Minas Gerais is famous for its rolly-polly tropical highland hills and extensive number of backroads, many in dirt. The state is the size of France or Texas, after all, and a country unto itself: with different landscapes, accents, customs, and cuisine.

In Minas “what developed was a distinctly Brazilian (as opposed to Portuguese colonial) culture, based on the rigid hierarchy of a slave plantation system that also incorporated a few flexible and adaptive aspects. The uniqueness of what evolved, like a land-bound Galapagos Islands, was encouraged by the interior’s isolation, an inland incubator away from the coast and most of its foreign influences.” – To Belém & Back, p. 27

What follows are some images and other quotes from the Belém roadtrip, including a few images from the eBook’s parallel picture essay.  [please hover over images for captions]