Brasília, the Capital of Brazil Brasília is a federal district,
and has been the capital of the country since 1960.
Futuristically designed by Oscar Niemeyer and Lucio Costa, the
city is in constant evolution and renewal. Its bold
architectural design, green areas and modern buildings prompted
UNESCO to add it to the World Heritage List. Brasília was first
and foremost built in order to give an impulse to the
development of the country's interior. Juscelino Kubistchek,
President of Brazil from 1956 to 1960, wanted to open up the
broad hinterland. According to his vision, the country's
development should not be restricted to the narrow coastal strip
along the Atlantic. The site chosen for the new capital was
centrally located, distant 2,120 km (1,317 miles) from Belém,
1,015 km (630 miles) from São Paulo and 1,148km (713 miles) from
Rio de Janeiro. The nearest railroad was 125 km away (77 miles),
the nearest paved road was 640 km away (397 miles), and the
nearest airport was 190 km (118 miles) from what would