Brasilia is strange place. A planned city, created from nothing when the Brazilian government decided to move the capital inland, in an attempt to develop the interior of the country, Brasilia is in the shape of an airplane and most buildings downtown are built in a modernist style (read white and somewhat spartan looking). That said, some of the architecture and planning schemes are fascinating and after spending several days in Rio beforehand, Brasilia is like an oasis of calm. The extreme planning of the city, however, prevents it from feeling particularly "lived in" and the great distances between buildings (again based on modernist conception of cities) makes it difficult to get around quickly.