5 Things to Do in Sao Paulo Brazil
Sao Paulo is the largest city in Brazil and South America. 11 million people of diverse cultures live in this sprawling city making Sao Paulo one of the most fascinating and international cities in the Southern Hemisphere.
Sitting at a latitude of
23° 32' 0" S / 46° 37' 0" W, Sao Paulo is similar to Brisbane Australia which is at
27° 30' 0" S / 153° 1' 0" E. Sao Paulo experiences warm weather year round comparable to Brisbane. This mega city has established itself as a destination for leisure, culture, entertainment, food and business conventions.
Whether you are in Sao Paulo for business or leisure here is Travelmath’s 5 things to do in Sao Paulo Brazil:
One: Football Museum
Brazilians are enthusiastic about football or soccer as Americans call the sport. Not only are they enthusiastic, they are great at the game. At the football museum you will be greeted by a ‘big screen’ Pele, one of the best players in the world who will greet you in three languages. The museum has two floors, 15 rooms of collector’s items, visual displays, a series of LCD screens with highlights of previous World Cup games, commentaries by players and reporters, memorabilia and more.
The museum is located in Pacaembu Stadium and a metal platform was constructed at the pillars below a row of seats where big screens will show continuously the screams and yells of fans from past games. Standing on the platform will give you a feel of a game in the stadium.
Two: Ipirapuera Park
The locals gather here day and night for walking, jogging, skateboarding, rollerblading, cycling and relaxing. Often referred to as the beach of Sao Paulo, the Ipirapeura Park has a lake, two museums and a Planetarium.
The Ipirapuera Park with over 2 million square meters of land and lake is the biggest park in South America.
Three: Food Tour
According to The Center of Tourism of the City of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo has 12,500 restaurants, 15, 500 bars and over 1,500 pizzerias. If you are looking for a food adventure in Sao Paulo don’t forget to visit the street markets scattered throughout the city.
The locals say,
“Italians invented pizza but the people of Sao Paulo perfected it and diversified the flavors!” So you must try the pizza in the Italian neighborhood of Sao Paulo.
Another popular place for food is Liberdade, also known as Japanese Town. Liberdade has a variety of noodle houses, Japanese and Chinese restaurants.
Sao Paulo is also known for its bakeries, mortadella sandwiches, deep fried pastry filled with codfish called pastel. The best place to try the mortadella sandwiches and pastel is at the
Mercado Municipal.
Four: Metropolitan Cathedral of Sao Paulo
Also known as Sé Cathedral, Sao Paulo's largest cathedral can fit 8,000 people at one time. Highlights of the cathedral include beautiful stained-glass windows, beautiful arches, ornate ceilings and carved coffee beans representing their tropical heritage.
This neo-Gothic style cathedral was first constructed in the late 1500s and work began again in 1913 and it took over 40 years to complete. It represents the importance of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sao Paulo and can be considered one of the most beautiful cathedrals in South America.
Metropolitan Cathedral of Sao Paulo is on par with many of the beautiful churches of Europe. The influence of Vatican City is strong in this city even though they are
5,874 miles apart. In front of the cathedral is the Marco Zero or Zero Milestone of Sao Paulo, which is referred to as the center of the city. Most locals will warn you to be careful when you are at the square in front of the cathedral.
Five: MASP Museum
Works from Raphael, Monet, Cezanne, Renoir, Botticelli, Titian and Van Gogh are being displayed in the MASP Museum of Sao Paulo. Considered one of the best art museum in South America, MASP has artwork that dates back to 1425.
It has the largest collections of Latin America art and has the most unique building you will find in Sao Paulo. The rectangular box Modernist building is balanced on concrete stilts. If you are there on a Tuesday you will get free entrance and on Sundays there is an antique fair in the area.
Traveling to Sao Paulo is easy if you are traveling from United States or Europe. There are over
35 airlines that fly into Sao Paulo’s
three airports.
For more information about other destinations in Brazil please read:
5 Things to Do in Rio de Janeiro
Florianopolis: A Family Vacation Destination in Brazil
