Church, Centro Cultural and Coconut in Congonhas

In the winter of 2022, I went on a two-week trip to Brazil and on day three, I left my hotel at Savassi in Belo Horizonte to head south of BH to Tiradentes. Accompanied by my friend V, we were ready for a long and bumpy ride with our 10-day rental car. Before we headed to Tiradentes, we made a stop at Congonhas, a town that holds significant cultural and historical importance in the region and the country.

Congonhas is a historic city famous for its Baroque-style churches, which are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including the Santuário do Bom Jesus de Matosinhos, where we would be parking our car. One of the most remarkable features of Congonhas is its stunning collection of life-sized soapstone statues created by the famous Brazilian sculptor Aleijadinho (a recurring figure throughout this trip especially since it’s one filled with many - too many - church visits). These statues, depicting the twelve apostles, are displayed along a monumental staircase leading up to the Santuário do Bom Jesus de Matosinhos.

The city also hosts the Festival de Inverno de Congonhas (Congonhas Winter Festival), which takes place every year in July and attracts visitors from all over Brazil. The festival features a wide range of cultural events, including music, dance, theater, and visual arts. I clearly was a month late for this. I should’ve planned my trips ahead - which I did but I clearly didn’t do a good job. No matter, there was still so much to see and experience.

Unfortunately, I made my first mistake by inputting the wrong address into our GPS, which cost us 30 minutes in the opposite direction. Thankfully, V was able to rectify the situation, and we were back on track for roughly an hour. When we arrived in Congonhas, it was almost lunchtime. We parked our car behind Santuário do Bom Jesus de Matosinhos, one of our main destinations in the area.

Despite being a small city, Congonhas is also known for its cultural scene and friendly locals. Walking through its streets, one can find several art galleries, cultural centers, and cafes where one can enjoy the local cuisine and get to know the city's community. We didn’t have all day to spend there so we decided to skip the museums. Down the road, we went by foot around and to Centro Cultural da Romaria, but we didn't really find anything remarkable about this place during our visit, because again, I didn’t do any sufficient research prior to our trip. According to some travel guides and a quick Google Search, Romaria is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the region's rich cultural heritage. The center was built in honor of the Romaria, a popular religious pilgrimage that takes place in the region every year.

It houses a collection of traditional Brazilian handicrafts, including ceramics, textiles, and wood carvings, which are displayed in a series of galleries and exhibition spaces. The center also offers workshops and classes in traditional crafts. It also houses a collection of traditional musical instruments, which are used in concerts and performances held at the center throughout the year. However, when we took a stroll around the center that Tuesday noon, no event was taking place.

On that Tuesday noon in early August 2022, Congonhas was peaceful and quiet. We decided to grab lunch on our way to the waterfalls. On the way to the parking, a coconut vendor in the square in front of the church offered us fresh coconut juice, and we went for it. The vendor shared his story with us, saying that he was originally from São Paulo and moved to Congonhas 30 years ago. He said it was much more peaceful in Congonhas than in São Paulo. Back in the big city, he worked as a hardware store owner and was almost shot dead by a bullet (from someone who was trying to rob the store?) during one of his work days. I liked the coconut vendor, but I was too shy and preoccupied with my fresh Coconut Juice to strike up a conversation with him. I was just listening to his passionate stories in Portuguese. Frankly, while I didn’t understand everything he said, I was fascinated to be talking to locals in this language.

When we finished the juice from the coconut, he gave us a makeshift spoon fashioned from a piece of the coconut husk to munch on the rest of the coconut fruit. After we scraped every bit of the edible part of the fruit, we bid him goodbye and headed for lunch - Brazilian “self-service” or buffet, then to Parque Ecológico da Cachoeira.

We parked by the lot outside of the waterfall complex, where there was a changing area at the edge of it, just a few meters from the actual waterfalls. It was a sunny winter afternoon, perfect for a dip, or so I thought. I totally forgot about the winter part, and when I took my dip, I jumped my way out of the water the moment it touched my skin because it was freezing cold. Sadly, I don't know how to swim, but instead, I enjoyed the view and the calming sounds of the falling water.

After probably an hour, we dried ourselves, changed back into our regular clothes, and drove for two more hours to Tiradentes, where we were going to spend the next three days.

The trip to Congonhas and the waterfalls was a beautiful and unique experience, and I will always remember the calm and peaceful atmosphere, and friendly Mr. Coconut Vendor we met along the way.