Colombo, Paraná, South Region, Brazil

🇧🇷 Colombo is a city in the Southern Brazilian state of Paraná; is the third largest city in Greater Curitiba.

It was founded on 5 February 1890. It is located at an elevation of about 1,000 metres above sea level, some 18 km from state capital Curitiba. The city is the largest Italian colony in the state.

The settlement of Colombo, which is part of the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba, began in 1878 when a group of Italian settlers, from the municipality of Morretes, moved there, receiving land and a small subsidy that the government of the province offered them to start their crops. Its economic activity is based on the extractive industries of lime and limestone and on agriculture with the production of fruit and vegetables, with emphasis on grapes. Among its tourist aspects is the Grape and Wine festival and its caves, such as Bacaetava. Created through State Decree No. 11 of January 8, 1890, and installed on February 5 of the same year, it was dismembered from Curitiba.

The natural inhabitants of the municipality of Colombo are called Colombians. It is located in the Metropolitan Mesoregion of Curitiba, more precisely in the Microregion of Curitiba, being at a distance of 18 km from the state capital, Curitiba.

Geography The municipality of Colombo is located in the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba. It is limited to the north with the municipalities of Rio Branco do Sul and Bocaiúva do Sul; to the south with Pinhais; to the west with Curitiba and Almirante Tamandaré and to the east with Campina Grande do Sul and Quatro Barras. Its area is 198 square kilometers.

Geologically, the land of the municipality is of quaternary, proterozoic and archean origin. The types of soil in the municipality are cambissolo, latossolo red-yellow gallic and podzolic red/yelloweutrophic. At the municipal headquarters, the altitude of 1000 meters is recorded. The relief of the municipality is quite undulating and almost mountainous, with altitudes ranging between 893 m and 1,201 m. The culmination is themorro da Cruz. Colombo is located in the First Paraná Plateau.

Among the main geographical features of the municipality, theGruta de Bacaetava stands out in the first place, which is divided into two galleries, the lower one 200 meters long, 5 meters high and 10 meters high, at the base of which runs the river that gives it its name. The Palmital and Capivari rivers, and the Ribeirão das Onças jump, with a height of 8 meters, are also important geographical features in the municipality.

The municipality is part of two hydrographic basins: Ribeira do Iguape and Alto Iguaçu. Its main rivers are: Palmital, Atuba, Bacaetava, Capivari, Arruda, Morro Grande and Canguiri. The primitive vegetation, consisting of immense pine forests and yerba mate forests, was replaced by reforestation with bracatinga, eucalyptus and some native essences such as manduirana, guabiroba, etc., because they provide a great firewood for the furnaces of the lime and limestone industries.

As characteristics of the physiographic zone in which it is located, the mineral deposits represent the main natural wealth of Columbus. There are deposits of limestones, granite and kaolin. From the plant kingdom there are woods of law and yerba mate.

Economy The economy of the municipality of Colombo is based on the mineral extractive industry and agriculture. For the extraction of limestone (large existing deposits) and consequent manufacture of lime, it is considered one of the largest producers in Paraná; the granite utilization industry follows it in importance. The consumption of these products, however, is made within the state itself, leaving a reduced amount for state export; even so, in 2006, Colombo produced R$ 337,231 of dolomitic limestone. According to Brasil Telecom's telephone directory, there are 25 lime and 7 limestone industries in the municipality.

In agriculture, the following should be highlighted (with estimated production for 2006): corn, 1,270,000.00 reais; tomato, 2,643,000.00 reais; sweet potato, 47,000.00 reais; persimmon, 371,000.00 reais; cassava, 113,000.00 reais, and beans, 106,000.00 reais. Along with agriculture, viticulture appears as a favorable coefficient in the economy of the municipality; in 2006, according to a forecast, Colombo produced 1,853,000.00 reais of grapes.

The industry has 537 establishments, of which 335 have more than a thousand jobs with a formal contract. The metallurgical industry predominates over the others, both in number of establishments (89) and jobs (1,489). It further explores the branches of winemaking, non-metallic mineral products industry, wood and furniture industry and chemical industry.

The city has been among the municipalities of Paraná that generated the most jobs since 2005, even occupying the fourth place among the cities with more than 30,000 inhabitants in the state. According to the Fecomércio System, Colombo occupies the 10th place among the municipalities with the greatest potential for trade. International export added in 2006 to the importance of US$ FOB 14.008.337.

Tourist Industry Colombo has a strong appeal for so-called rural tourism. The region is geographically rich, has beautiful landscapes and also has the cultural heritage of Italian immigrants.

The Italian Circuit of Rural Tourism, created in 1999, is a pleasant walk through the traditional wine canteens, a heritage of Italian immigrants, in addition to the natural beauty of the region. The Italian Circuit also has several typical restaurants, colonial coffee and wineries that can be visited.

Municipal festivals are a great attraction for the local population and also tourists. Numerous of them take place throughout the year: Grape Festival, Wine Festival, Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary - patron saint of the city - and Feast of Our Lady of Caravaggio - patron saint of the Italian immigrant.

The city has several tourist attractions, among which stand out: House of Culture; Ribeirão das Onças Waterfall; Morro da Cruz; Municipal Grape Park; Rural-Brazilian Colonial House; Bacaetava Cave; Mother Church (built in 1898); Immaculate Conception Chapel.

Grape Party The first edition of the Grape Festival took place in 1965. The festivity seeks to rescue the Italian tradition in Colombo, value the wine activity and celebrate the political emancipation of the municipality. The event brings together music and gastronomy, among other activities with the aim of promoting agriculture and wine, valuing local rural producers, culture and history of Colombia. The party takes place annually in the Grape Municipal Park.

The story of the Grape Festival in Columbus was born with the religiosity brought by the Italians. With each harvest the Catholic devotees organized the Mass of Thanksgiving, because of the feeling of gratitude for the fruits harvested. With the increase in the number of participants, the leaders of the Nossa Senhora do Rosário Church decided to hold the great mass in the vicinity of Lake Tumiri, and it was from there that the first grape festivals in the municipality emerged that began to be organized by the city hall on the eve of the anniversary of political emancipation of Columbus. In the gastronomic sector, in addition to the exhibition of grapes, it brings together typical food and colonial products, with wines, juices, salami, jellies and preserves. As well as agricultural fairs, handicrafts, local and national musical attractions. The event brings together an audience of 80,000 people, contributing to tourism and the local economy.

Sport In the past, the city of Colombo has had some clubs that competed in the Paranaense Football Championship, namely Esporte Clube XV de Novembro de Colombo and Colombo Futebol Clube.

Transport The municipality of Colombo is served by the following highways: • BR-476, in its northern stretch, which connects Curitiba to Apiaí (SP-260) • BR-116, which connects Curitiba to São Paulo • PR-509, which connects the municipality's headquarters to Almirante Tamandaré • PR-418, which connects Curitiba to the Bacaetava district • Northern Contour of Curitiba.