Imaging Brazil 311: City Bus on Flooded Avenue in Belo Horizonte, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

311: City bus 0n flooded avenue

Belo Horizonte has a tropical climate with cool, dry winters and warm, wet summers. Given the location of the city at an altitude of almost a thousand meters, the summers are not particularly hot and the winters are pretty cool for tropical concepts. From May to September you can leave the umbrella home, but especially the period between October and March, the umbrella is indispensable. On exceptional days, the rainfall can be so fierce that even umbrella offers little protection. It is not surprising that the water drainage system can not handle the huge amount of water in case of heavy rainfall. The streets then flow fast and transform into fast-flowing rivers. Everything on the road can be diverted with the strong flow, including cars and heavy containers. Fortunately, the water level drops quickly and the traffic flow can slowly start, though it is with great difficulty.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2011, 2017

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Imaging Brazil 310: Brown, Blue, and White in Diamantina, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

310: Brown, Blue, and White

Diamantina is one of the seven major historic towns near Belo Horizonte. The other six are Ouro Preto, Mariana, Sabará, Congonhas, São João del Rei, and Tiradentes. Most of these towns have several buildings that are built in the Baroque-Rococo style, and dozens of them contain works of the famous Brazilian sculptor Aleijadinho. The historic center of Diamantina hosts dozens of houses built in the colonial style. There are generally plastered in white, whereas the door and window frames are painted in blue. Less common is the brown color for the doors. The door on this picture is a good example of a relief door, painted in brown, blue, and white.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2010, 2017

Imaging Brazil 309: Dark Clouds over Faculty Building in Belo Horizonte, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

309: Dark clouds over Economics Faculty

From 2005 to 2014, I was regularly found in the campus of the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Belo Horizonte. I had my space at the Faculty of Biological Sciences, and I was a frequent visitor of the Faculty of Information Sciences. Since I was invited to join a student travel to Salvador in 2006, I have made many friends there, and have joined various gatherings and parties. I have played numerous matches of Braziliaan pool billiard (sinuca) in the early evening hours. The UFMG campus is really large, it more resembles a little town. Large faculty complexes are spread across the campus, only few faculties – among them the Faculty of Medicine –  remain outside this Pampulha Campus. One of the newer faculties is the Economics Faculty as seen on the photo. At that hour, really dark clouds hovered above bright colored complex.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2010, 2017

Imaging Brazil 307: Terrace in Historic Diamantina, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

307: Terrace

The historic center of Diamantina has been well preserved. Since 1999, the cozy center is added to the UNESCO World Heritage List. Every year, around one hundred and fifty thousand tourists come to Diamantina; not only for the historical architecture, but also for the music. The Seresta is a Brazilian music style, based on the ancient serenade. There are regular seresta nights with a selection of musicians and their orchestras. The city center is then completely occupied by music lovers. On quiet weekdays, you can walk through the center, and watch a bar owner preparing the terrace tables and chairs for his customers.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2011, 2017

Imaging Brazil 306: Pine Tree Branch in Belo Horizonte, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

306: Pine tree branch

Undoubtedly, you’ll find pine trees in the cold climates of North America, Northern Europe and North Asia. In temperate climates – including the Netherlands – you meet mixed forests of broadleaf trees and conifers. It is difficult to imagine that pine trees can also be found in tropical regions. Particularly in southern Brazil, where the winters are somewhat cold, you regularly find pine trees. The Brazilian pine, the araucaria, is the national tree of the state of Paraná. However, this tree species belongs to the conifer family. In the cold mountainous areas of Minas Gerais, many coniferous trees are found, especially at high altitudes. The pine tree in the picture is located near the Mangabeiras City Park.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2011, 2017

Imaging Brazil 305: Bus Mirror in Minas Gerais, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

305: Bus mirror

Between 2006 and 2011, I made a number of long bus trips with various groups of university students. These students attended annual meetings, spread across the immense country. Especially the coastal cities in the northeast were very popular for these meetings. The students attended workshops, presentations and discussions, and in the evening they participated in various parties and music programs. I didn’t have to attend these meetings, but I gratefully took advantage of their invitation to get to know the country better. My final bus trip with these students was in November 2011: a meeting in Campo Grande, capital of Mato Grosso do Sul, near the border with Bolivia. A journey that lasted over seventeen hours. The picture shows a side mirror of our bus.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2011, 2017

Imaging Brazil 304: Hotel in Diamantina, MG (2011)

A personal selection of photographs with their stories.

304: Hotel Tijuco

Diamantina is a mining town at about three hundred kilometers northeast of Belo Horizonte. The city, located in the scenic Jequitinhonha Valley, has a long history of diamond mining. The earth’s riches were transported via ‘Estrada Real’ (Royal Road) to the ports of Paraty or Rio de Janeiro, from where it was shipped to Europe. Nowadays, the town attracts many tourists thanks to its well-preserved historic center, and thanks to cultural events. The Tijuco Hotel was designed by the well-known architect Oscar Niemeyer in the middle of the last century. The hotel is now a National Historical Monument in the city, which has been included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List since 1999.

© Adriano Antoine Robbesom 2011, 2017