CURITIBA


'Curitiba' (pron. ) is the capital city of the Brazilian state of Paraná. In 2005 its population was approximately 1,788,559 people. Its metropolitan area comprises 26 municipalities[2] with a total population of over 3.5 million (2006 IBGE estimate). Curitiba is the largest and one of the most important cities of Southern Brazil, being a cultural, political and economic center. Curitiba's main airport Afonso Pena International Airport is one of the most modern Brazilian terminals and the most important airport in Southern Brazil 2007 and will be the region's transportation hub according to Minister Nelson Jobim.
The city is on a plateau 932 m (3107 ft) above sea level. It is 105 km (65 miles) west of the sea port of Paranaguá, at ,
.
People from Curitiba are known as ''Curitibanos''.
One theory about the name "Curitiba" comes from the Tupi words ''kurí tyba'', "much pine," due to the large number of Brazilian Pines (''Araucaria angustifolia''), in the region prior to its foundation. The Portuguese who founded a village in 1693 gave it the name of "Vila da Nossa Senhora da Luz dos Pinhais" (Our Lady of the Light in the Pine Forest). The name was changed to "Curitiba" in 1721.
Curitiba officially became a town in 1842. Growth was based on the cattle trade, being half way between cattle breeding country to the South and markets to the North.
Waves of European immigrants started arriving after 1850, mainly Germans, Italians, Poles and Ukrainians. The Universidade Federal do Paraná (Federal University of Paraná), the first in Brazil, was established in Curitiba in 1913, the same year in which electric streetcars were first deployed.

Contents
Urban Planning
Climate
Demographics
Ethnic groups
Football Clubs
Stadiums
Transportation
Arts and entertainment
Sister cities
Famous places
Curitiba's famous people
Arts
Science
Politics
Sports
External links
Official website
On Urban planning
Other
References

Urban Planning


Curitiba has a master planned transportation system, which includes lanes on major streets devoted to a bus rapid transit system. The buses are long, split into three sections (bi-articulated), and stop at designated elevated tubes, complete with disabled access, there is only one price no matter how far you travel and you pay at the bus stop.
Praça Generoso Marques.

The system, used by 85% of Curitiba's population, is the source of inspiration for the TransMilenio in Bogotá, Colombia, as well as the Orange Line of Los Angeles, California, and for a future transportation system in Panama City, Panama. The city has also paid careful attention to preserving and caring for its green areas, boasting 54 m² of green space per inhabitant.
In the 1940s and 1950s, Alfred Agache, cofounder of the French Society for Urban Studies, was hired to produce the first city plan. It emphasised a star of boulevards, with public amenities downtown, an industrial district and sanitation. It was followed when possible, but was too expensive to complete.
By the 1960s, Curitiba's population had ballooned to 430,000, and some residents feared that the growth in population threatened to drastically change the character of the city. In 1964, Mayor Ivo Arzua solicited proposals for urban design. Architect Jaime Lerner, who later became mayor, led a team from the Universidade Federal do Paraná that suggested strict controls on urban sprawl, a reduction of traffic in the downtown area, preservation of Curitiba's Historic Sector, and a convenient and affordable public transit system.
November 15 Street, one of the major streets of Curitiba, transformed in a pedestrian-exclusive street in 1972.

This plan, known as the Curitiba Master Plan, was adopted in 1968. Lerner closed XV de Novembro St. to vehicles, because it had very high pedestrian traffic. The plan had a new road design to minimise traffic: the Trinary Road System. This uses two one-way streets moving in opposite directions which surround a smaller, two-lane street where the express buses have their exclusive lane. Five of these roads form a star that converges to the city centre. Land farther from these roads is zoned for lower density developments, to reduce traffic away from the main roads. A number of areas subject to floods were condemned and became parks.
Today, Curitiba is considered one of the best examples of urban planning world-wide[3]. In June 1996, the chairman of the Habitat II summit of mayors and urban planners in Istanbul praised Curitiba as "the most innovative city in the world."
In the 1980s, the RIT (Rede Integrada de Transporte, ''Integrated Transport Network'') was created, allowing transit between any points in the city by paying just one fare. At the same time, the city began a project called the "Faróis de Saber" (''Lighthouses of Knowledge''). These Lighthouses are free educational centers which include libraries, Internet access, and other cultural resources. Job training, social welfare and educational programs are coordinated, and often supply labor to improve the city's amenities or services, as well as education and income.

Climate



Curitiba Weather Statistics[4]
Month Temperature (°C)
Avg HighAvgAvg Low
'Jan 25.9 20.2 16.3
'Feb 26.2 20.5 16.7
'Mar 25.0 19.4 15.7
'Apr 22.6 17.2 13.3
'May 20.5 14.8 10.6
'Jun 19.3 13.3 8.7
'Jul 19.1 13.1 8.4
'Aug 20.2 13.8 8.9
'Sep 20.3 14.6 9.9
'Oct 22.0 16.3 12.3
'Nov 23.3 17.9 13.8
'Dec 26.4 19.9 15.8
'Yr 22.6 16.5 12.5


Located in Southern Brazil, Curitiba is a somewhat humid city in Subtropical zone. It is located in a plateau (around 900 m) and the flat terrain with flooded areas contribute to its mild and damp winter, with average temperatures of 13°C (57°F) in the coldest month, falling slightly below 0°C (32°F), on the coldest days. During summer, the average temperature is around 21°C (70°F), but gets above 32°C (90°F) on hot days.
In fact, of Brazil's twenty-six state capitals, Curitiba is the coldest due to altitude, despite being 600 km north of Porto Alegre, the southernmost state capital in Brazil, but located at sea level.
Curitiba's inhabitants claim that its weather is unpredictable. Heat waves during winter and cold waves during summer are not uncommon, and even within a single day there can be great variation, a typical feature of subtropical climate. A local saying says that "Curitiba is a city in which the four seasons are clearly defined, and it has all four every day." Several factors contribute to the climate's variable nature:

★ The flat terrain surrounded by mountains in a rough circle with radius 40 km help block the winds, allowing the morning mist to cover the city on cold mornings.

★ The flatness of the terrain hinders quick water drainage after rains, providing then a good source of water vapor for the atmosphere.

★ Cold fronts come often from Antarctica and Argentina all year long, bringing tropical storms in summer and lots of cold winds in winter. They can be very quick, with no more than one day between the start of the southern winds and the start of rain.

★ Curitiba's weather is also influenced by the dry air masses that dominate Brazil's midwest most of the year, bringing dry and hot weather, sometimes even in winter.

Demographics


Ethnic groups

Polish house in Curitiba.

As most of Southern Brazil's population, Curitiba is mostly inhabited by Brazilians of European descent. The first Europeans to arrive in the region were of Portuguese origin, during the 17th century. They intermarried with the native people and with the African slaves.[5]
In the 19th century, the influx of immigrants from Europe increased. In 1828, the first German immigrants settled in Paraná. However, large numbers of immigrants from Germany only arrived in Curitiba during the 1870's, most of them coming from Santa Catarina or Volga Germans from Russia.[6]
Immigrants from Poland first arrived in 1871, settling in rural areas close to Curitiba. They largely influenced the agriculture of the region. Curitiba has the second largest Polish diaspora in the world, second only to Chicago.[5]
Italian immigrants started arriving in Brazil in 1875 and in Curitiba in 1878. They came mostly from the Veneto and Trento regions, in Northern Italy and settled mostly in the ''Santa Felicidade'' neighborhood, still today the center of the large Italian community of Curitiba.[8]
Brazilians of Ukrainian descent celebrating Easter in Curitiba.

Large numbers of Ukrainian immigrants settled in Curitiba, mostly between 1895 and 1897, when 20 thousands arrived. They were peasants from Galicia, who immigrated to Brazil to become small farmers. Nowadays there are 300 thousand Ukrainian-Brazilians living in Paraná.[9][10]
Japanese immigrants starting arriving in the region in 1915. Most Japanese settled in the state of São Paulo, but many settled in Northern Paraná, cities such as Maringá and Londrina. Curiba also received significant numbers of immigrants from Japan. Nowadays, there are about 40 thousand Japanese-Brazilians living in the city.[11]
Other immigrants, such as Arabs from Lebanon and Syria, Russians and other Eastern Europeans also settled in Curitiba.

Football Clubs


The three main football clubs in the city are: Coritiba Foot Ball Club,Clube Atlético Paranaense, and Paraná Clube
Stadiums


★ Clube Atlético Paranaense: 'Kyocera Arena'

★ Coritiba Foot Ball Club: 'Couto Pereira'

★ Paraná Clube: 'Vila Capanema'

Transportation


Main articles: Rede Integrada de Transporte

Bus route plan for RIT (Rede Integrada de Transporte).

A bus stop in the city.

Curitiba has a very simple and practical transportation system. Public transportation consists entirely of buses. There are several different types of bus, each with a different function.
Moving around in a car can be difficult in and around the city centre because of the many one-way streets and frequent traffic jams. This makes the public transportation system more attractive if one wants to go there. The trinary system allows quick access to the city centre for car drivers. Some avenues are spacious and laid out in a grid, and apart from some points around the city centre, Munhoz da Rocha Street and Batel Avenue, traffic jams aren't thus severe.
Recently, the city installed around 200 traffic radars, causing much discontent among drivers in general. This technology uses sensors under the pavement which trigger a digital camera if the car is above speed limit. The picture, including the date and time it was taken, is sent to the driver's home, as a speeding ticket. The system can send these tickets to drivers anywhere in Brazil.
The speed limit is usually 60 km/h on avenues, but can be 40 km/h in dangerous places or where many pedestrians cross the street.
Afonso Pena International Airport is Curitiba's main airport. It is located in the nearby city of São José dos Pinhais and all commercial flights operate from this airport. It is integrated into Curitiba's transportation system, with rapid buses and executive buses connecting the airport to the city.
Small aircraft may also use the Bacacheri airport, which today hosts a flight school and a national airbase.

Arts and entertainment


Curitiba is going to be the first city in Brazil to have an IMAX cinema. It will be in the Palladium Shopping Center which will be the biggest mall in southern Brazil.

Sister cities


The Sister Cities of Curitiba are:

★ - Krakow (Poland)

★ - Treviso (Veneto, Italy)

★ - Coimbra (Portugal)

★ - Guadalajara (Jalisco, Mexico)

★ - Hangzhou (Zhejiang, China)

★ - Santa Cruz de la Sierra (Bolivia)

★ - Asunción (Paraguay)

★ - Montevideo (Uruguay)

★ - Suwon (Gyeonggi-do, South Korea)

★ - Himeji (Hyōgo, Japan)

★ - Lyon (Rhône-Alpes, France)

★ - Orlando (Florida, USA)

Famous places


Museu Oscar Niemeyer (''Oscar Niemeyer Museum'')

Universidade Federal do Paraná (''Federal University of Paraná'')

Botanical Garden of Curitiba

Curitiba is mostly known for some of its famous places:

★ Autódromo Internacional de Curitiba

★ Biblioteca Pública do Paraná

★ Bosque Alemão

★ Bosque Gutierrez

★ Bosque do Papa

★ Bosque de Portugal

★ Catedral Basílica Menor de Nossa Senhora da Luz

★ Feirinha do largo da ordem

★ Fonte de Jerusalém

★ Jardim Botânico de Curitiba

★ Memorial Ucraniano

★ Museu Alfredo Andersen

★ Museu Oscar Niemeyer

★ Museu Paranaense

★ Museu do Expedicionário

★ Ópera de Arame

★ Palácio Avenida

★ Parque Barigüi

★ Parque do Bacacheri

★ Parque Náutico do Iguaçu

★ Parque São Lourenço

★ Parque Tanguá

★ Parque Tingüi

★ Passeio Público

★ Praça do Japão

★ Rua XV de Novembro

★ Rua 24 Horas

★ Santa Felicidade

★ Teatro Guaíra

★ Teatro Paiol

★ Torre da Telepar

★ Universidade Federal do Paraná

★ Universidade Livre do Meio Ambiente

★ Zoológico de Curitiba


Curitiba's famous people


Arts


★ Isabeli Fontana - Super Model

★ Poty Lazzarotto - Artist Plastic

★ Paulo Leminski - Poet and Writer

★ Dalton Trevisan - Writer

★ Letícia Sabatella - Actress

★ Larry Grehan - Irish writer

★ Hermeto Pascoal - Multi-Instrumentalist/Composer
Science


★ César Lattes - Physicist

★ Newton da Costa - Mathematician
Politics


★ Jaime Lerner (Former mayor of Curitiba and governor of Paraná; Renowned urban planner, president of the International Union of Architects for three years)
Sports

; Mixed martial arts

★ Anderson Silva

★ Wanderlei Silva

★ Mauricio "Shogun" Rua
; Auto racing

★ Raul Boesel - 1987 World Sportscar Championship champion

★ Mauricio Gugelmin - Formula One, Indianapolis 500 and Champ Car driver

★ Ricardo Zonta - Formula One driver. 1998 FIA GT Championship champion

★ Enrique Bernoldi - Formula One driver
; Alpinism

★ Waldemar Niclevicz (Leading mountaineer in Brazil)
; Beach Volleyball

★ Emanuel Rego (Gold medalist in 2004 Olympics)
; Volleyball

★ Giba (Gold medalist in 2004 Olympics)

External links


Official website


★ Curitiba official website
On Urban planning


★ IPPUC - Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba
Other


★ Curitiba Cultural Website

★ Curitiba Street Guide - Guia de Ruas

★

References


1. Região Metropolitana
2. [1]
3. Irazabal, Clara Elena. "Curitiba and Portland: Architecture, City Making, and Urban Governance in the Era of Globalization," page112. UMI Microform: 2002.
4. ''Instituto Agronômico do Paraná - IAPAR. [2]''
5. http://www.curitiba.pr.gov.br/pmc/curitiba/index.asp?noframe=sim&conteudo=imigra/index.html
6. http://www.expoente.com.br/professores/kalinke/trabalhos/Hp-Alemaes/historia/Hist%C3%B3ria%20da%20imigra%C3%A7%C3%A3o%20Alem%C3%A3.html
7. http://www.curitiba.pr.gov.br/pmc/curitiba/index.asp?noframe=sim&conteudo=imigra/index.html
8. http://www.curitiba-parana.net/italianos.htm
9. http://www.curitiba-parana.net/parques/memorial-ucraniano.htm
10. http://www3.pr.gov.br/e-parana/pg_etnias.php
11. http://www.curitiba-parana.net/japao.htm


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