The German city! At least, that was the description I got. Well…
According to my fellow traveller, Curitiba is an organised city with excellent public transport and urban planning; i.e. very much unlike other Brasilian cities. It still has one main characteristic in common with the ones we saw on the way: the unabiding love for concrete.
But, Curitiba has a historical centre, big parks and many trees along the roads, all things you come to appreciate more after spending a few days in Sao Paolo. The link to the Germans comes from 19th century immigrants – not only from Germany but also Poland and the Ukraine – who until today are found in the names of the shops, businesses and in the way “things get organised”. That doesn’t mean necessarily good, but at least someone has spend some time thinking about it.
A mix of work related activities and weather that was not really up to the summer heat I had been threatened with promised, meant that we could not visit the city and its surroundings as much as we would have liked. Another place to come back to?
