The Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay arrived in Minas Gerais on Saturday (7 May) and will stay in the much-loved state until Monday. To give you a taste of this region known for its delicious cuisine, beautiful architecture and colourful festivals, we’ve listed 10 of Minas’s unmissable attractions...

Centuries of carnival

Cobbled streets and charming old houses provide the backdrop for the crowds that have been celebrating carnival for hundreds of years in Minas. The university town of Ouro Preto is famous for its student houses that open their doors for carnival revellers during the Festa do Momo, which celebrates the personification of satire and mockery in Greek mythology. Diamantina, Tiradentes and São João del Rei are other towns famous for their carnival parties.

Heavenly cheese

Pão de queijo, one of Brazil’s most beloved snacks, originated in the culinary of heartlands of Minas Gerais during the 18th century when bread was baked in the wood ovens of the state’s old ranches. When it's warm and gooey, it's irresistible.

Cachaça, a nation's tipple

Brazil’s answer to rum, this distilled spirit derived from sugar cane is one of the symbols of Brazil and is also the main ingredient in the country’s most famous cocktail, the caipirinha. Minas is home to over 8,000 cachaça distilleries that produce a wide array of subtle tastes.

More cheese

Brazil has a love affair with cheese and unsurprisingly Minas is where some of the country’s best produce comes from. Meia-cura, frescal, Canastra, Salitre, Serro…  Minas cheeses all have different characteristics depending on their region, while Canastra has even been designated official Heritage of Brazilian Culture.

A national treasure of Brazilian popular music

Clube da Esquina was a legendary musical collective that rose to fame during the military dictatorship of the 1970s, mixing rock and roll, progressive rock, bossa nova, jazz and Brazilian country music. It was founded by a group of Minas musicians including Milton Nascimento, Lô Borges, Wagner Tiso and Fernando Brant and its back catalogue resides in the hearts of many Brazilians to this day.

City of bars

Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais that will host the Olympic flame on 14 May, is renowned throughout Brazil for its innumerable bars. No coincidence then that the festival ‘Comida di Buteco’, which celebrates the best of Brazilian bar food, was born here. The Savassi neighbourhood is famous as one of the most bohemian quarters of the city.

Sweet dreams

Just as well-known as Minas cheese, Minas doce de leite is also part of the state’s culinary tradition. Prepared by slowly heating sweetened milk, it is delicious on croissants, toast or in cakes. The lady in the photo below is Josy Silva – hailing from Patos de Minas, she is responsible for these culinary delights made from milk and sugar.

Baroque masters

Works by maestros Athaíde and Aleijadinho, two artistic greats of Brazil’s colonial baroque period, can be found in the churches of historic cities such as Ouro Preto, São João del Rei and Congonhas.

Modern Minas

Modern and contemporary art and design enthusiasts will be wowed by the Conjuno da Pampulha in Belo Horizonte, a complex of modernist architecture created by Oscar Niemeyer. Elsewhere, there is the outdoor Inhotim gallery, which houses one of the most important collections of contemporary art in the country, featuring works by Tunga, Adriana Varejão, Cildo Meireles and Hélio Oiticica.

Guns and Roses

Known as the City of Roses, Barbacena is the third-biggest producer of this flower in Brazil. It is also known as a centre of military education, being home to the national school for air cadets. The city will welcome the Olympic torch fittingly under a shower of rose petals released from a helicopter.