São Paulo, Brazil

Paulista Avenue (Avenida Paulista in Portuguese, Paulista being the gentilic for those born in São Paulo state) is one of the most important avenues in São Paulo, Brazil. The 2.8 kilometre thoroughfare is notable for headquartering a large number of financial and cultural institutions, as well as being home to an extensive shopping area and to Latin America's most comprehensive fine-art museum, MASP. Since the 1960s, the avenue has been identified as one of the main business centers in the city. Being one of the highest points in São Paulo, it is distinctively clustered with radio and TV stations antennae, such as Gazeta's. The road is served by a subway line and many major bus routes. The avenue, which was inaugurated in December 1891, is generally regarded as the most expensive real estate anywhere in Latin America.

Thank you Sarah for this card.

Ipiranga Museum

Constança sent me this pretty card. The Museu Paulista of the University of São Paulo (commonly known in São Paulo and all Brazil as Museu do Ipiranga) is a Brazilian history museum located near where Emperor D. Pedro I proclaimed the Brazilian independence on the banks of Ipiranga brook in the Southeast region of the city of São Paulo, then the "Caminho do Mar," or road to the seashore. It contains a huge collection of furniture, documents and historically relevant artwork, especially relating to the Brazilian Empire era.
The most famous work of art in the collection is the 1888 painting Independência ou Morte (Independence or Death) by Pedro Américo.
A few months after the Brazilian Declaration of Independence, people started to suggest a monument on the site where the declaration took place, although they were not sure about what sort of memorial construction to build. In 1884, Italian architect Tommaso Gaudenzio Bezzi, who was hired to develop the project, chose to build an eclectic-styled construction similar to the French Palace of Versailles with impressive and perfectly manicured gardens and fountain.

Ibirapuera Park

Karina sent me this lovely card featuring The Ibirapuera Park, a major urban park in São Paulo, Brazil. It has a large area for leisure, jogging and walking, as well as a convention centre. Its importance to São Paulo is comparable to that of the Central Park to New York City. The Ibirapuera is one of Latin America largest city parks, together with Chapultepec Park, in Mexico City and Simón Bolívar Park in Bogota. Inaugurated in 1954 for the 400th anniversary of the city, with buildings designed by famous architect Oscar Niemeyer and landscape by designer Roberto Burle Marx, Ibirapuera Park covers an area of almost 2 square kilometres (0.77 sq mi). It is the second biggest park in the city.

The park complex has many interesting features for residents and visitors. They include: The Grande Marquise ("The great marquee"), location of the MAM - Museu de Arte Moderna] ("Modern Art Museum"); The Cicillo Matarazzo Pavilion, home for the Museum of Contemporary Art, University of São Paulo, and a space for events and expos, including the São Paulo Art Biennial and the São Paulo Fashion Week; The Manoel da Nóbrega Pavilion, which until 1992 was the city hall; The Lucas Nogueira Garcez Pavilion, formerly known as "Palácio das Exposições"("Expositions Palace") and now known as the Oca ("hut", given its round shape), which harbors both the Museu da Aeronáutica ("Air Force Museum") and the Museu do Folclore ("Folklore Museum"); The Armando de Arruda Pereira Pavilion, home for the Prodam - Companhia de Processamento de Dados do Município ("Municipal Data Processing Company"); The Palácio da Agricultura ("Agriculture Palace"), home of Detran, municipal transit department. The building was originally intended to harbor the municipal agriculture department; The Planetarium and Municipal Astrophysics School. The Planetarium building which is shaped like a flying saucer. It was the first Planetarium in the Southern Hemisphere and has a dome, which is 20 meters in diameter. The German projection machine shows the sky above São Paulo from dusk to dawn. During the projection a professional astronomer explains the most famous stars and constellations as well as the movements of the Earth and other planets; The Gymnasium; The Japanese Pavilion; The Monumento às Bandeiras; The Ibirapuera Auditorium, controversial building that was on the original Niemeyer plan, but was only built recently; The Obelisk of São Paulo, symbol of the Constitutionalist Revolution of 1932 and the statue of Pedro Alvares Cabral that proclaims "Brazilians owe everything to Portugal."

Brazil - Estádio Moisés Lucarelli,

The Estádio Moisés Lucarelli, also known as Estádio Majestoso, or just Majestoso, is a football stadium inaugurated on September 12, 1948 in Campinas, São Paulo, with a maximum capacity of 19,722 people. The stadium is owned by Associação Atlética Ponte Preta. The stadium has a pitch size of 107m x 70m and its area stands at 36,000 m². Its formal name honors Moisés Lucarelli, the co-ordinator of the stadium construction works commission. Its nickname, Estádio Majestoso, means Majestic Stadium, because it was the third largest stadium in Brazil at the time of its inauguration. The stadium was inaugurated on September 12, 1948. The stadium was built with the help of hundreds of Ponte Preta supporters. The inaugural match was played on September 12, 1948, when XV de Piracicaba beat Ponte Preta 3-0. The first goal of the stadium was scored by XV de Piracicaba's Sato. The stadium's attendance official record currently stands at 34,985, set on February 1, 1978 when São Paulo beat Ponte Preta 3-1. The stadium's attendance record currently stands at 33,500, set on August 17, 1970 when Santos beat Ponte Preta 1-0. The stadium biggest score was set on April 16, 1994, when Ponte Preta beat Ferroviária 8-1. This very interesting card was sent to me by Guilherme Salustiano.