Vol. 9 No. 20 (2023): Essays of Geography

COVER

Praia Grande da Cajaíba, Paraty, Rio de Janeiro, January 2020.

It is customary for anyone who arrives at the Juatinga Peninsula to be overwhelmed by the green of the forest and the blue of the sea that surrounds the region. However, not even paradise is composed only of scenic beauty. It is no different with Praia Grande da Cajaíba in Paraty, on the southern coast of Rio de Janeiro, a place where the population has always fought hard against predatory real estate speculation to remain on the territory.

The image was taken on the plateau that shelters the camping site of Mr. Altamiro, in the middle of dense Atlantic Forest vegetation, protected in its essence by the caiçaras and institutionally by the Juatinga REEJ. From the point of view of the photograph, we see the flour house in the center, a place intrinsic to the (re)existence of Mr. Altamiro and also common to the rest of the caiçaras.

Altamiro says that he is very rich and that his wealth comes from his place of residence. The flour mill, built by Altamiro dos Santos' own hands, symbolizes part of this wealth.

Photo taken with the digital camera of a Xiaomi cell phone, Redmi Note 7.

Rhuan Muniz Sartore Fernandes
Assistant Editor of Ensaios de Geografia and Master's student in Geography (UFRJ)
Contact: rhuansartore@gmail.com