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View Full Version : Beautiful houses, classy highrises and MORMON TEMPLES!! A stroll around Porto Alegre!


Trantor
Dec 6, 2006, 3:42 PM
Original thread by Farrapo, from SSC



This weekend I had to go to Porto Alegre and I took the opportunity to take some photos. I tried to photograph some unseen places, but also took some new pics of Moinhos de Ventos neighborhood, hehe. I will not comment a lot here, even more since there are lots of pics, the thread is heavy and I already got tired of hosting the pics hehe! Thats it and I hope you enjoy the pics. AND COMMENT THEM, please! Cheers!

Chácara das Pedras neighborhood (Stones Ranch Neighborhood

1. This is a pretty house. A shame its hidden by the trees
http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/7351/portoalegre03122006007hw4.jpg

2. Also pretty...
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/6740/portoalegre03122006024kl4.jpg

3. Sidewalk
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/4156/portoalegre03122006025dx4.jpg

4
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/8800/portoalegre03122006026hu0.jpg

5. I liked a lot this house! I only think these chimneys were in bad taste.... maybe another "model" of chimney would be prettier.
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/2430/portoalegre03122006028df0.jpg

6
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/2796/portoalegre03122006029ky2.jpg

7
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/5617/portoalegre03122006030ke7.jpg

8
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/651/portoalegre03122006031nl8.jpg

9
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/3523/portoalegre03122006032yj0.jpg

10. Horrible, bizarre and other similar adjectives.
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/1345/portoalegre03122006033qd9.jpg

11. Horizontal condominium...
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/544/portoalegre03122006034qq6.jpg

12. Mormon Temple backside
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/7198/portoalegre03122006035ix9.jpg

13. And the frontside of the Mormon Temple
http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/3121/portoalegre03122006037qv6.jpg

14. I liked a lot this house!!! My style of house!
http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/6748/portoalegre03122006036zn3.jpg

15. This sidewalk was a true relief! It was VERY HOT (and humid) in Porto Alegre (its almost summer), so any shade was welcome, hehe!
http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/8199/portoalegre03122006038fi3.jpg

16
http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/9175/portoalegre03122006039fq3.jpg

17
http://img109.imageshack.us/img109/6980/portoalegre03122006040cx3.jpg

18
http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/9958/portoalegre03122006042nm6.jpg

19
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4001/portoalegre03122006043nc4.jpg

20
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4221/portoalegre03122006044cp7.jpg

21
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/4999/portoalegre03122006045ku8.jpg

22
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/5940/portoalegre03122006046lp9.jpg

23
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/3688/portoalegre03122006047mc9.jpg


Três Figueiras Neighborhood (Three Figue Trees Neighborhood)

24. A beautiful street!
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/2672/portoalegre03122006017su5.jpg

25. I love this style of house... with a kinda of "non commitment" style, with a cool paisagism and such. It transmists a sensation of confort...
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/999/portoalegre03122006018rb1.jpg

26
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/9947/portoalegre03122006016md7.jpg

27. One of the many horizontal condominiuns in Três Figueiras. I particularly dont like them too much...
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/7659/portoalegre03122006020ze2.jpg

28. Another!
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/5594/portoalegre03122006022bx3.jpg

29. And another...
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/6752/portoalegre03122006023et0.jpg


Nilo Peçanha Avenue

Some stores

30
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/5004/portoalegre03122006048rc0.jpg

31. This one is almost finished!
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/7776/portoalegre03122006049xv0.jpg

32
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/3936/portoalegre03122006050hm6.jpg

33
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/1319/portoalegre03122006051tu2.jpg

34
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/1407/portoalegre03122006052ze7.jpg

35
http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/3001/portoalegre03122006053fl6.jpg


Montserrat Neighborhood

Some buildings, 3 to be more exact, hehe!

36. Ah, I liked a lot this one. Not that is "another world", but has good taste and lots of glass! (note from Trantor: this is probably the most "Vancouverian" building in Brazil in style. But it seems the construction company is having some difficulty in selling the units, since residential buildings with so much glass are not popular in Brazil.)
http://img53.imageshack.us/img53/4157/portoalegre03122006008bo2.jpg

37
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/2716/portoalegre03122006002jw6.jpg

38
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/4192/portoalegre03122006009ek5.jpg


Moinhos de Vento Neighborhood (Windmills Neighborhood

Old Houses

39
http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/4960/portoalegre03122006001wz3.jpg

40
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/5885/portoalegre03122006015as9.jpg

41
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/1993/portoalegre03122006013ub1.jpg

42
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/8313/portoalegre03122006005os0.jpg

43
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/7578/portoalegre03122006004ix5.jpg

44. I like this house a lot. I think its the first time it appears here on SSC. I think it has a different style, dunno.
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/2313/portoalegre03122006012sj4.jpg

45
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/899/portoalegre03122006011fc2.jpg

Some highrises

46. I think this one is very cool because of this balconies "play".
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/306/portoalegre03122006003li5.jpg

47. Another building
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/9229/portoalegre03122006006ov4.jpg


Others

48. Furriel backside, at 3rd Perimetral Avenue area
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/5228/portoalegre03122006010to8.jpg

49. Furriel entrance
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/8941/portoalegre03122006014lk9.jpg

50. A residential at Petropolis neighborhood (Ravello Park)
http://img212.imageshack.us/img212/2873/portoalegre03122006019bz6.jpg


THE END :notacrook:



bonus

downtown
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/two/IMG_0836.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/two/IMG_0775.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/two/IMG_0780.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/two/IMG_1327.jpg
http://img490.imageshack.us/img490/3543/s30100059ub.jpg
http://img470.imageshack.us/img470/1456/s30100061zc.jpg
http://img230.imageshack.us/img230/1553/s30100121lt.jpg
http://img390.imageshack.us/img390/5371/s30100135se.jpg
http://img390.imageshack.us/img390/710/s30100147au.jpg
http://img489.imageshack.us/img489/7560/s30100177db.jpg
http://img467.imageshack.us/img467/5516/s30100241an.jpg
http://img250.imageshack.us/img250/3429/s30100014eo.jpg
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/9381/s30100346wd.jpg

http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/1113/0300135rk8.jpg
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/5611/0300150jb7.jpg
http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/7976/0300291eu6.jpg
http://img528.imageshack.us/img528/7040/24097901974a0a844d7boi9.jpg

eastidaho
Dec 6, 2006, 5:11 PM
I like your DT pics!

pierre-laurent
Dec 6, 2006, 5:13 PM
yes, very pretty city indeed

Trantor
Dec 7, 2006, 1:24 AM
some aerials
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3070.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3074.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3075.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3077.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3081.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3082.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3083.jpg
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/IMG_3085.jpg

James Bond Agent 007
Dec 8, 2006, 8:27 AM
Nice pics, looks like Florida or California. Pretty cool temple, too.

Trantor
Dec 8, 2006, 2:26 PM
thanks Bond! One more reply is always welcome to my threads!! :D

Paintballer1708
Dec 8, 2006, 2:29 PM
One of my favorite Brazilian cities. Very nice pics.

Trantor
Dec 10, 2006, 2:31 PM
Thanks Paintballer!

Its also one of my favorite brazilian cities, but I am biased towards it of course, since I was born there and live in its metro area! :)

Trantor
Dec 11, 2006, 4:04 PM
a cool panorama from the airplane
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b91/latinohunk/five/MONTAGEMxxxxl.jpg

Bergenser
Dec 11, 2006, 4:11 PM
Looks like a nice city! :cool:

Trantor
Dec 11, 2006, 8:28 PM
Yup, its a very nice city. One of the finest in Brazil.

crisp444
Dec 11, 2006, 8:41 PM
I must disagree about the "horizontal condiminiums" - picture #9 is absolutely gorgeous and reminds me of parts of Beverly Hills, Santa Monica and West LA. I wish more residential areas of the US looked like they do in some of the "horizontal condiminiums" pics like 9,18,21 and 27.

Trantor
Dec 12, 2006, 1:45 AM
hey, YOU are Crisp!

I didnt associate your nickname (I have bad memory for names) with the avatar. Looking at the avatar I remembered you hehe!

PacificNW
Dec 12, 2006, 2:00 AM
Very nice...beautiful city! Thank you!

Trantor
Dec 12, 2006, 2:34 AM
you are welcome!

Trantor
Dec 12, 2006, 4:11 PM
some pics of Bela Vista neighborhood

1
http://img82.imageshack.us/img82/5158/dscn0092gy3.jpg

2
http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/9494/dscn0093pw2.jpg

3
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/6291/dscn0095mv5.jpg

4
http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/8457/dscn0098vp8.jpg

5
http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/271/dscn0101yo7.jpg

6
http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/394/dscn0104mi8.jpg

7
http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/1638/dscn0125tl9.jpg

8
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/6792/dscn0134ay4.jpg

9
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/6233/dscn0135jw1.jpg

10
http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/2797/dscn0141em7.jpg

11
http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/5152/dscn0149lf9.jpg

12
http://img237.imageshack.us/img237/9404/dscn0150el8.jpg

13
http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/8357/dscn0169ew4.jpg

14
http://img292.imageshack.us/img292/7074/dscn0176hn9.jpg

15
old house preserved by the highrise building company
http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/6565/dscn0180dh5.jpg

16
http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/6909/dscn0188er5.jpg

17
http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/7808/dscn0018pa6.jpg

18
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/6694/dscn0019fw6.jpg

19
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/1038/dscn0020tq5.jpg

20
http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/8577/dscn0029xy6.jpg

21
http://img207.imageshack.us/img207/841/dscn0044lj7.jpg

22
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/8881/dscn0045kr6.jpg

23
http://img214.imageshack.us/img214/6683/dscn0077hl3.jpg

24
http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/88/dscn0082hx7.jpg

25
http://img208.imageshack.us/img208/2082/dscn0047ch8.jpg

crisp444
Dec 12, 2006, 7:20 PM
WOW. Those highrise residential towers surrounded by beautiful landscaping are just stunning. I am truly impressed with Porto Alegre!

arbeiter
Dec 12, 2006, 8:20 PM
The Bela Vista neighborhood looks a lot like Bogota.

Very nice pictures! I wasn't a fan of most of the detached houses, though, they looked very American.

Trantor
Dec 12, 2006, 8:49 PM
The Bela Vista neighborhood looks a lot like Bogota.

Very nice pictures! I wasn't a fan of most of the detached houses, though, they looked very American.


but they dont have hollow walls that you can jump through like in movies. All brick and concrete. And most of these houses are reinforced concrete and bricks.

Anyway, I dont think the houses are so american looking. Specially the older ones, some of which are shown here.

Trantor
Dec 18, 2006, 7:57 PM
why not?

Some more pics :D

Moinhos de Ventos neighborhood
http://img427.imageshack.us/img427/6692/dscn0367ap9.jpg

http://img308.imageshack.us/img308/5065/dscn0376pc8.jpg

http://img450.imageshack.us/img450/4884/dscn0377gv0.jpg

http://img304.imageshack.us/img304/2127/dscn0382ah3.jpg

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/9857/dscn0595ou7.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/436/dscn0596rm1.jpg

http://img264.imageshack.us/img264/1829/dscn0394ko9.jpg

http://img284.imageshack.us/img284/7215/dscn0395tg9.jpg

http://img335.imageshack.us/img335/7421/dscn0397my4.jpg

http://img314.imageshack.us/img314/3844/dscn0406pz0.jpg

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/2967/dscn0410wt5.jpg

http://img314.imageshack.us/img314/4500/dscn0411yx7.jpg

http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/3406/dscn0425ri8.jpg

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/9999/dscn0429ob5.jpg

http://img450.imageshack.us/img450/2960/dscn0431uq0.jpg

http://img323.imageshack.us/img323/8840/dscn0433lc9.jpg

http://img279.imageshack.us/img279/9899/dscn0438rj8.jpg

http://img344.imageshack.us/img344/8682/dscn0446wf9.jpg

http://img450.imageshack.us/img450/3531/dscn0449vo5.jpg

http://img314.imageshack.us/img314/5846/dscn0453fg5.jpg

http://img323.imageshack.us/img323/2230/dscn0458nk2.jpg

http://img344.imageshack.us/img344/502/dscn0488iw8.jpg

http://img279.imageshack.us/img279/2475/dscn0489er2.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/4606/dscn0490bm9.jpg

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/8638/dscn0491hw4.jpg

http://img432.imageshack.us/img432/4595/dscn0495tl5.jpg

http://img326.imageshack.us/img326/4299/dscn0498ht3.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/1071/dscn0500mi0.jpg

http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/6691/dscn0501lj0.jpg

Trantor
Dec 22, 2006, 2:20 PM
fuck it. I will never post again a thread on the City Photos section of Skyscraperpage. Out of 16 replies, 11 were my own, trying to keep the thread from going to page 20.

Its not worth all the work of selecting pics, taking pics, adding comments, etc.

If people here only care about USA and Canadian cities, so be it. I wont bother anymore.

dimondpark
Dec 22, 2006, 6:15 PM
excellent pics.

I love Porto Alegre.

Chicago Shawn
Dec 22, 2006, 9:08 PM
fuck it. I will never post again a thread on the City Photos section of Skyscraperpage. Out of 16 replies, 11 were my own, trying to keep the thread from going to page 20.

Its not worth all the work of selecting pics, taking pics, adding comments, etc.

If people here only care about USA and Canadian cities, so be it. I wont bother anymore.

Well, I for one really appreciate your posts here, and I really love seeing Brazilia cities. Please don't stop posting.

Trantor
Dec 23, 2006, 11:36 AM
Well, I for one really appreciate your posts here, and I really love seeing Brazilia cities. Please don't stop posting.

I know pal. But its seems it always the same ones that visit my threads. And I am indeed thankful for you guys. But as you can see, this thread was posted almost 20 days ago, and most of the replies were MINE to keep the thread around the first page.

Even worse... the lack of the search function. You could very well search for TRANTOR threads before, to check out any interesting thread from me. But now I must constantly police my own threads because usually they go to page two with zero replies... then I bump it and one more reply... two days later one more bump, one more reply... aww, it sucks.

I dont want a 10 pages long thread... if some 30 difrferent people replied, I would be MORE than happy...

RustNeverSleeps
Dec 23, 2006, 1:02 PM
Your threads are among the most entertaining ones on this forum, Trantor. I'm sure lots of other people enjoy them too.

It's always cool to see brazilian cities, they seem to have a very laid back and relaxing atmosphere.

davidz
Dec 23, 2006, 4:02 PM
Trantor: thank you for showing us these photos of Porto Alegra -which describe what appears to be a new city of some wealth. Living in high rise buildings appears to be very popular in Brazil.Can you tell us what is happeng in the inner city? Is historic preservation an active movement? Who lives in the inner city? Where are the universities and how does the concentration of students affect these areas? Finally, among the larger cities of Brazil, are there architectural variations or distinctions-ie when we look again at these photos, is there anything that says Porto Alegre that we would not expect to see in posts of BH or SP?

Thank you for this post and for any responce that you care to make

dimondpark
Dec 23, 2006, 7:01 PM
Trantor: thank you for showing us these photos of Porto Alegra -which describe what appears to be a new city of some wealth. Living in high rise buildings appears to be very popular in Brazil.Can you tell us what is happeng in the inner city? Is historic preservation an active movement? Who lives in the inner city? Where are the universities and how does the concentration of students affect these areas? Finally, among the larger cities of Brazil, are there architectural variations or distinctions-ie when we look again at these photos, is there anything that says Porto Alegre that we would not expect to see in posts of BH or SP?

Thank you for this post and for any responce that you care to make

In Brazil, the inner cities are inhabited by the wealthy and middle class. Every major brazilian downtown Ive ever been to(Rio and SP included) has been bustling and exciting far beyond any comparable degree by the vast majority of North American cities.

Ive found the difference between Porto Alegre and SP/Rio is sorta like Boston compared to NY or SF compared to LA. Porto Alegre is known for its higher then average quality of life and the residents of Porto Alegre are among the most highly educated in Latin America.

dktshb
Dec 23, 2006, 8:29 PM
Very nice. There are parts of LA that look quite similar.

delts145
Dec 23, 2006, 11:46 PM
I know pal. But its seems it always the same ones that visit my threads. And I am indeed thankful for you guys. But as you can see, this thread was posted almost 20 days ago, and most of the replies were MINE to keep the thread around the first page.

Even worse... the lack of the search function. You could very well search for TRANTOR threads before, to check out any interesting thread from me. But now I must constantly police my own threads because usually they go to page two with zero replies... then I bump it and one more reply... two days later one more bump, one more reply... aww, it sucks.

I dont want a 10 pages long thread... if some 30 difrferent people replied, I would be MORE than happy...

Hang in there Trantor,

This is my first visit and I will be back. Your Pic's are a Huge education!!!! I am now inspired to also post at this forum.

roner
Dec 24, 2006, 12:22 AM
I enjoyed it.:tup: I also appreciate the visits to other countries, thanks.

Hoodrat
Dec 24, 2006, 1:08 AM
supa nice:)

great to see, interesting mix of styles

bgwah
Dec 24, 2006, 1:35 AM
Great pics, I love the mid-rise neighborhood(s), especially the concrete buildings with trees growing on the balconies.

delts145
Dec 24, 2006, 4:03 PM
Also some really intricate colonial-era facades downtown. Very nice!

A-town
Dec 24, 2006, 5:09 PM
Love the houses and all the details that go into the buildings and some of the newer modern lowrise buildings. I also notice that most of the houses are behind gates.......talk about living in a world of fear.

Trantor
Dec 24, 2006, 9:13 PM
Also some really intricate colonial-era facades downtown. Very nice!

ah, actually, the colonial era in Brazil ended long before such buildings were built :)


I also notice that most of the houses are behind gates.......talk about living in a world of fear.

I would love to say "shut up dude", but you are completely correct about that :(
20 years ago, all houses in Brazil would be completely free of fences...


I enjoyed it.:tup: I also appreciate the visits to other countries, thanks.

thanks Roner. Its great to see new faces exploring my threads. Its a huge incentive when your thread gets some 20 replies at least, specially when people make interesting comments or questions.


Trantor: thank you for showing us these photos of Porto Alegre -which describe what appears to be a new city of some wealth.

The city is not old, but its not new either. Well, its new compared to Rome or London :) Porto Alegre was founded around 1760... but it officially became a city in 1809.

This is Porto Alegre in the XIX century
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas3/malflorianofimxix.jpg

1880
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas3/socbailante1880.jpg

1910
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas2/voluntmarechal1910.jpg

1918
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas/rua7setembro1918.jpg

1930
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/poadecada30.jpg

Graff Zeppelin over Porto Alegre in 1934
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas/pcotaviorocha1934.jpg

1939
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas3/mercadolivre.jpg

1940
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/mercadointerior.jpg

1945
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas2/avotaviorocha1945.jpg

1940
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/pracaalfandega.jpg

1955
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas/avotaviorocha1955.jpg

50s
http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas5/vistaaerea1950.jpg

http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas5/vistaaerea1950-2.jpg

http://www.portoimagem.com/fotosantigas/novas5/vistaaerea1950-4.jpg




Living in high rise buildings appears to be very popular in Brazil.Can you tell us what is happeng in the inner city?

Yes, high-rise building is popular in Brazil. The reasons are difficult to pinpoint. While in many places, fear of violence makes people go to highrises (where there is much more security than in houses), that doesnt explain the phenomen in every brazilian city... there are very safe cities with lots of highrises also!


Is historic preservation an active movement?

Yes and no. Its not common to demolish old buildings and highrises in Brazil, but many old buildings in downtowns arent being preserved... they are just there... you know? In Skyscrapercity forum, there are some brazilian forumers from São Paulo who are active people in a movement for the preservation of historical architecture in São Paulo. They were even able to impeach the demolishing of an old hotel in the city.


Who lives in the inner city?

Inner cities are actually a problem in Brazil. For some reason, brazilians dont demolish their highrises. SO the DOWNTOWNS actually have too many old buildings. And the new highrises are simply built somewhere else in the city. In São Paulo, there was old downtown, then Paulista Avenue and now the modern highrises are built in the Berrini/Nações Unidas area. In Porto Alegre, new commercial developments are built in 3rd Perimetral Avenue (about3.5 km away from downtown), in the Iguatemi area (some 4.5 km away from downtown), and other places. The downtown itself sees VERY LITTLE construction. Its clogged with old buildings which people and companies are not interested in renting/owning anymore. Most were never reformed to attend the 21st century quality standarts a company expects.

As a result, the downtowns are busy but they are not frequented by the highest class or better companies. They are full of services, government companies... inumerous stores (low/middle class... nothing fancy) and many small companies.

But I am talking about DOWNTOWN, which has a different meaning of "inner city", specially because its sometimes difficult to pinpoint whats inner city in Brazil, since there are highrises/midrises everywhere, and the density is also big everywhere.


Where are the universities and how does the concentration of students affect these areas?

UFRGS, the federal free university (and better university in the state) is next to downtown. But it doesnt have a campi, but rather, several buildings spread around the downtown perimeter.

PUC has a campus, but its kinda far away from the hotspots of Porto Alegre´s night. There are other smaller universities in the city. I dont think they affect their areas too much. But they do affect the entire city, which attracts young people from all over state for a long time, and these people tend to settle in Porto Alegre or in its metro area, after they graduate. Nightlife is pretty good, but also very spread out. Cidade Baixa neighborhood is more alternative scene, also rockers. Moinhos de Ventos neighborhood has more classy places, cafes, bars and classy pubs. Iguatemi area has some big nightclubs. Bonfim area has some places for clubbers.


Finally, among the larger cities of Brazil, are there architectural variations or distinctions-ie when we look again at these photos, is there anything that says Porto Alegre that we would not expect to see in posts of BH or SP?

Well, something. But I dont think there is HUGE architectural variation between these cities. Porto Alegre has some more european feel... more like Buenos Aires or Montevideo than other brazilian cities.

crisp444
Dec 24, 2006, 11:29 PM
fuck it. I will never post again a thread on the City Photos section of Skyscraperpage. Out of 16 replies, 11 were my own, trying to keep the thread from going to page 20.

Its not worth all the work of selecting pics, taking pics, adding comments, etc.

If people here only care about USA and Canadian cities, so be it. I wont bother anymore.

Aww, don't say that, Trantor. You know I like your forums and appreciate Brazilian architecture and landscaping in the cities you show. Let everyone else masturbate over grit in Cincinatti and Saint Louis - I'll always enjoy seeing Brazil! :cheers:

Trantor
Dec 25, 2006, 1:06 PM
Aww, don't say that, Trantor. You know I like your forums and appreciate Brazilian architecture and landscaping in the cities you show. Let everyone else masturbate over grit in Cincinatti and Saint Louis - I'll always enjoy seeing Brazil! :cheers:

after all these replies I regained my will to post :)

Crisp, I see often many americans comparing brazilian cities (Porto Alegre, São Paulo, Belo Horizonte) to Los Angeles!! Why is that?? The urbanity of such cities seem so different to me!

You dont even see residential hirises in Los Angeles (almost)... the downtown is very concentrated and the rest is sprawl...

Since you know both, maybe you can elaborate on that?

crisp444
Dec 25, 2006, 3:09 PM
Well, the reason Americans compare Brazilian cities to American ones like Los Angeles and Miami is because people generally like to draw generalizations and comparisons/contrasts in order to learn about a place. I would agree that Porto Alegre is not really like Los Angeles. However, there are many residential highrises in downtown Los Angeles and outside of downtown, specifically on the Wilshire Boulevard corredor. Los Angeles is the most dense metropolitan area in the United States and there are many very dense areas outside downtown. Although they may be car dominated, one still has the option to take the bus and subway in a variety of neighborhoods both in and outside of the city of Los Angeles itself.

When people bash American "sprawl," they often post pictures of large, identical homes in lots with no fences and no trees. It is monotonous and boring. However, much of "sprawl" in Los Angeles is made up of modest-sized Spanish-style homes in dense neighborhoods with palm trees and flowers lining the street (much like in Brazil). There is a lot of variety in architecture and design there... on the main streets there tend to be "horizontal condiminium" style (like you call it) townhomes and apartments that are 3-5 stories tall (sometimes more) and on the side streets there are single family homes. Most photo threads of Los Angeles on this forum do not seem to capture the beauty of some of these residential neighborhoods and skip them in favor of downtown pictures, Hollywood pictures, and aerial photos and panoramas.

I actually wish more residential areas in the urban US looked like those in Brazil. Although the US has many, many, many healthy and vibrant urban areas (I live in one in Boston where I walk to everything I need), it also has its fair share of urban ugliness, monotony, and uncleanliness. Many American "inner city" areas are embarrasingly undense when compared to Brazil, and it seems that in many US cities, planners are not very concerned with landscaping in the form of tree canopies, sidewalk plantings, and flowers. In general, it seems that there is so much more color in the Brazilian urban landscape than in the US one, and I admire that. Please keep posting pictures of this, and let me know if you want to keep discussing this.

fountainhead
Dec 26, 2006, 4:01 PM
Thanks for the beautiful pictures. I can't tell you how much I love the old cores of South American cities. A question however, in the "downtown" section, the house with the "Estamos Preparando" sign, are they going to renovate it or tear it down? Hopefully the former as it would be a great loss to be replaced with yet another angular early 80'sesque highrise. I have to agree with the comment that the detached houses look very American. They also look to have been overly renovated to a point of blandness. There is something a little textbook and washed out about them.

Trantor
Dec 26, 2006, 7:41 PM
the house with the "Estamos Preparando" (We are Preparing) is going to be renovated for an architectural exposition. CASA COR is an architectural exposition, where several rooms of some selected building are modelled/redesigned by selected architects, each on their own style. Its something made for other architects, architecture magazines as well as normal people, to see the lastest house furnishing/decoration styles.

There is another similar house some blocks away that they teared down the inside and conserved only the façade, and they are going to build a new modern building inside/above it... if I am not mistaken something similar to what happened to a building in NY which received a Norman Foster glassy skyscraper inside its old façade. Of course, I dont think they will build a skyscraper in Porto Alegre...

deehrler
Jan 1, 2007, 4:30 AM
I have been juggling ideas as to the best place to move out of the US. Between Chile, Argentina, Australia and South Brazil, this post has totally convinced me that Porto Alegre will be on my list to visit.

I love the mix of colonial and modern Brazilian architecture.

My only concern, is there any large conglomerations of slums nearby? Most of Brazil is off my list for that reason.

Trantor
Jan 2, 2007, 1:29 PM
there are slums, but no large conglomerations of them like in São Paulo or Rio. Living near Porto Alegre, I was astounded and impressed by the size and quantity of slums in Rio de Janeiro for example, even if I am a brazilian myself.