On any trip to Buzios, culture attractions should be high on your list of things to see. For a city named after the small "birds eye" seeds found on most of the beaches, Buzios is steeped in local culture, art and history. The city itself was founded in the 18th century, but French pirates had been forging allegiances with the local Tamoio Indians as early as the 1500s, usually with the goal of harvesting the valuable Pernambuco wood native to the area.
It was the Portuguese who found Buzios, however, and Buzios cultural attractions inevitably reflect centuries of Portuguese rule. In 1575 the local Portuguese government grew tired of the French pirates and expelled them. Around this time they also installed Catholicism as the official Rio de Janeiro religion, and you can find many quant Buzios churches from this era dotted around the lower parts of town and just outside the city limits. One fine example of these is the Sant'Ana Church between the Ossos and Armaçao Beaches.
One of the most interesting Buzios culture attractions is actually the large statue of the actress Brigitte Bardot which adorns the main street of Buzios. This is in remembrance of the actress who fell in love with the quant fishing town and turned it into the tourist Mecca it is today. This started a trend for the rich, and particularly the famous rich, to start buying holiday homes and retirement homes in Buzios.
If you are looking for art galleries and museums, Buzios is rich in establishments of this sort. The local arts are encouraged actively by the government and by various wealthy patrons, and artists produce original work prolifically. There is a small gallery called Galeria das Artes in Rua das Pedras, and this is where you will find most of the latest work by the most prominent artists in Buzios.
Walking through the streets of Buzios, culture attractions are not the only aesthetic objects that are likely to catch your eye. The architecture is simple yet breathtaking, and represents a perfect synergy of art, culture and science. Thanks to a 1979 law, no building is allowed to exceed two stories. This allows everyone to keep their sea view, however developed the city becomes.
Architecture typically resembles villas in Spain, Portugal and Italy with a distinct colonial flair. However, no two buildings in Buzios are alike and the unique construction of each and every piece of architecture makes the city's buildings themselves part of the Buzios culture attractions that will astound you on your trip.