Sao Thome das Letras

The hill is quartzite, it splits into flat slabs, and the town is built from it - walls, pavements, roofs and church all in the same grey stone quarried within sight of the houses, which gives the place a uniformity that is unusual anywhere. The name comes from inscriptions in a cave near the town that nobody has read; letras means letters. At around fourteen hundred metres the views run a long way over southern Minas, and there are caves, waterfalls at Eubiose and Vale das Borboletas, and the Pedra da Bruxa outcrop. Since the 1970s it has attracted a mystical scene built around claims of UFO activity and underground passages, and much of the local economy now runs on that reputation, which visitors either enjoy or ignore.

History

Legend says an enslaved man fleeing the plantation of the Baron of Alfenas found in a grotto a statue of Saint Thomas with a letter in perfect handwriting, and the astonished baron freed him and built a church beside the grotto, at today's town centre; the Cataguá had lived in the region until the bandeirantes drove them out in the 18th century. The church was begun in 1785 and painted in the Brazilian baroque manner by Joaquim José da Natividade, in the 19th century farmers built houses here for the festival days, and quartzite quarrying, begun early in the 20th century, became a mainstay of the town (Wikipedia, São Thomé das Letras).

What you'll find

• A town built of one stone - quartzite slabs for walls, roofs and pavements.
• The unread cave inscriptions - the marks that gave the town its name.
• Waterfalls and caves - Eubiose, Vale das Borboletas and the outcrops.
• A mystical scene - shops and tours built on the UFO reputation.

When to go

April to September. Two days.

Before you go

The road up is steep and rough in places. Quarrying scars are visible around the town. Accommodation is basic and fills at holidays. The occult tourism is heavily commercial and the claims behind it have no evidence.

Nearby

Carmo de Minas and the coffee country are south; Sao Lourenco is south-east.

Key facts