The immensity of Brazil makes it not just a country, but a delicate mosaic of cultures created by many ethnicities. It is very close to the size of a universe.
 
The result of all this diversity is vibrant. Brazilians are very proud of their music, their popular and religious festivals, their architecture, their cuisine, and proud of all the good and beautiful things this tropical country has to offer.
 
The numerous colonial houses and historical buildings found all over the country are a powerful reminder of Brazil's intense cultural wealth. Many of these have been witnesses to very important events of the country's past. Cities as Salvador, Ouro Preto, Diamantina, São Miguel das Missoes, São Luis and Olinda, are all true Cultural Heritages of Humanity.
 
Traditional Indian handicraft items-such as baskets, pottery, and jewelry were the earliest expressions of art in Brazil.
 
The sculpture of Antonio Lisboa ranks among the earliest and best-known examples of Brazil's colonial art. During the late 1700’s and early 1800's, he created many beautiful religious figures for churches in the state of Minas Gerais.
 
Brazil has many famous artists, as writers Jorge Amado and Joao Guimaraes Rosa in Literature; in architecture, from Aleijadinho (Antonio Francisco Lisboa), during the colony to the architect Oscar Niemeyer who designed strikingly modern public buildings for Brasilia; the painter Candido Portinari created bold murals that now hang in the United Nations General Assembly Building in New York City and in the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.; the composer Heitor Villa-Lobos beautifully combined classical and Brazilian music in his Bachianas Brasileiras symphony.
 
Popular music from Brazil won international attention during the 1900's.
 
Brazil is synonymous of rhythm. Wherever you go, there are people listening to music, singing or dancing. Maybe it originates in the deep African roots, where the music is a collective act, a celebration and a party. The most famous of all is the Carnival of Rio. It’s the samba music that drives thousands of dancers, filled with pride and joy, to jump and sing on the grandstands, parading on the Marques de Sapucai Avenue.
 
Samba, bossanova, tropicalismo, forró, candomblé, lambada. Music is an integral part of every day’s life here. You'll see it on the streets, in bars and in all of the many religious festivities, music is always there.