédios," a seal which was used in colonial times to authenticate official documents; Our Lady of Remedies has been patron saint of the town since 1646.
  3. The third quarter, which is white, blue and yellow is an outline of the city and the bay with a superimposed silver fish that is perhaps a reference to Tupi language origin of the city name.
  4. Finally the fourth quarter of blue shows the corner of a colonial house and a wrought-iron rail which is representative of the colonial-style houses that exemplify Paraty.

The flora which supports the red scroll are a branch of coffee tree and a stalk of sugarcane. The scroll itself bears the inscription "1660 Paraty 1844" These are the dates that Paraty initially achieved status as a town and then later city status. Above the shield is a crown consisting of five towers, with the center tower emblazoned with a red shield bearing a gold fleur-de-lis, which symbolizes Our Lady of Remedies, the patron saint of the city.

History

The village of Paraty was founded in 1597. It was established formally as a town by Portuguese colonists in 1667, in a region populated by the Guaianás Indians.

The Guaianás people who lived where the city now stands called the entire area "Paraty". In the Tupi language "Paraty" means "river of fish". Even today the Brazilian Mullet (Mugil brasiliensis) still come back to spawn in the rivers that spill into the Bay of Paraty. When the region was colonized by the Portuguese, they adopted the Guaianás name for their new town.

The Gold Trail

After the discovery of the world's richest gold mines in 1696 in the mountains of Minas Gerais, Paraty became an export port for gold to Rio de Janeiro and from there on to Portugal. The ensuing gold rush led to the construction of the "Caminho do Ouro" or "Gold Trail", a 1200 kilometer road, paved in steep areas with large stones, which connected Paraty to Diamantina via Ouro Preto and Tiradentes. Not only was it used to transport gold to Paraty, but it was also used to convey supplies, miners and African slaves by mule train over the mountains to and from the gold mining areas. Two sections of the Caminho do Ouro have been excavated near Paraty and are now a tourist destination for hiking.

The Gold Trail fell into disuse because of attacks on the gold laden ships bound for Rio de Janeiro by pirates who frequented the islands and coves of the Bay of Angra dos Reis. Eventually a safer overland route from Minas Gerais to Rio de Janeiro was created because of these pirate raids. Finally, the gold itself began to run out in the late 18th century, and Paraty declined.

The Gold Trail was submitted for inclusion on the World Heritage List in August 2004.

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Image:gold trail 5_cropped.jpg|Stones on the Gold Trail

Image:gold trail 12_cropped.jpg|the Gold Trail

Image:gold trail 16_cropped.jpg|Hiking the Gold Trail

Image:gold trail 18-view from Gold Trail_cropped.jpg|View from the Gold Trail

</gallery>

Cachaça

Before the gold mines came sugar cane, the products of which were the main exports of Brazil beginning around the 1500s. Under Portuguese occupation, most of the colony's regions were dedicated to the production of sugar, but Paraty remained focused on cachaça. This is most likely due to the more-humid climate, which resulted in a better mash. Cachaça, a spirit distilled from sugarcane juice, is the main ingredient in a caipirinha, the national drink of Brazil. Cachaça is said to be older than rum, as it has been made since the 1500s. Through the gold rush, cachaça remained an economic powerhouse in Paraty, widely demanded both in Brazil and in Europe. By 1820, over 150 cachaça stills were operating in the region. Over time, the production of cachaça became entwined with the identity of Paraty, and the "cachaça of Paraty" was awarded a Protected Indication of Provenance in 2007.

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Image:Paraty_floodhole_dry.jpg|Dry Flood-hole

Image:Paraty_floodhole.jpg| Flood by incoming tide

Image:Paraty_flooded_2.jpg| Flooding street

Image:Paraty_flooded_1.jpg| Another flooding street

</gallery>

Neighborhoods

thumb|A street in the historic center of Paraty

Paraty is divided into 12 neighborhoods. They are as follows:

  • Caboré
  • Centro Historico
  • Fátima
  • Ilha das Cobras
  • Jabaquara
  • Mangueira
  • Parque Imperial
  • Parque Ypê
  • Patitiba
  • Portal de Paraty
  • Saudade
  • Vila Colonial

The municipality contains the Paraty-Mirim State Park, created in 1972.

It contains part of the Tamoios Ecological Station.

Culture and tourism

There are many musical and cultural events, the most prominent of which is the FLIP – Festa Literaria Internacional de Paraty (International Literary Festival of Paraty). The town is also known for its local festivals on Catholic holy dates, such as the Feast of the Holy Ghost.

The annual Paraty Bourbon Jazz Festival has occurred every May since 2009. The traditional music event has already brought names like Stanley Jordan, Gary Brown, Ed Motta, Leo Gandelman, Eumir Deodato, Joshua Redman, Pau Brasil Group, Dianne Reaves, Mike Stern, Naná Vasconcellos, Nuno Mindelis, Jacques Morelenbaum, Stanley Clarke, and many other leading names in jazz, blues, soul and R & B from Brazil and the world.

The event usually has two stages, located in the Plaza de Matriz and the Santa Rita Church in the historic center of the city, as well as buskers (street performers) and Orleans Street Jazz Band circling the streets of the Historic Center and DJ Crizz that opens and closes programming every day.

The Casa da Cultura Paraty (Paraty House of Culture) occupies an historic house originally built in 1754 which opened to the public in 2004 and holds a permanent exhibition on local history and culture. In the Salon of Indigenous Culture, visitors can see the "carpets" made of colored sawdust and flower petals used during the festival of Corpus Christi in June. The largest is almost . The "carpet" is protected by glass so that visitors walk on it as they enter.

Paraty played the part of the Bahian town of Ilhéus in the 1983 Bruno Barreto film Gabriela, Cravo e Canela, starring Sônia Braga and Marcello Mastroianni.

Paraty was also the set for Isle Esme (the place of Edward and Bella's honeymoon) in the movie The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn.

Transportation

Paraty airport can be reached from Rio de Janeiro or São Paulo by chartered helicopter or small commercial and private aircraft because presently it has no scheduled flights.

Another possibility of transport is to arrive by sea by way of a sailboat or cruise ship from Rio de Janeiro, Angra dos Reis and Ilha Grande.

Paraty is connected by road to Rio de Janeiro or São Paulo (via road BR-101). Air-conditioned buses leave to go back and forth from Rio to Paraty and Paraty to Rio.

Distance from other Brazilian cities

  • Angra dos Reis – 95&nbsp;km
  • Belo Horizonte – 572&nbsp;km
  • Caraguatatuba – 126&nbsp;km
  • Rio de Janeiro – 236&nbsp;km
  • São Paulo – 330&nbsp;km
  • Ubatuba – 74&nbsp;km

Other images

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Image:Pascoa 017.jpg|Penha

Image:Paraty-ilhacomprida.jpg| Saveiro in Ilha Comprida

Image:Igreja de Santa Rita de Cássia, Paraty, Rio de Janeiro.jpg|Colonial Church

Image:Natal e ano novo(parati) 080.jpg|Colonial Church

Image:Praia-trindade-paraty.jpg|Trindade district

Image:Parati-Street3.jpg|Paraty street

</gallery>

References

  • http://www.paraty.tur.br
  • Caminho do Ouro – Official government operated facility