Paraíba: highlands, sea and tropical beaches

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Paraíba is a small state that is part of the Northeast region of Brazil. This state has a short stretch of coast along the Atlantic ocean and is surrounded by the territories of Rio Grande do Norte, Ceará and Pernambuco. Here is the eastern end of Brazil and the entire American continent, the Ponta do Seixas. The city of João Pessoa is the capital of the state. Other important cities are located in the interior, and they are Campina Grande, Patos, Sousa and Cajazeiras.

The coast is flat and sandy, but most of the Paraíba territory is located at heights ranging between 300 and 900 meters. In fact, the interior of the state is characterized by plateaus such as Planalto da Borborema and numerous low mountain ranges. In one of these low mountain ranges, the Serra de Teixeira there is the Pico do Jabre (1,197 meters) which is the highest mountain in Paraíba. The Sertão Paraibano region, a semi-arid depression located at an altitude between 200 and 300 meters, is situated
in the western part of Paraíba.

TOURISM AN IMPORTANT ECONOMIC SOURCE

The economy of the state is based on services, industry (food, textiles, footwear), breeding and agriculture (sugar cane, pineapple, tobacco). Paraíba is an important tourist destination in the Brazilian Northeast thanks to its beautiful beaches and its sea. But the Paraíba is much more than sun and sea as the motto of the government tourism agency also says. This state has numerous other surprises for those who want to deepen a visit to the place. Among the most interesting places the Pedra da Boca State Park with its gigantic rock formations. This park is located near the border with Rio Grande do Norte. Much further inland, near the border with Ceara, there is the so-called Dinosaur Valley, a paleontological site where fossil footprints of prehistoric animals can be admired.

The climate of Paraíba.

• Area: 56,584 km²
• Population: 3,766,834 (2010) (mulattoes 52.70%, whites 39.80%, blacks 5.70%, Asians and indigenous 1.80%)
• Capital: João Pessoa
• Time zone: UTC-3

This post is also available in: Deutsch