Rua Goncalo de Carvalho—the most beautiful street in the world

Rua Goncalo de Carvalho is a street located in Porto Alegre, the capital and largest city in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Flanked by trees on either side, the street became internationally known after a campaign for its preservation spread on the Internet, leading it to be dubbed "the most beautiful street in the world".
Over a span of 500 metres, the sidewalks are lined with more than one hundred Rosewood trees, going up to the seventh floor of the buildings in some areas. According to some elderly residents, the trees were planted in the 1930s by the employees of German origin who worked in a brewery in the neighbourhood.

In 2005, the construction of a mall nearby brought the risk of changes to this beautiful street, prompting residents to mobilise. The campaign was successful, and on June 5, 2006, the then mayor José Fogaça signed a decree, making the street Gonçalo de Carvalho "historical, cultural and environmental development of the city."
Photographs of the street circulated among environmental groups, and the "tunnel of trees" became increasingly popular. In 2008, a Portuguese biologist saw the pictures and wrote in his blog that it was the most beautiful street in the world. The nickname caught and the street has thus been called by several publications ever since.