Aparecida is a Brazilian municipality in the interior of the state of São Paulo, Southeast Region of the country. It is located in the Vale do Paraíba Paulista, northeast of the state capital, away from this about 170 km. It occupies an area of 121,076 km², with 5.7 km² being in urban perimeter, and its population in 2018 was 36 129 inhabitants. The city is popularly called Aparecida do Norte because of the construction of the Northern Railway (later the Central Railroad of Brazil) in the second half of the nineteenth century.
The origins of the municipality go back to the consolidated faith around the image of Our Lady of the Conception Aparecida in the course of the River Paraíba do Sul by fishermen, in 1717. The miracles attributed to the representation led to the construction of a chapel in 1745 around of which several faithful and the first residents were established. Given the development of the locality, in 1842 was created the parish, subordinated to Guaratinguetá, municipality of which Aparecida disembarked on December 17, 1928.
The growing number of faithful involved the construction of a larger temple, the current Old Basilica, which was inaugurated in 1888 and replaced by the new Basilica of Our Lady Aparecida in the second half of the twentieth century. This is the largest religious pilgrimage center in Latin America, receiving annually millions of visitors, which make the municipality one of the main tourist centers in Brazil. The appearing tourist complex also includes landmarks such as Itaguaçu Harbor, which marks the place where the image of Our Lady was found; the Bom Jesus Missionary Seminary; the Morro do Cruzeiro, with its sculptures that represent the Via Sacra; and the Church of St. Benedict, inaugurated in 1918.
Aparecida is one of the municipalities of São Paulo considered as “tourist resorts” by the state of São Paulo, because they fulfill certain prerequisites defined by State Law, guaranteeing a larger amount by the state for the promotion of regional tourism. Also, the municipality acquires the right to add next to its name the title of “Tourist Resort”, term by which it happens to be designated so much by the official municipal file as by the state references. Such status is due to the cultural and historical importance inherited from the encounter of the image of Our Lady of the Conception Aparecida, consolidated by the construction of the Basilica of Our Lady Aparecida, erected in neoclassical style.
The range of the National Shrine encompasses the Footbridge of Faith, which is 389 meters long and 35 meters high, connects the Old Basilica to the new temple and was inaugurated in 1972; the aquarium, with both fresh and saltwater species; the Romeiro Support Center, which consists of a food court and about 380 shops and is situated in the basilica parking lot; and the cable car of the city, which connects the Basilica, in the so-called Sanctuary Station, to the top of the Morro do Cruzeiro, with an extension of approximately 1,170 meters over the city and the Presidente Dutra Highway and a 115 meter June 25, 2014. The Morro do Cruzeiro is equipped with a viewpoint of 30 meters high at its top, also inaugurated in 2014, being marked by sculptures representing the stations of the Via Sacra.
In addition to the National Sanctuary, the tourist complex of the municipality also houses landmarks such as Itaguaçu Harbor, which was structured in 1997 and marks the stretch of the Paraíba do Sul River where the image of Our Lady of Conception Aparecida was found; the Old Basilica, with its baroque architecture, which was inaugurated in 1888 in replacement of the first chapel that housed the representation (this one was built in 1734); the Bom Jesus Missionary Seminary, built at the end of the 19th century as a great center for religious formation, and housed the Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI during their stays in Aparecida; and St. Benedict Church, inaugurated in 1918. Mirante da Santa, located at the top of Antônio Bittencourt da Costa’s hill, is 17.6 meters high and is the largest monument dedicated to Our Lady Aparecida around the world.
As already mentioned, the municipal population of about 36 thousand inhabitants can exceed the mark of 140 thousand in festive periods and with the occurrence of religious festivals. Among the events held in the city, integrated or not with the activities of the Sanctuary, the Meeting of Kings should be emphasized in January; the Carnival, organized in February or March, with parades of carnival blocks of the city and musical spectacles with regional bands; the celebrations of Holy Week; the Feast of Saint Benedict, which is held since the beginning of the 20th century in April, with Masses and processions through the streets of the city and gymkhanaes involving the community and schools; the day of the Sertanejo, in May, with special religious celebrations and musical spectacles with country folks in homage to the caravans of travelers with violeiros; and the Feast of Our Lady Aparecida, on the occasion of its commemoration on October 12, marked by special masses and the procession of Itaguaçu Harbor to the Basilica before dawn.
