Paraty - Brazil

The most charming and beautiful place in the state of Rio de Janeiro with 4 1/2 hours comfortable bus ride from Rio, you will end up back in time when Portuguese colonized Brazil and established settlement here. Old colonial architecture of 17, 18, 19 centuries are perfectly preserved. Parati is located on the Green Coast, a lush, green corridor that runs along the coastline of the state of Rio de Janeiro. Parati was originally a village and founded in 1597. It was established formally as a town by Portuguese colonizers 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” (river of fish). When the region was colonized by the Portuguese, they adopted the Guaianás name for their new town. 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 (bloody Portuguese who drained all resources for their own pleasure like any other Empire back then).

Paraty is known for the cobblestone-paved streets throughout the Historic Center District. No cars or trucks are allowed in this part of town, only foot traffic or bicycles. Most of the architecture has not been changed since it was first built about 250 or so years ago.

This is by far my most favorable place in Brazil. The fact that I love history a lot and beautiful nature, Parati combines everything together in one charm besides humidity that I hate. Since it is carnival here in Brazil, and today is February 13, 2018 and most people were recovering from partying too much the night before during carnival, I was able to walk alone without crowd and enjoy the glory of this town and capture as much as images I could. Parati is like combination of Antigua and Atitlan in Guatemala, and Zaruma in Ecuador with some touch of Sao Tome and Principe in the middle.