Some basic tourist info about Cuiabá

Gwynn Lyons

As I was reflecting about our upcoming trip to the Pantanal, I realized that I didn't know much about Cuiabá, so I decided to do some tourism-related research on this city that I hope will be useful for when we actually go there.

According to Wikitravel, there's not much to see in Cuiabá (of course, this doesn't take into account the fact that the World Cup will be hosted there!) Still, there are some interesting attractions, including the following:
* Basilica do Senhor Bom Jesus de Cuiabá, a cathedral bedecked with stained glass.

* Palácio de Instruçao- Cuiabá's history and natural history museums, featuring Indian headdresses and arrows as well as exhibits about the Brazil-Paraguay war.
* Municipal Aquarium- Aquarium boasting a collection of local fish.
* Praça de República- Cuiabá's main plaza.

The history of Cuiabá is also worth knowing about. Cuiabá was founded in 1727 by the head of the captaincy of Sao Paulo, Rodrigo César de Menezes. Unfortunately, an earthquake in 1746 destroyed almost the entire city. From then until the Paraguayan War in the 1860's, Cuiabá remained small and relatively obscure. The war prompted Cuiabá's industrial development; Cuiabá shipped goods to Brazil's troops. However, after this time, it again declined into obscurity, and in fact became a place of exile for dishonored politicians. By the 1930s, with the advent of aviation and the construction of infrastructure, Cuiabá began to grow. Then in the 60's and 70's the commercialization of agriculture further boosted Cuiabá's size and importance- the population grew from 50,000 to 250,000 in this time period.

Currently, tourism is a large part of Cuiabá's economy. Perhaps this is due to the increasing interest in ecotourism and conservation- this certainly motivates our going there. In any case, Cuiabá is a necessary stop along the way to the Pantanal, and, I hope, an interesting one.