Local culture
Sao Luis do Paraitinga, the lovely town 20 km away, was founded by a French community in 1769, and a lot of the inhabitants still have French names. Considered one of the cities which best represents the Caipira (countryside) culture in Brazil, it is also features the most preserved colonial architecture in Sao Paulo State. Famous for its carnival and numerous religious and non-religious festivals, all year long you have a good chance to stumble upon a colourful procession. Like a lot of places off the beaten track, it has kept a lot of its old traditions and authenticity, and a very unique place.
The small village of Catuçaba, only 5 km from the farm, is even older than to Sao Luiz do Paraitinga, and was once a stop on the way to the Minas Gerais region in the times of the gold rush. We took its name, to show our commitment to the local community and history. Catuçaba means "good earth" or "land of good people" in tupi-Guarani language.
Being the end of the road (the old road which once led to Cunha and Paraty), not many people venture here and it is still very quiet and authentic. It is also home of the "Cavalhada", an old tradition from 13th-century Spain and Portugal, a beautiful battle involving 40 horses, showing off the victory of the Christians over the Moors. Catuçaba is one of the very few places in the Christian world where this father-to-son tradition is still alive and regularly represented.
The Fazenda is only 30 km from Cunha, a lovely mountain town up Paraty, famous for its potteries. It takes a few hours to get there by horse, the beautiful road is not practical by car most of the year.
In the 19th century, the Paraiba valley where we are located was responsible for over 90% of the coffee production in the world, until the end of slavery (only ended in Brazil in 1888). The coffee mono culture and the influx of European immigrants from the begging of the 20th century has been the basis of the prosperity of Sao Paulo.
We are surrounded by the Serra do Mar State Park, famous for its mountain-and-sea ecosystem. We are only 50km from Ubatuba on the coast, one of the most beautiful coastlines in Brazil, and close to our sister hotel Picinguaba.