Estrada Real - Cruzilia

During the 17th and 18th centuries, Cruzilia served as a crossroad on the Estrada Real where tropeiros, prospectors, and salesmen passed through, travelling between the coastal cities and the interior of Minas Gerais. Today, it is renowned for its cheese and a museum about Brazil's own breed of horses.

The cheese factory’s history dates to 1948 when the owner, Jose Moreira de Almeida, ran a small stall in São Paolo but had big dreams of manufacturing his own cheese. Taking a ride along the Estrada Real, Almeida chose Cruzilia because of its favourable environmental conditions. There he began the production of all types of cheeses from soft brie and camembert to gorgonzola, cheeses of European origins like gruyere and emmental, and Brazilian specialties such as Minas spherical. Of course, I couldn’t leave without a few samples in my bag to snack on later.

My next stop was the Museum of Mangalarga Marchador Horse, which tells the story of Brazil's national horse. Cruzilia was the birthplace of this breed of horses with as many as half million of them spread throughout Brazil. The breed is a result of crossing Portugal’s highly valued Alter Real horses with local stock. The cross-bred horses are known for their elegance, beauty, docile temperament and riding suitability. The Mangalarga Breeders Association was founded in 1934 to ensure the preservation and registration of these unique bloodlines. As such, Marchador horses “must pass rigid standards for conformation, gait, performance and endurance”. Medium in height with silky coats the Marchador horse does not trot, moving from an ambling gait into a canter. Because of its willing nature and smooth gait, the Marchador horse makes for a pleasant ride on long journeys.

Satisfied with my learning experience, I pushed on towards São Lourenço.



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River Nile

 The Nile River is the longest river in the world, although some Brazilian scientists are currently claiming that the Amazon River is longer. It is 4,132mi (6,650km) long and travels through or on the border of ten African countries. It begins in the rivers that flow into Lake Victoria, north of Tanzania and flows northwards draining into the Mediterranean Sea. It has two tributaries: White Nile from Central Africa considered as the primary stream and the Blue Nile from Ethiopia considered as the main source of water up to 80% and silt. The two meet in Khartoum, Sudan becoming the Nile. The river is the main water source for both Egypt and Sudan.

The Nile was the lifeline of the Ancient Egyptians. The river flooded each year between June and September. This was due to the heavy summer rains and melted snow that was sent down the Ethiopian mountains into the Nile and overflowing the river banks. The Egyptians used to call this "akhet", the inundation. The flood brought with it dark, fertile soil that was necessary for cultivating the farmlands with wheat, flax and papyrus. The dark soil deposit was called "kemet", the black land and it was about 13mi (20km) wide. Either side of this was the "deshret", the red land which was the desert area. The deshret provided protection from foreign conquerors and in the north where the land was swampy made it impossible for outsiders to cross.

Besides fertile soil, the Nile was also a source for water, transportation and travel. Boats and rafts were built to transport building materials such as stone for large scale projects like the pyramids. It is thought that funerary boats could have been used to carry deceased Pharaohs down the Nile to the afterlife or possibly used to carry them across the Nile to be mummified and buried.

The calendar of the Egyptians was created around the Nile's yearly cycle. It had three seasons: inundation, growing season and harvest season. Great famine has occurred during times of drought, but none worse than during Djoser's reign (Pharaoh of the stepped pyramid) when the Nile failed to flood the plains for seven years. The Famine Stela is an inscription carved into stone that tells the story of Djoser sending his vizier Imhotep to seek answers. Imhotep was visited by the god of fertility, Khnum, in his dreams who promised to make the Nile flow again. Imhotep recounts his dream to Djoser who in turn issues a decree to have Khnum's temple restored and have regular offerings made to the god. Soon after the Nile began to flow once again.

The annual flooding was one of the most important events during Ancient Egypt, except for high-water years when whole crops were destroyed or drought years that caused famine. Today the flow of the Nile is controlled via a dam in Aswan where the reservoir can store the water for release during drier years. This protects the local farmers and the trademarked Egyptian Cotton crop that is grown on the Nile Delta. As Egyptologist Zahi Hawass once said "The Nile is the soul of Egypt".