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...I should ask to leave at least a sentence or two about why it is a cultural capital...
Brazil:
Rio De Janeiro: The World's Riviera. Colorful, Glitzy, Sexy. It has all the 6-packs in sungas and Double-D's in string bikinis anyone would ask for. It also has boucoup money, which gives it the sophistication, glamour, style, and development that other "sin cities" (Bangkok, for example) can only dream of. It also is BLEEDING with picture-worthy landscape and architecture. The fact that the architecture is Portuguese also makes it stand out from literally other New World cities outside of Brazil.
Salvador da Bahia: The Center of Black Brazilian Culture. Reknowned for its beaches, smiles, and food. Filled with arguably more history and culture than any other Brazilian city, especially considering it was the first Brazilian Capital. Its Carnaval is actually better than Rio's, despite not being as well known. Don't believe me? Ask any carioca!
Porto Alegre: Its distinct Gaúcho culture sets it apart from the general Brazilian image that the world is sold. Known worldwide for its meats and great food. Has a distinct and proud European flair, and is a city not too dissimilar to Boston in the United States, in the sense that it is more "white" than United States/Brazil sells themselves.
Curitiba: One of the best planned cities in the world, and is used as a benchmark for city development in Brazil. People visit the city if only to see its infrastructure. It is the quiet, chic city to Rio's loud, colorful nature.
Manaus: The mystic North/ Amazon Country. This amazing, HUGE city right in the middle of the Amazons, filled with theaters, museums, and yet still allows for an excursion into true wilderness.
To me, these are the "Brasileiras." I wouldn't include SP, just because I don't think São Paulo sells itself. It doesn't need to. It knows it is the single most important city in Latin America, and wields enough power within the country on the economic/business sense, that it doesn't need tourists. I rarely hear people spending their vacation at Avenida Paulista. I also didn't put BrasÃlia there. It's too much business. Nice architecture though!
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Kyoto is Japan's cultural capital, while Xi'an or Beijing would be the cultural capital in China. Shanghai is the commercial capital, or HK if you include it.
A "cultural capital" is a city which is not the constitutional capital of the country, but is the most important city of that country, or, at least, the "most famous", if we can use this expression.
In the cases of USA and Canada the cultural capitals are respectively New York and Toronto. The same for Sydney in Australia and Auckland in New Zealand, and probably Mumbai in India.
Other countries such as Italy, Germany and China, have an administrative capital which shares the economic and cultural importance with other major cities. Italy has Rome, but also has Milan. Germany has Berlin, but also München and Frankfurt am Main. And China has Beijing and Shanghai. And there is the case of Israel, whose legal capital is Jerusalem, but Tel Aviv is the "de facto" capital for almost all purposes.
A "cultural capital" is a city which is not the constitutional capital of the country, but is the most important city of that country, or, at least, the "most famous", if we can use this expression.
In the cases of USA and Canada the cultural capitals are respectively New York and Toronto. The same for Sydney in Australia and Auckland in New Zealand, and probably Mumbai in India.
Other countries such as Italy, Germany and China, have an administrative capital which shares the economic and cultural importance with other major cities. Italy has Rome, but also has Milan. Germany has Berlin, but also München and Frankfurt am Main. And China has Beijing and Shanghai. And there is the case of Israel, whose legal capital is Jerusalem, but Tel Aviv is the "de facto" capital for almost all purposes.
Toronto is the undisputed economic capital of Canada, but whether or not it's the cultural capital is debatable. It certainly doesn't enjoy the same cultural status within Canada as New York does in the USA, in fact it's often a butt of jokes that what unites Canadians (outside of GTA) is a certain distaste for the metro. It only became Canada's largest city in the late 70's and is more famous for being a city that is majority populated by immigrants than for representing and disseminating Canada's unique culture to the wider world, as would be the case of London or Paris in Europe where the largest cities do play that role and were always historically dominant.
That said, I personally find Toronto has a certain charm.
Las Vegas....cultural capital? ....great place to be entertained, spend a couple of days, see some shows, play the tables and drop some money, but Vegas should not be considered as one of the top three cities in the U.S. for cultural offerings.-- L.A., Chicago, Boston or even D.C. would all work well as your other choice for great U.S. cultural cities.
UK: London
US: New York
France: Paris
Italy: Rome
Germany: Berlin
Spain: Barcelona
Russia: St Petersburg
Netherlands: Amsterdam
Canada: Montreal
Sweden: Stockholm
Australia: Sydney
UK: London
US: New York,Las vegas
France: Paris
Italy: Rome
Germany: Berlin,Munich,Cologne
Spain: Barcelona
Russia: St Petersburg and the city of Russia's Golden Ring
Netherlands: Amsterdam
Canada: Montreal,Toronto
Sweden: Stockholm
Australia: Sydney
Japan : Kyoto
Brazil : Rio
India : Kolkata
South Korea : Seoul
China : Shanghai
There is no such thing as a 'cultural' capital. It is not a designation, it is not written into the constitution of any country. It is merely an opinion, there is no right or wrong answer.
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....great place to be entertained, spend a couple of days, see some shows, play the tables and drop some money, but Vegas should not be considered as one of the top three cities in the U.S. for cultural offerings.-- L.A., Chicago, Boston or even D.C. would all work well as your other choice for great U.S. cultural cities.
