Information about Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
Belo Horizonte is the capital of Minas Gerais, with a total geographic area of approximately 331 km²; it is made up of a diversified landscape, including hills and plateaus, and is located 716 kilometers from Brasília, the nation’s capital. Surrounded by the Curral Ridge (Serra do Curral), which serveS as its natural frame and historical reference, the city was planned and constructed to be the political and administrative capital of the state. According to the latest IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics) census, conducted in 2016, the city has a population of 2,513,451 inhabitants, and is the largest in population in Minas Gerais and the third largest in Southeast Brazil. Belo Horizonte has already been named, by the UN’s Population Crisis Committee, the metropolis with the best quality of living in Latin America and 45th among the 100 best cities in the world. The city is also world renowned from the point of view of culture, economy, and politics. It has important monuments, parks, and museums, such as the Pampulha Art Museum, the Arts and Trades Museum, the Natural Sciences Museum of the Pontific Catholic University of Minas Gerais (PUC-Minas), the Liberty Square Cultural Circuit, the Pampulha Architectonic Complex, the Central Market, and the Savassi neighborhood, and is host to high-profile events, including the International Theater and Street Theater Festival (FIT-BH), the International Short Film Festival, and the International Meeting of Literature in the Portuguese Language.
For foreign students, further information can be found in the documentation provided by the International Relations Department of the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG).