It was night when we arrived, and we could see the TV tower from our hotel.

We landed in Brasilia on the evening of July 16 and spent two nights.  On the first morning, we set out on a walking tour that took us down the main avenue to the important public buildings.  We saw the National History Museum, the Cathedral, the Itamaray Palace, the Congress, and the Hall of Justice.  Constructed from the ground up in 1959, Brasilia is located in a plain and is not as green as Rio de Janeiro.

The modern statue of Themis stands before the Palace of Justice.

The national buildings in Brasilia were designed primarily by Oscar Niemeyer, a Brazilian architect who is still living (although over 100 years of age).  Niemeyer’s legacy can be seen throughout Brazil, but most impressively in Brasilia.  His modern style, characterized by the curved use of concrete, gives the architecture great consistency.  Paul knew about a great restaurant, which was actually a culinary academy near the Congresso, where we had a delicious lunch.

The Cathedral with its aluminum angels is bathed in a blue light from the stained glass.

One of the most striking Niemeyer buildings is the Metropolitan Cathedral.  The guidebook said that, in the late 1990s, the Cathedral and fallen into disrepair, but when we visited, all of the broken glass had been repaired.  We watched the sun go down from the TV tower.  On our last day in Brasilia, July 18, Paul and I visited the Sanctuario Dom Bosco.  Then we took an early afternoon flight to Belo Horizonte on our way to Ouro Preto.