Touring São Paulo old downtown

 The Old Downtown São Paulo is famous for robbery and theft, so I signed up a free walking tour to avoid visiting there by myself. Even the meeting points had homeless people which were intimidating for me. I was half an hour early, so I walked back to more crowded area and sit on a bus stop bench to wait for the tour starting time. 

The guide took us to walk around the historical and old downtown of the city, showing important sights (like República Square, Itália building, Copan building, Martinelli building, Stock Market, Municipal Theater, Pátio do Colégio, Chá bridge and Anhangabaú valley, City Hall, and Sé Cathedral), and explained  the area where everything has begun in São Paulo. The black people were forced to worship catholic gods yet they matched these white skinned gods with their colored skinned gods to actually worship.

We entered the Sé Cathedral and explored the beautiful gothic central church. We stoped at Pateo do Colégiowhere the city was founded, and how it got its name. We walked in the Church of Our Lady of the RosaryofBlack Men - the church of the slaves and their safe heaven. We walked over the Anhagabau "valley" which was once a river and now a public space. We heard sound effects for the coming weekend concert. We stranded  next to the Statue of Zumbi dos Palmares, the main leader who fought against slavery. We passed by Banespão, the building that resembles Empire State Building, the Martinelli building, the first skyscraper of São Paulo, and the City Hall with its unexpected architecture. 

The tour ended at the Municipal Theatre. I was lucky enough to walk in the 1:00 pm free English tour with on-site reservations. The 4-min tour was informative, and the theater is beautiful. The current show is Porgy and Bess, by George Gershwin. 

I then visited a few more churches while I was looking for São Bento Monastery. The  building follows the Neo-Romanesquestyle. Most of the interior decoration was planned and executed by the monk Adelbert Gresnicht, a Dutchman who arrived in Brazil in 1913. 

I passed via several shopping streets before reaching the Municipal Market with many options of food, including the Mortadela sandwich and the Pastel of Codfish. The colorful tropical fruits in the stands were eye catching. I tasted many different kinds of fruits,  sausages, cheeses, etc.