The Igreja Nossa Senhora dos Remédios is the largest and most prominent church in Paraty's historic centre, dominating the main praça at the heart of the old town. Its plain whitewashed facade conceals an interior decorated with 18th-century azulejo tiles and gilded woodwork, and the church has served as the spiritual centre of the community since the town's earliest colonial days.
The square in front of the church is the social heart of Paraty, lined with restaurants and bars whose tables spill out under umbrellas. In the evenings, when the light goes golden and the cobblestones glow, it is hard to imagine a better place in Brazil to sit and watch the world go by.