Brasilia

Brasilia (in Portuguese Brasília) is the federal capital of Brazil and the seat of government of the Federal District, located in the Central-West region of the country. It has a population of 3,015,268 inhabitants, according to 2019 estimates from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, which makes it the third city in the country by population. In addition, it has a population of 4,284,676 in the metropolitan area. It is the seat of the federal Government, made up of the three powers of the republic (executive, legislative and judicial).

History

Original pilot plan of the city

The construction of the city began on October 23, 1956, with Lúcio Costa as the main urban planner and Oscar Niemeyer as the main architect. In 1960, it officially became the capital of Brazil. Along with Islamabad, (the capital of Pakistan), Abuja (the capital of Nigeria), Putrajaya (the administrative capital of Malaysia), Astana (the capital of Kazakhstan), Canberra (the capital of Australia) and Naypyidaw (the new capital of Myanmar). It is one of the most recently built capital cities in the world. Brasília is located in the Federal District. In turn, the Federal District borders completely with the entire state of Goiás, and in a small and narrow strip, to the southeast, with the state of Minas Gerais.

In 1761, the Marquis de Pombal mentions, being the first historical record, the need to "internalize" the capital of the then Portuguese colony of Brazil and establish an administrative headquarters far from the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Years later, in 1821, the independence leader José Bonifácio suggested the name of Brasilia for a future Brazilian capital.

The idea of building the new capital in the interior regions (and not on the Atlantic coast) had even been included in the first Republican Constitution of 1891 in the XIX, and therefore Brasilia was built in order to be the new capital of Brazil, located in the interior of the country. Brazil previously had two capital cities: Salvador de Bahia and Rio de Janeiro, located on the Atlantic coast and long linked to the Portuguese colonial power. By moving the capital to the interior, the government of independent Brazil intended to help populate that part of the country, attracting inhabitants from highly populated areas by moving public administration to the rural hinterland. People from all over the nation, especially from the Northeast Region of Brazil, were hired to build the city. Brasília is known internationally for having applied the principles established in the Athens Charter of 1933.

When Juscelino Kubitschek was elected president in 1953, the original idea was to look for an existing city in the interior of Brazil to make it the capital; Not finding one that met the necessary conditions, the decision was made to found it.

Construction Brasilia in 1959

The first step for the construction of a new capital in the interior of the country was the selection of the location of the new city, for which an extensive plateau in the southeast area of the state of Goiás was chosen in mid-1956. Construction work began on October 23, 1956, and as the administrative buildings were completed, various government entities (and their members) moved to the new city. The architect Lúcio Costa won the competition for the design of the new city and was the main urban planner of the city. Oscar Niemeyer, a close friend of Lúcio's, was the main architect of most of the public buildings and Roberto Burle Marx was the landscape designer. It was not until April 21, 1960, after 41 months of work, that the city was inaugurated upon completion, largely thanks to the political and financial support granted by President Juscelino Kubitschek. As of this date, the transfer of the main federal government bodies to the new capital began with the change of the headquarters of the Federal Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches.

President Juscelino Kubitschek launched the project to build a new capital.

Kubitschek formed a team of professionals of the same political tendency. This was how the group of creatives tried to develop a model of a "utopian" where it was intended to eliminate social classes. For this reason, it is also known as the Capital of Hope, a title given by the French writer André Malraux. Although at present this objective has only been partially fulfilled, during the construction of the city egalitarianism did become a reality, since workers and officials shared the improvised camps and meals.

With the seizure of power in Brazil by the military in 1964, the city continued to be the capital of the country, despite the contempt that the new right-wing administration showed towards the entire legacy of the Kubitschek government. However, government offices remained in Brasília, and the headquarters of powerful state-owned companies were also moved there.

History and life of the candangos

The construction of Brasilia was an objective pursued by different Brazilian governments at different times in its history, from imperial times to the beginning of the Republic. The reasons invoked by those who defended the idea of moving the Brazilian capital from Rio de Janeiro to the central highlands were the need to internalize, centralize, and modernize the country. It was between the years 1956 and 1960 that the construction of the capital took place, under the government of Juscelino Kubitschek.

Many architects, engineers, builders, workers and families were responsible for the construction of this great project. A good part of the migrants who moved to the construction sites were made up of men from the northeast of Brazil who were looking for an opportunity to achieve a better life; These first inhabitants of the new capital are known as "candangos", an expression that, at first, had a derogatory connotation. Today, candango, together with brasiliense, is the form used to designate someone who was born or lives in Brasilia (like gaúcho, in relation to those born in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, and carioca in relation to the inhabitants of the city of Rio de Janeiro).

The daily life of the candangos was very difficult; the workers who often came from the northeastern or northern states of Brazil received a pillow, a mattress, a blanket and food; Furthermore, they were all grouped in a large tent.

During the construction of Brasília, many candangos lived in tents and tents; they worked continuously, many hours a day and, in some cases, worked up to sixteen hours a day. Many of them found the strength to work beyond the weekly shift for which they were hired, since their remuneration was for hours of work – the more they worked, the more they were paid, overcoming fatigue and the distance from their families of origin or of the places where they resided in the new Federal District.

As the construction process progressed, the number of candangos in Brasília also increased. With this, problems related to urban occupation increased, and accidents became more frequent. There was no specific protection equipment and, according to the records, nearly three thousand workers died during the works, from 1956 to 1960. It is known that among so many, at least two of them died buried in the construction. In addition to the precarious working and living conditions of the gangsters, one cannot fail to mention what happened in February 1959, when they cut off the water in the tents where the gangsters lived to prevent them from going out to have fun in the Carnival, an occasion highly anticipated by those workers at that time. That day there was violence, beatings and shootings by the Brasilia Special Guard (GEB), responsible for guarding the city's construction sites, which resulted in a high number of injuries and deaths.

Many workers suffered accidents on the construction site and were taken to the hospital, but many died, including two who died buried during the construction of the University of Brasilia, where today there is an auditorium called “Dois Candangos”.

Despite the life of effort and suffering they lived, the candangos were erased from the history books and their living conditions, their daily routine and the repression they suffered are unknown to most.

The expression candango today refers us to synonyms of perseverance, courage and dedication. In his tribute, an eight-meter-high bronze monument was erected in the center of the Plaza de los Tres Poderes. This monument, called “Os Guerreiros”, which is popularly known as Dois Candangos, is the work of plastic artist Bruno Giorgi.

Geography

Satellite image of the city

The city lies in a South American ecoregion known as El Cerrado, which is similar to a savannah. The main rivers that are in the surroundings of the city are the Preto, Santo Antônio do Descoberto and São Bartolomeu.

Climate

The climate of the country's capital is tropical, more pleasant due to the altitude, with two seasons depending on the degree of air humidity: one season is dry and mild, while the other is humid and warm. The average ambient temperature is 21.4 °C. It is interesting to note that Brasília has a very stable climate (average annual thermal oscillation), with average monthly maximum and minimum temperatures that vary up to 10 degrees. The month with the highest average maximum temperature is January with 27 °C, while July has the lowest average maximum temperatures with 25 °C. The average of the lowest minimum temperatures, on the other hand, is recorded during the same month of July, with 13 °C, while the average of the highest minimum temperatures occurs during the months of December and January with 17 °C.

According to these investigations carried out between 1961 and 1990, the rainiest month in the city is December, with 20 days with rain, while the least rainy months are June and July, with only 3 days.

The climate of Brasília can be classified as a tropical savannah climate (Aw), according to the Köppen climate classification.

Brazilian average climate parameters (1961 - 1990)
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Temp. max. abs. (°C)	32.6	31.2	32.1	31.0	29.7	28.6	29.9	32.2	33.4	34.5	33.3	33.7	34.5
Average temperature (°C)	26.9	26.7	27.1	26.6	25.7	25.2	25.1	27.3	28.3	27.5	26.6	26.2	26.6
Average temperature (°C)	21.2	21.3	21.5	20.9	19.6	18.5	18.3	20.3	21.7	21.6	21.1	21	20.6
Temp. medium (°C)	17.4	17.4	17.5	16.8	15	13.3	12.9	14.6	16	17.4	17.5	17.5	16.1
Temp. min. abs. (°C)	12.2	11.0	14.6	10.7	1.4	3.3	1.6	5.0	9.0	10.2	11.4	13.5	1.4
Rains (mm)	247.4	217.5	180.6	123.8	38.6	8.7	11.1	13.9	55.2	166.6	231.1	246	1540.6
Days of rain (≥ 1 mm)	17	14	13	9	3	1	1	1	5	13	16	18	111
Hours of sun	154.4	157.5	180.9	201.1	234.3	253.4	266.5	262.9	203.2	168.2	142.5	138.1	2363
Relative humidity (%)	76	77	76	75	68	61	56	49	53	66	75	79	67.6
Source: Brazilian National Institute of Meteorology (INMET).

Demographics

According to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, in 2008 there were 2,455,903 inhabitants residing in the Brazilian Federal District, and the population density was 423.28 hab/km². The latest PNAD census revealed that 44% of the inhabitants are white, 48.5% brown (mulatto/mestizo), 6.6% black and 0.9% Asian or Amerindian.

Most of the white population of the Federal District is of Portuguese, Italian or German descent. The pardos are a mixture of European with black and Amerindian, varying from light to dark, and may have yellowish or brown skin. The black inhabitants are of Sub-Saharan African descent.

Regarding the religious profile of the city, the majority professes Catholicism, followed by Protestantism. Brasília is home to approximately 120 to 150 Jewish families.

Brasilia is considered one of the cities with the highest growth rates in Brazil. Its population increases on average by 2.82% during the year.

The Human Development Index in the city is 0.824, which is a developed country level, and the illiteracy rate is approximately 4.35%.

Inequality

The Federal District where the city of Brasilia is located is one of the most unequal units of the Brazilian federation in the country. The Federal District is home to the seat of the Brazilian government and administrative regions (RAs) with very high, such as the Lago Sul region. The RA of the Pilot Plan has the highest average per capita income in the DF: 2,685.70 reais per month.

Social inequality in Brasília is the result, in part, of the historical context of the formation of the city. At the end of the construction of the city, the candangos were expelled towards the distant regions of the Pilot Plan of the capital; there the old “cities-satellites” arose and, as a consequence, a heterogeneous territorial occupation was established in the DF. This made it possible for the gap between social classes and races to increase more and more over time. It can be observed that, in high-income regions, such as Lago Sul and Plano Piloto, the majority of the population is white, while in the poorest regions, the Afro-descendant population predominates, such as SCIA / Estrutural, where 76, 6% of the population is black.

Government

Brasilia does not have a mayor or council members, since article 32 of the Federal Constitution of 1988 expressly prohibits the Federal District from being divided into municipalities.

The Federal District is a legal entity of internal public law, within the political and administrative structure of Brazil of a sui generis nature, since it is not a state or a municipality, but a special entity which accumulates legislative powers reserved to states and municipalities, as provided for in art. 32, § 1 of the CF, which gives it a hybrid nature of state and municipality.

The executive branch of the Federal District was represented by the mayor of the Federal District until 1969, when the position became governor of the Federal District.

The legislative branch of the Federal District is represented by the Legislative Chamber of the Federal District, whose nomenclature represents a mixture of legislative assembly (legislative branch of the other units of the federation) and municipal council (legislative of municipalities). The Legislative Chamber is made up of 24 district deputies.

The judiciary that serves the Federal District also serves the federal territories. Brazil currently has no territories, so the Court of Justice of the Federal District and Territories only serves the Federal District. Part of the Federal District Government's budget comes from the Federal District Constitutional Fund. In 2012, the fund totaled 9.6 billion reais. For 2015, the forecast is 12.4 billion reais, of which more than half (6.4 billion) are for public security spending.

Economy

Brasilia's economy is dominated by two sectors:

Headquarters of the Central Bank of Brazil, located in the capital of the country.

• Serviceswhich contributes 91% of the local Gross Domestic Product, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). These are divided into:

1. Government: The public sector is by far the largest employer, providing about 40% of jobs in the city. Government jobs include all levels, from federal police to diplomacy.
2. Communications: In the city is the headquarters of the company Brasil Telecom, public and private television stations including regional offices of TV Globo, SBT, Rede Bandeirantes, Rede Record, RedeTV! and the main offices of TV Câmara, TV Senate and TV Justiça.
3. Banking and finance: Headquarters of the Central Bank of Brazil, Banco de Brasilia, Caixa Econômica Federal, among others.
4. Entertainment.
5. Computer technology: With companies such as Politec, Poliedro, CTIS, among others.
6. Legal services.

• Industries, among which are:

1. Construction: Paulo Octavio, Via Construções e Irmãos Gravia, among others.
2. Food processing: Perdigão, Sadia.
3. Manufacture of furniture.
4. Recycling: Novo Rio, Latasa and others.
5. Pharmaceuticals: União Química.
6. Print and editorial.

The main agricultural products produced in the city are coffee, guava, strawberry, orange, lemon, papaya, soybean and mango. There are more than 110,000 head of cattle, and products made from wood are exported all over the world.

In Brasilia there is a great variety of services, such as hospitals, schools, clubs, universities, restaurants, cafeterias, etc. These services, however, are distributed unevenly.

According to the IBGE, the GDP of the Federal District is around US$69,844 million, which corresponds to 3.8% of the national GDP. The Federal District has the highest per capita income in Brazil, at around US$27,610 per person, according to IBGE. According to the ranking of cities prepared by the consulting firm Mercer on the cost of living for foreign employees, Brasília is ranked 33rd among the most expensive cities in the world in 2011, while in 2010 it was ranked 70th, ranking after São Paulo (10), and Rio de Janeiro (12), but immediately after New York (32), the most expensive city in the United States according to the Mercer ranking.

Infrastructure

Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge

Commercial energy consumption in the Brazilian capital is 924 GWh, industrial consumption is 337 GWh and residential consumption is 1,241 GWh. Total energy consumption is 3,319 GWh.

The railway system is not well developed, with only 36 km. The project of a fast train that would connect Brasilia with Goiânia was considered a few years ago but nothing has been clarified in this matter. In addition, Brasília has a small underground system (41 km long). Until 2006, in the Federal District there were approximately 1 million vehicles in circulation, for a population of 2,455 million (according to the IBGE).

A 224-meter-tall television tower sits in the heart of the city.

Accommodation

The planned layout of the city included specific areas for almost everything, including lodging — north and south hotel sectors. However, other areas are receiving new hotel facilities. Brasília offers modern and comfortable hotels, including hotels managed by international chains; on the other hand, it also offers cozy and modest hotels, pensions and youth hostels.

Being a city that receives visitors from all over the country and the world, it offers a good series of restaurants with a wide variety of foods; from simple and small restaurants that serve from the authentic food of the central-western areas of Brazil to select bistros.

Panorama of the city.

Architecture and urbanism

Pilot plan of the city, shaped like a bird or plane.

The city plan was the work of Lúcio Costa and most of the prominent buildings were created by Oscar Niemeyer. The landscaping was in charge of Roberto Burle Marx.

The city was built on a base in the shape of an airplane or bird that points to the southeast, although the inhabitants of the city insist on its butterfly shape, although Lucio Costa insists that it was intended to give it the shape of a cross. The terrain was originally barren and inhospitable. A water dam was built in the area, at the same time that the works of the city began.

The city stands out for its wide avenues, which enclose, in addition to public buildings, two neighborhoods, one to the north and one to the south, which are divided into the so-called "supercuadras", which as its name implies indica group huge sets of buildings. Each supercuadra has just one entrance, and on the outside a local business. The central part of the complex is made up of the Plaza de los Tres Poderes, where the Planalto Palace —seat of executive power—, the Palace of Congress —seat of the National Congress— and the Palace of Justice —seat of the Federal Supreme Court— are located. —.

The Plaza de los Tres Poderes, named after the branches of power, is equivalent to the cockpit of that great imaginary plane that would be the map of the city, where the fuselage is made up of a wide avenue called Explanada de los Ministerios, where the entire federal administration is concentrated in equal 9-story buildings. The back of the imaginary plane is made up of the complex of local administration buildings, where the Buriti Palace stands out, seat of the Federal District government.

The wings of the plane are made up of superblocks or superblocks, with 11 buildings of 6 floors each, in an area of 90,000 m². This complex of houses and shops, also called the "Pilot Plan", extends over an area of 13 km in length.

Metropolitan Area

Aerial view of Brasilia from the International Space Station, where you can appreciate its characteristic shape similar to a bird.

The Integrated Development Region of the Federal District and its Surroundings (Região Integrada de Desenvolvimento do Distrito Federal e Entorno, or RIDE by its acronym in Portuguese) comprises the Federal District and the Goiano municipalities of Novo Gama, Ciudad Occidental, Luziânia, Cristalina, Santo Antônio do Descoberto, Águas Lindas, Alexânia, Abadiânia, Pirenópolis, Corumbá, Cocalzinho, Padre Bernardo, Águas Frías, Planaltina-GO, Vila Boa, Formosa and Cabeceiras, and the municipalities of Unaí and Buritis. This area has approximately 4.2 million inhabitants (IBGE-2016).

According to geographer Nelba Azevedo Penna from the Department of Geography of the University of Brasilia, "as a consequence of the land use planning processes, there is an intense expansion of urbanism towards the bordering periphery of the Federal District, the which gave rise to the formation of the Brasilia Metropolitan Area — the so-called Entorno (currently institutionalized as RIDE)".

Monumental Axis

The Monumental Axis is an open area in the center of Brasilia. The rectangular green area is surrounded by two avenues eight lanes wide. In this area there are many government buildings and important monuments of the city. It constitutes the main body of the "aircraft" that forms the city, as planned by Lúcio Costa. It is similar to the National Mall in Washington D.C.

Cultural Complex of the Republic

National Museum of the Republic, part of the Cultural Complex of the Republic.

The Cultural Complex of the Republic (Complexo Cultural da República in Portuguese) is a cultural center located in the Monumental Axis. It is made up of the National Library of Brasilia and the National Museum of the Republic.

The National Library of Brasília (Biblioteca Nacional de Brasília in Portuguese) occupies an area of 14,000 m², and consists of reading and study rooms, auditoriums and a collection of more than 300,000 volumes.

The National Museum of the Republic (in Portuguese Museu Nacional da República) consists of a 14,500 m² exhibition area, two auditoriums with 780 seats each, and a laboratory. The space is mainly used to display temporary art exhibits.

Brasilia Cathedral

Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady Appeared (Nossa Senhora Aparecida).

The Cathedral of Brasilia, whose full name is the Metropolitan Cathedral of Our Lady Aparecida (in Portuguese Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida), is located in the capital of the Federal Republic of Brazil and is the work of architect Oscar Niemeyer. This hyperboloid structure is made of concrete, and with its glass roof it seems to rise up and open towards the sky. The structure of the Cathedral was completed on May 31, 1970 and was based on hyperboloids of revolution, whose sections are asymmetric. The hyperboloid structure itself is the result of 16 identical concrete columns. These columns, which have a hyperbolic section and weigh 90 tons, represent two hands moving towards the sky.

Square of the Three Powers

The Three Powers Square (in Portuguese Praça dos Três Poderes) is a square whose name derives from the meeting of the three governmental powers around it: the Executive, represented by the Palace from Planalto; the Legislative, represented by the National Congress; and the Judiciary, represented by the Federal Supreme Court. It is one of the biggest tourist attractions in Brasília. It was designed by Lúcio Costa and Oscar Niemeyer as a place where the three powers would come together harmoniously.

National Congress

The Brazilian National Congress.

The National Congress of Brazil is bicameral, made up of the Brazilian Senate (the upper house) and the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies (the lower house). Since the 1960s, the Congress has been based in Brasilia. Like most of the official buildings in the city, it was designed by Oscar Niemeyer following the style of modern Brazilian architecture. The hemisphere located on the left is the seat of the Senate, and the one on the right is the seat of the Chamber of Deputies. Between them are two office towers. The Congress also occupies other surrounding buildings, some of which are interconnected by a tunnel.

The site is located in the center of the Monumental Axis, the main avenue of the capital. In front of the Congress there is an extensive garden and a reflecting pond. The Congress is located in front of the Plaza de los Tres Poderes, where the Planalto Palace and the Federal Supreme Court are located.

The Federal Senate contains 81 seats: three senators from each state and three from the Federal District, elected by majority vote for a term of eight years. The Chamber of Deputies (Câmara dos Deputados) is made up of 513 deputies, who are elected for a four-year term. Elections are based on a complex system of proportional representation for the states. Seats are allocated proportionally according to the population of each state, but each state is eligible for a minimum of eight seats and a maximum of seventy. Both houses of Congress meet in the legislative palace in the center of Brasilia. Fifteen political parties are represented in Congress.

Planalto Palace

Planalto Palace.

Planalto Palace (Portuguese Palácio do Planalto, meaning "Palace of the Plateau") is the official workplace of the President of Brazil. It is located in the Plaza de los Tres Poderes in the capital. As the seat of government, the expression o Planalto ("the Plateau") is often used as a metonym for the executive branch of government.

The main work office of the President of the Republic is located in the Planalto Palace. The president and his family, however, do not live in this place; the official residence of the president is the Palacio de la Alborada. In addition to the president, some high councilors also have offices in the "Planalto", among them the vice president of Brazil and the head of state; the other ministries are established along the Esplanade of the Ministries.

The architect of the Planalto Palace was Oscar Niemeyer, who designed most of the important buildings in the new capital of Brazil. The idea was to project an image of simplicity and modernity using lines and waves to compose the columns and exterior structures.

The palace is four stories high, and covers an area of 36,000 m². Four other adjacent buildings are also part of the complex.

Alborada Palace

Palácio da Alvorada.

The Dawn Palace (in Portuguese Palácio da Alvorada, meaning "Palace of Dawn") is the official residence of the President of Brazil. This construction was designed in the same way by Oscar Niemeyer and inaugurated in 1958.

The "Alborada" it was one of the first buildings built in the new capital. It is located on a peninsula on the shore of Lake Paranoá. For this project, Niemeyer followed the principles of simplicity and modernity that in the past characterized the great works of architecture. The viewer has the impression of looking at a glass box, gently placed on the ground supported by thin external columns.

The building has an area of 7,000 m² and three floors. In the basement are the living room, kitchen, laundry, medical center and administration. On the ground floor are the rooms used by the Presidency for official receptions. The first floor is the residential part of the palace, with four suites, two apartments and other private rooms.

The building also has a library, an Olympic swimming pool, a music room, two dining rooms and several meeting rooms. Located in adjacent buildings are a chapel and a helipad.

Federal Supreme Court

Headquarters of the Federal Supreme Court.

The Supreme Federal Court of Brazil is the highest court of justice in the Federative Republic of Brazil. The court functions as a Constitutional Court, therefore its decisions cannot be appealed. It can also override laws passed by Congress.

The members of the court, who are called ministers, are appointed by the President and approved by the Senate. They serve until mandatory retirement, at age 75. Of all the presidents, only one, Café Filho, has not appointed a minister.

The number of members has changed throughout history. In the Constitution of 1891 it was decided that the court would have 15 members. When former Brazilian President Getúlio Vargas took office, the number of members dropped to 11. It changed to 16 in 1965, but returned to 11 in 1969. It hasn't changed since.

Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge

Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge.

Known locally as Puente JK or Puente Presidente JK, it was inaugurated on December 15, 2002. It crosses Lake Paranoá, located near the monumental Axis of the city. It received its name in honor of Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, former president of Brazil. Its cost is estimated at USD$56.8 million, and it quickly became another of Brasilia's architectural icons. Due to the aesthetic quality and harmony with the environment, the architect of the work, Alexandre Chan, received the Gustav Lindenthal Medal in 2003, awarded by the Society of Engineers of the State of Pennsylvania, United States. The structural design of this bridge is unique in the world and architecturally it is only comparable to the pedestrian bridge of the Nagoya Port Public Aquarium in Japan.

The main structure of the bridge is 720 meters long (in three 240-m spans), a total length of 1,200 m with approaches, and a width of 24 meters, corresponding to three lanes in each direction. It also has 1.5 m wide pedestrian paths on each side, which can also be used by cyclists and skaters.

Lake Paranoá

Lake Paranoá is a large artificial lake built in order to increase the water reserves available in the region. It contains the second largest marina —sports port— in Brazil, and is an ideal place to practice wakeboarding and windsurfing in the capital.

Monumental Axis.

Culture

La Auriverde.

The main museums of the city are located in the Monumental Axis. The Tancredo Neves Pantheon of the Homeland, which is shaped like a dove and was also designed by Oscar Niemeyer, was inaugurated in 1986, and also houses the Book of Heroes of the Homeland, which tells the story of those who have fought for the unity of the nation.

The JK Memorial features various personal items, photos, gifts, letters, and the tomb itself of the city's idealist, Juscelino Kubitschek. The memory of indigenous peoples aims to show a bit of the national wealth of indigenous cultures. On December 15, 2006, the Cultural Complex of the Republic was inaugurated, made up of the Honestino Guimarães National Museum and the Leonel de Moura Brizola National Library.

Outside the Monumental Axis, there is the Brasilia Art Museum, which has a permanent exhibition dedicated to art, and the Central Bank Securities Museum. In the northern sector is the main theater of the city, which is shaped like a large irregular pyramid.

Music

Due to the diversity of origins of the workers and other inhabitants of Brasilia, the music scene in the Federal District presents influences of various rhythms.

At the beginning of the construction of the Brazilian capital, the Northeast accordionist Luiz Gonzaga brought forró to Brasília. This musical and dance style began to gain more strength in the capital from 1994, when a group of Northeasterners began to create new choreographies for the music of that time, which allowed Brasilia to participate in the history of forró, developing a way of dancing and a style of its own. As most of the candangos came from the northeastern region of Brazil, Ceilândia, one of the administrative regions where the highest concentration of Northeastern descendants is found, became the most important redoubt of forró in the Federal District.

Brazilian rock became known as the first expressive musical movement of the new Capital in the 1980s, not only in music, but also in the way of thinking and behaving of Brazilian citizens. For being the cradle of great names of national rock, known throughout the world, such as Plebe Rude, Legião Urbana and Capital Inicial, in 1980, Brasília was named the National Capital of Rock.

In addition to rock and forró, other rhythms such as choro, hip hop, repente and sertanejo have also been important to the history and culture of the city. Currently, Brasília receives national and international music stars every year, which has allowed the growth of the cultural diversity of music in the city, transforming it into a "capital of multiple identities".

Education

Portuguese is the official language of the country, making it the primary language taught in schools. However, English is part of the official secondary education curriculum.

The Human Development Index (IDH) of Brasilia is 0.824, which can be considered a relatively high value. According to data collected between 2019 and 2020, the average literacy rate in the city is 97.5 %, higher than the 93.6% national average.

In general, the level of education in the Federal District is the highest in the country, since 18.57% of the population has had 15 years or more of formal education. In addition, in the classification of the National Examination of Secondary Education (ENEM), three of the Brazilian schools appear among the 100 with the best scores, in 26th, 65th and 70th positions, respectively. Despite this, in the outskirts of Brasilia, only 4.5% of the inhabitants have completed a higher education degree and only a minority have completed secondary education, according to a study carried out in 2015.

As far as higher education is concerned, the courses that attract the largest number of students are: medicine, civil engineering, law, international relations and psychology. Due to a mismatch between supply and demand, these professions are not the ones that present the most job opportunities in the market, which ends up making it difficult to find a job in those areas.

Universities

Central Institute of Sciences of the University of Brasilia, known as "Minhocão".

• University of Brasilia (University of Brasília - UnB)
• Catholic University of BrasiliaCatholic University of Brasília — UCB
• Scientific Institute for Higher Education and SurveyHigher and Pesquisa Scientific Institute - UNICESP)
• Universidad de Brasilia (Brazilian University Centre)Centro Universitário de Brasília - UniCEUB
• University Center of the Federal DistrictCentro Universitário do Distrito Federal - UniDF)
• Euro-American University CentreCentro Universitário Euroamericano - UNIEURO
• Instituto de Educación Superior de Brasilia (Institut de Educación Superior de Brasilia)Instituto de Educação Superior de Brasília - IESB)
• Union Pionera de Integración Social (Pionera de Integración Social)União Pioneira da Integração Social - UPIS
• Paulist UniversityUniversidade Paulista - UniP)

Holidays and celebrations

Some traditional festivals are celebrated throughout the year. In April, more specifically on the 21st, the birthday of Brasilia is celebrated, where important festivals and concerts by famous national groups are held, bringing together more than 1 million people on the esplanade of the ministries. In June there are big festivals celebrating Catholic saints, such as San Antonio and San Pedro, which are called festas juninas, or June festival. Throughout the year there are local, national and international events that are held in the city. Christmas is one of the most important celebrations, and big events are organized on New Year's Eve.

Sports

The new Mané Garrincha Stadium

Football

The Mané Garrincha Stadium was host to 10 football matches of the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games.

Sports is no stranger to the social life of Brasilia. In this context, the Brazilian capital has its representation in the field of soccer, since the modern Mané Garrincha stadium is located in its urban area, inaugurated in 1974 and named after the famous Brazilian soccer player Garrincha, world champion with the Brazilian Soccer Team in the 1962 World Cup in Chile. This stadium is also the venue where the three most important clubs in the region play their home matches, being them:

• Brasília Futebol Clube
• Brasiliense Futebol Clube de Taguatinga
• Sociedade Esportiva do Gama

In 2010, the Mané Garrincha was remodeled for the reception and development of the 2014 Soccer World Cup, for which Brazil was finally designated as the host country. In this sense, exhaustive work was carried out that required an investment of 900 million US dollars, which led to the final remodeling and subsequent inauguration, in which the capacity would be increased from 45,000 to 72,800 seated spectators.. The reopening of the National Stadium in the first months of 2013 allowed this arena to be one of the venues for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. It was also designated as the venue for the 2014 Soccer World Cup. The Mané Garrincha National Stadium was the venue of ten soccer matches of the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games, which included games in the women's and men's categories, held between August 4 and 13, 2016.

Motor Racing

Motor racing is also based in the Brazilian capital, since the Nelson Piquet International Autodrome of Brasilia is located there, a few meters from the Mané Garrincha National Stadium, a racing circuit that was inaugurated in 1974 and that was baptized with the name of this pilot, inhabitant of this town and who knew how to consecrate himself three times as Formula 1 world champion.

Transportation

Airport

Panorama of Brasilia International Airport.

Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek International Airport is the airport that serves the metropolitan area of Brasilia with national and international flights. It was named in honor of the former Brazilian president Juscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira, promoter of the construction of the new capital. Also known simply as the Brasilia International Airport, it is the second largest in Brazil in terms of passenger flow; it is surpassed by São Paulo's main airport, Guarulhos International Airport. Due to its strategic location it is considered a civil aviation center for the rest of the country. This means more take offs and landings and it is not unusual for flights to have to wait to land. Following the airport plan, Infraero built a second runway, which was completed in 2006. In 2003, the fourth phase of the expansion of the passenger terminal was completed, increasing its capacity to 7.4 million users per year. anus. The third floor of the main building, with 12,000 m², has a panoramic deck, a food court (area to eat), shops, four cinemas with a total capacity of 500 people and spaces for exhibits. In total there are 136 stores for shops in the Brasilia airport.

Health

Armed Forces Hospital. According to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), in 2009 Brasilia had a total of 1,756 health establishments, of which 148 were public and 1,608 private, which together had 5,294 hospital beds, of which almost 3,700 they were public. The city also has outpatient medical care in basic specialties, dental care with dentists, and provides services to the Unified Health System (SUS).

The administrative region of Brasilia has several public hospitals, such as the Base Hospital of the Federal District (HBDF), the Regional Hospital of the North Wing (HRAN), the Regional Hospital of the South Wing (HRAS), of the Secretariat of Health of the Federal District, as well as the University Hospital of Brasilia (UnB). Some of the other administrative regions also have public hospitals of the Federal District Health Secretariat, in a total of 12. The capital's public health system receives different complaints and criticisms (as is common in Brazil), mainly due to cases poor service, inequality between blacks and whites, and inefficiency[150] On the other hand, Brasilia has one of the largest computerization projects in the Brazilian health system. The Administrative Region of Brasilia has four hospital sectors: North Local Hospital Sector (SHLN) - end of the North Wing; South Local Hospital Sector (SHLS) - end of the South Wing; North Medical Hospital Sector (SMHN) - North Central Zone, where the HRAN is located; South Medical Hospital Sector (SMHS) - South Central Zone, where the HBDF is located.

In April 2010, there were 920,696 women of childbearing age (ages 10-49). In December 2009, Brasília had 595 anesthetists, 7,205 nursing assistants, 633 general surgeons, 4,004 dental surgeons, 1,729 general practitioners, 2,745 nurses, 530 pharmacists, 841 physical therapists, 278 speech therapists, 1,371 obstetrician-gynecologists, 146 family physicians, 439 nutritionists, 1,275 pediatricians, 893 psychologists, 223 psychiatrists, 465 radiologists, and 2,551 nursing technicians. In 2008, 44,168 live births were registered, of which 7.5% were premature, 51.6% were cesarean deliveries and 14.2% were to mothers between 10 and 19 years of age (0.6% between 10 and 14 years old). The crude birth rate was 17.3 per 100,000 inhabitants. That same year, the infant mortality rate was 11.9 per thousand live births and the mortality rate was 4 per thousand inhabitants.

Regarding common diseases, the Federal District had 3,147 cases of dengue from January to August 2008, almost double the number in the same period in 2007. Brasilia has one of the highest cancer rates in Brazil. In 2005, the Federal District had the national record for deaths of women from breast cancer, and new cases did not decrease the following year. There are also numerous cases of lung cancer, due to high rates of smoking.

Twinned cities

These are the following world sister cities.

Cities with a Brotherhood Agreement with Brasilia
Abuya, Nigeria	Rome, Italy	Guayana City, Venezuela
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Washington, D.C., United States	Tehran, Iran
Buenos Aires, Argentina	Boston, United States	Guadalajara, Mexico
Doha, Qatar	Ottawa, Canada	Cali, Colombia
	Asunción, Paraguay

It is also part of the Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities (UCCI), twinning with the following cities:

Union of Ibero-American Capital Cities with Brasilia
Andorra la Vieja, Andorra	La Paz, Bolivia	Montevideo, Uruguay
Asunción, Paraguay	Lima, Peru	Panama City, Panama
Bogotá, Colombia	Lisbon, Portugal	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Caracas, Venezuela	Madrid, Spain	Guadalajara, Mexico
Guatemala City, Guatemala	Managua, Nicaragua	Havana, Cuba
	Mexico City, Mexico

Predecessor: Mexico City

Ibero-American Capital of Culture 2022

Successor: San José

Notable people

Gallery

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  North mall.

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  Brazilian National Congress.

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  Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge.

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  Don Bosco.

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  Metrô-leve (VLT) of Brasília.

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  National Library.

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  Sculpture Os Guerreiros at the Palacio do Planalto.

Predecessor: Cuzco	American Capital of Culture 2008	Successor: Assumption
Predecessor: Paris	Headquarters of the Sessions of the World Heritage Committee 1988	Successor: Paris
Predecessor: Sevilla	Headquarters of the Sessions of the World Heritage Committee 2010	Successor: Paris