Brasilia became the capital city when the title was moved from Rio de Janeiro on April 21, 1960.

It's widely recognised as one of the world's leading examples of large-scale city planning. The government began to build Brasilia on a nearly barren site in the 1950's. The city's construction was designed to encourage the development of Brazil's interior. Today, the city is noted for its modern architecture and broad thoroughfares.

The city is laid out in a pattern that, when viewed from the air, resembles the shape of a drawn bow and arrow. Federal government buildings stand near the east end of Brasilia, at the tip of the arrow. This area, called the Plaza of the Three Powers, includes buildings that house the president's office, Congress, and the Supreme Court. A large artificial lake lies east of the plaza, and the University of Brasilia is nearby.

A wide boulevard lined with attractive buildings runs west from the Plaza of the Three Powers. Business, cultural, and recreational districts, as well as a bus terminal, are in the city's centre. Go farther west are and you'll come to a complex of hotels, a sports arena, and some fairgrounds.

Rows of six-story apartment buildings house government employees and their families. Each group of four buildings has its own shops, theatres, playgrounds, and elementary school.

An unplanned community called Pioneer Centre lies alongside the planned city. A sprawling suburb of wooden homes with a frontier atmosphere, Pioneer Centre was built by labourers who migrated to Brasilia to work on the capital's construction.