Araquari

Location of Araquari in the state of Santa Catarina

Araquari is a city in the Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. It lies on the Baía da Babitonga, a 30 km deep into the country in reaching branched Atlantic Bay, 182 km north of the capital, Florianópolis, and about 20 km south-east of Joinville, at a height of nine meters above sea level. The city center is 10 km away from the highway BR- 101, which continues across the highway BR- 280 for, important for the region, the international port of São Francisco do Sul. The nearest beaches on the South Atlantic in Balneario de Barra do Sul are around 15 km away. In 2010 the population was 24.810 inhabitants. The community has two subprefectures, Itapocu and Itinga.

Colonization

The area is very early, was settled some 40 years after the discovery of Brazil by the Portuguese in 1500. First, it should Álvar Núñez Cabeza de the Spaniards have been Vaca, who joined an expedition of 250 men, 40 horses and some convicts here on a group of Tupi Indians, who were later catechized by the Jesuits. A month later they came to Araquari and called it Paranaguá Mirim, " cove " in Tupi - Guarani. A proper settlement came into existence only as from 1748 immigrants from the Azores islands arrived here, who settled in the coastal area. The interior has been since the 19th century - European immigrants settled - by successive waves. German, Italians, Poles, Ukrainians, Norwegians and others had to fight against the wild nature, their living expenses with their agriculture and developed this strong spirit of enterprise.

Climate and Nature

Araquari is located in a flood plain, the Rio Parati often occurs on the banks and floods usually used by the agricultural low-lying areas. The area offers breathtaking natural beauty. The climate is sub-tropical with average temperatures of 22 ° C with regular rainfall. Unlike other Brazilian territories the seasons are pronounced here. Winters are warm and sunny.

The name Araquari was officially established until 1943. It means in the Tupi -Guarani language " refuge of birds. " The name was named after the waterway Canal do Linguado in the bay, which marks the border between the municipalities Araquari and São Francisco do Sul. Here lives a significant number of water birds such as cormorants, herons, gulls and other water birds such as the Araquã ( Ortalis canicollis ).

Festivals

In Araquari known festivals of the Northern Santa Catarina region are held throughout the year. These is the feast of Bom Jesus, which takes place from 28 July to climax on August 6, and the feast of Maracujá which is celebrated every two years. It attracts thousands of visitors who come mainly because of the agricultural exhibition. This typical regional dishes are served. For festival calendar include nor religious feast days of the patron saints of the Catholic church and other organized parties of evangelical churches, associations, and the town hall.

BMW builds automotive plant

The South Brazilian community on the Rio Paraty and Rio Itapocu has, compared to the population, a large municipality area which is much larger than Munich. The excellent geo-strategic location was the reason that the logistics of the German automobile company BMW in October 2012, decided to Araquari the location of the first BMW car factory on Latin American soil will allow. Main argument was about the nearby container port in São Francisco do Sul. The decision by BMW came with the support of Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff and the governor João Raimundo Colombo from Santa Catarina and caused great excitement in the region. The local prefecture (similar to mayor ) therefore expected in a very short time a doubling of the population within the next few years. The BMW Group has received assurances from the State of Santa Catarina a loan for the purchase of the terrain. Official ground-breaking was in December, 2013, the first vehicles of the BMW X1 will roll off the line in 2014. Production is expected to total up to 30,000 vehicles per year.