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Sao Paulo, Brazil

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For hundreds of years, Brazil has symbolised the great escape into a primordial, tropical paradise, igniting the Western imagination like no other South American country. From the mad passion of Carnival to the immensity of the dark Amazon, it is a country of mythic proportions. Perhaps it's not quite the Eden of popular imagination, but it's still a land of staggering beauty. There are stretches of unexplored rainforest, islands with pristine tropical beaches, and endless rivers. And there are the people themselves, who delight the visitor with their energy and joy.

The city has an area of 1,523.0 square kilometres (588.0 sq. miles) and a population of approximately 10.9 million (2005 IBGE estimate), which makes it the most populous city in Brazil and South America and a global city.

About 19 million people live in the greater São Paulo metropolitan area — making it one of the five most populous in the world. The state of São Paulo is also highly populated, with major cities including Campinas, São José dos Campos, Ribeirão Preto, Sorocaba, and Santos and a population of over 40 million.

People from the city of São Paulo are called paulistanos, while paulista designates anyone from the whole of São Paulo state, including the paulistanos. The city's motto is Non ducor, duco, which means "I am not led, I lead".

 		  
     
  São Paulo is a major business centre. The city has a multicultural metropolitan area, with heavy Italian, Spaniard, Portuguese, German, Arab and Japanese influences. São Paulo is known for its varied and sophisticated cuisine, ranging from Chinese to French, from fast food chains to five star restaurants. Other venues such as thousands of bars, pubs, lounges and discos cater to a variety of music tastes.

São Paulo is home to the University of São Paulo and Federal University of São Paulo, to many other private colleges, to two major art museums (MASP and Pinacoteca do Estado), a major symphonic orchestra (OSESP), and a Formula One Grand Prix racing circuit (Interlagos).

The São Paulo Art Biennial is a cultural event hosted every two years. Almost 1 million people visited the 26th Bienal in 2004.

Every two years, Associação Cultural Videobrasil's International Electronic Art Festival brings groundbreaking work by cream-of-the-crop artists from all over the world to São Paulo. In keeping with the constant transformations in media and support, the curatorship has added installations, performances, VJs, CD-ROM art, and internet art to the programme. The Festival includes a competitive exhibition of so-called southern circuit and an extensive parallel programme. Art shows, debates and meetings introduce new ideas and art work, setting new guidelines for contemporary art in Brazil. Exhibitions featuring work by prominent electronic artists are also part of the Festival. Brazilian pioneers such as Rafael França and Olhar Eletrônico, and international guests such as Nam June Paik, Bill Viola and Gary Hill, have featured in the event’s past editions. Each edition has a theme of its own.

Sao Paulo is a popular gay destination and it features a prominent gay infrastructure often gay-owned and/or managed. A list of other popular gay and lesbian destinations world round has been included here