Walking at night in Santa Cruz do Sul, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, during the Christmas season | 2023

Описание: Santa Cruz do Sul, situated in the heart of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, is located 155 km from Porto Alegre and 142 km from Santa Maria. According to the 2022 census, its population was 133,230, making it the 15th most populous municipality in Rio Grande do Sul. Covering an area of 733.4 km², it is positioned in the Vale do Rio Pardo region, sharing borders with the municipalities of Vera Cruz, Rio Pardo, Sinimbu, Venâncio Aires, and Passo do Sobrado.

Characterized by a temperate climate, Santa Cruz do Sul represents a transitional physiographic region between the Plateau and the Central Depression, featuring vegetation from the Atlantic Forest and the Pampa, with a lithological predominance of volcanic rocks.

The former Colônia de Santa Cruz was founded on December 6, 1847, and the city itself on March 31, 1877, gaining independence from Rio Pardo. As one of the primary centers of German colonization in Rio Grande do Sul, both Portuguese and German, particularly the Hunsrückisch dialect, are spoken there. Historically tied to the tobacco industry, it is considered the world capital of tobacco. Experiencing significant economic expansion, urbanization, and rural exodus from the 20th century until the early 21st century, its GDP reached 9.4 billion reais in 2018, ranking it as the sixth largest in the state. The Human Development Index (HDI) was 0.733 in 2010, classified as high.

With a predominantly Catholic and Evangelical population, the city is home to the São João Batista Cathedral, the largest Gothic-style cathedral in South America, and the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession, the largest evangelical temple in Rio Grande do Sul. It is also the location of the University of Santa Cruz do Sul, with eleven thousand students enrolled in 52 undergraduate courses, along with three other higher education institutions, fourteen high schools, 114 primary schools, three hospitals, an airport, and a regional prison.

Boasting a well-developed tourism infrastructure, the city is renowned for hosting the largest Oktoberfest in Rio Grande do Sul, the Oktoberfest de Santa Cruz do Sul. It also hosts one of the largest amateur art festivals in Latin America, the Encontro de Arte e Tradição, and is home to the Autódromo Internacional de Santa Cruz do Sul. Additionally, it hosts two professional football clubs, Esporte Clube Avenida and Futebol Clube Santa Cruz, as well as a professional basketball club, União Corinthians.