A City A Day

Salto  is the capital city of the  Salto Department  in northwestern  Uruguay . As of the 2011 census it has a population of 104,028 and is the second most populated city in Uruguay. [1]  It is served by the  Salto International Airport . The city is located on  Route 3  about 496 kilometres (308 mi) northwest of  Montevideo , and on the east bank of the  Río Uruguay  across from the city of  Concordia  in  Argentina . About 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) north of the city the  Salto Grande Bridge , built on top of the  Salto Grande Dam , joins the two sides. Built on hills and bluffs, the city is situated near the Rio Uruguay's 'big jump' falls, which is also the location of the  Salto Grande Dam . [2]  The land is low lying alongside the river bank, with an elevation of 48 metres (157 ft) above sea level.

Montevideo  ( Spanish pronunciation:  [monteβiˈðe.o] ) is the largest city, the capital, and the chief port of  Uruguay . The settlement was established in 1724 by  Bruno Mauricio de Zabala , as a strategic move amidst a Spanish-Portuguese dispute over the  platine region , and as a counter to the Portuguese colony at  Colonia del Sacramento . According to the census of 2011, Montevideo has a population of 1,319,108 (about half of Uruguay's population). [8]  It has an area of 530 square kilometres (200 sq mi) and extends 20 kilometres (12 mi) from west to east. The southernmost cosmopolitan capital city in the Americas and third most southern in the world, it is situated in the southern coast of the country, on the northeastern bank of the  Río de la Plata  ("Silver River") — which is often referred to in English-speaking countries as the River Plate. The city was under brief  British rule in 1807  and was invol...

Belém  ( Portuguese pronunciation:  [beˈlẽj] , literally  " Bethlehem " ) is a  Brazilian  city, the capital and largest city of state of  Pará  in the country's  north . It is the entrance gate to the  River Amazon  with a busy  port , airport, and bus/coach station. Belém lies approximately 100 km upriver from the  Atlantic Ocean , on the  Pará River , which is part of the greater Amazon River system, separated from the larger part of the Amazon delta by  Ilha de Marajó  ( Marajo Island ). With an estimated population of 1,402,056 people—2,249,405, or considering its metropolitan area—is the  11th most populous city  in Brazil (besides being the second largest in the  North Region , second only  Manaus , in  Amazonas  state) as well as be the  16th by economic relevance . Founded in 1616 by the  Kingdom of Portugal , Belém was the first  European colony ...

Porto Alegre  ( local   Portuguese pronunciation:  [ˈpoɾtʊ aˈlɛɡɾɪ]  (   listen ) ; [1]   Merry Harbour ) is the capital and largest city in the Brazilian state of  Rio Grande do Sul . Its population of 1,509,939 inhabitants (2010) makes it the  tenth most populous city in the country  and the centre of Brazil's  fourth largest metropolitan area , with 4,405,760 inhabitants (2010). The city is the southernmost capital city of a Brazilian state. [2]  Porto Alegre is one of the top cultural, political and economic centers of Brazil. Porto Alegre was founded in 1772 by  immigrants  from the  Azores ,  Portugal . In the late 19th century the city received many immigrants from other parts of the world, particularly from Germany, Italy, and Poland. The vast majority of the population is of European  descent. The city lies on the eastern bank of the Rio Guaiba (Guaiba Lake), where five rivers converge to ...

Recife  ( Portuguese pronunciation:  [ʁeˈsifi]  (   listen ) ,  heh-see-fee ) is the fifth-largest [1]   metropolitan area  in  Brazil  with 3,743,854 inhabitants, the largest metropolitan area of the North/Northeast Regions, the 5th-largest metropolitan influence area in Brazil, and the capital and largest city of the state of  Pernambuco . The population of the city proper was 1,555,039 in 2012. [2] Recife is located where the  Beberibe River  meets the  Capibaribe River  to flow into the Atlantic Ocean. It is a major port on the Atlantic Ocean. Its name is an allusion to the coral  reefs  that are present by the city's shores. The many rivers, small islands and over 50 bridges found in Recife city center characterize its geography and gives it the moniker of the "Brazilian  Venice ." The  Metropolitan Region of Recife  is the main industrial zone of the  State of Pernambuco...

Curitiba  ( Tupi :  "Pine Nut Land",  Portuguese pronunciation:  [kuɾiˈtibɐ]  or  [kuɾiˈtʃibɐ] ) is the  capital  and largest city of the  Brazilian state  of  Paraná . The city's population numbers approximately 1,760,500 people as of 2010, making it the  eighth most populous city in the country , and the largest in Brazil's  South Region . Its metropolitan area, called  Curitiba Metropolitan Area ( Região Metropolitana de Curitiba , in  Portuguese ), comprises 26  municipalities [1]  with a total population of over 3.2 million ( IBGE  estimate in 2010), [2]  making it the seventh most populous city in the country. Curitiba is a cultural, political, and economic center in the country and in  Latin America . [Citation needed]The city sits on a plateau  at 932 metres (3,058 ft)  above sea level . It is located 105 kilometres (65 mi) west of the sea port of...

Manaus  ( Portuguese pronunciation:  [mɐˈnaws]   or   [mɐˈnawʃ] ) is a  city  in  Brazil , the  capital  of the state of  Amazonas . It is situated at the confluence of the  Negro  and  Solimões  rivers. It is the most populous city of Amazonas, according to the statistics of Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics , and is a popular  ecotourist  destination. Manaus belongs to mesoregion Center Amazonense and microregion Manaus. It is located in northern  Brazil , 1,936 kilometers (1,203 mi) from the federal capital, Brasília . The city was founded in 1669 as the Fort of São José do Rio Negro. [1]  It was elevated to a  town  in 1832 with the name of "Manaus", which means "mother of the gods" in tribute to the indigenous nation of  Manaós , and legally transformed into a  city on October 24 of 1848 with the name of  Cidade da Barra do Rio Negro ,  ...

Fortaleza  ( Portuguese pronunciation:  [foʁtaˈlezɐ] ,  Fortress ) is the state capital of  Ceará , located in  Northeastern Brazil . With a population close to 2.3 million (metropolitan region over 3.4 million), Fortaleza is the  5th largest city in Brazil . It has an area of 313 square kilometres (121 sq mi) and the highest demographic density in the country (8,001 per km²). To the north of the city lies the Atlantic Ocean; to the south are the  municipalities  of  Pacatuba ,  Eusébio ,  Maracanaú  and  Itaitinga ; to the east is the municipality of  Aquiraz  and the Atlantic Ocean; and to the west is the municipality of  Caucaia . Residents of the city are known as  Fortalezenses . The current mayor is  Roberto Cláudio , a doctor who graduated from the Federal University of Ceará. Fortaleza is one of the three leading cities in the Northeast region together with  Recife  a...

Brasília  ( Portuguese pronunciation:  [bɾaˈziljɐ] ) is the  capital  of  Brazil  and the seat of government of the  Federal District . The city is located along the  Brazilian Highlands  on the country's  Central-West  region. It was founded on April 21, 1960, to serve as the new national capital. Brasília had an estimated population of 2,789,761 in 2013, making it the  4th most populous city  in Brazil. [1] Brasília was planned and developed by  Lúcio Costa  and  Oscar Niemeyer  in 1956 in order to move the capital from  Rio de Janeiro  to a more central position. The city's design divides it into numbered blocks as well as sectors for specified activities, such as the Hotel Sector, the Banking Sector and the Embassy Sector. Brasília was chosen as a  UNESCO   World Heritage Site due to its  modernist architecture . [2] The city has a unique status in Brazil, as it is ...

Salvador  ( Saviour , often colloquially  Salvador da Bahia ,  Portuguese pronunciation:  [sawvɐˈdoʁ (ðɐ bɐˈij.jɐ)] ; historic name:  São Salvador da Bahia de Todos os Santos , in English: "City of the Holy Saviour of the Bay of all Saints") [2] [3]   is the largest city on the northeast coast of   Brazil  and the capital of the  Northeastern   Brazilian state  of  Bahia . Salvador is also known as  Brazil's capital of happiness  due to its countless popular outdoor parties, including its street carnival. The first colonial  capital of Brazil , the city is one of the oldest in the Americas. For a long time, it was simply known as Bahia , and appears under that name (or as  Salvador da Bahia ,  Salvador of Bahia  so as to differentiate it from other Brazilian cities of the same name) on many maps and books from before the mid-20th century. Salvador is the third most populous Brazilian city, a...