Valparaiso
Another UNESCO World Heritage Site, the city of Valparaiso, in Chile, shines so much that it earned the nickname “the jewel of the Pacific.”
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Moscow
Moscow is home to one of the most iconic, colorful buildings in the world: St. Basil’s Cathedral. The fantastic colors of the cathedral — representing the biblical depictions of the Heavenly City — are mirrored throughout the city.
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Lisbon
Lisbon, Portugal, sits at the crossroads of Moorish and European influences and its colors reflect that. From the street art covered trams to the unique azulejo tiling, there is no shortage of color in this vibrant city.
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Jaipur
In 1876, Jaipur, India, was painted entirely pink to welcome Edward, prince of Wales. And it has stayed that way ever since — kind of like that neighbor who leaves his Christmas tree up all year round.
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Havana
Havana’s bright colors have been documented since the 16th century. Although the paint has faded some, the colors still shine through.
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Guanajuato
The entire town of Guanajuato, Mexico, is a UNESCO world heritage site. Deservedly so, because it takes a lot of paint to become the most colorful city in one of the world’s most vibrant countries.
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Chefchaouen
For those who would rather paint the town blue: It’s said that Jewish refugees in the 1930s brought the blue color to this town in Morocco to symbolize heaven — or it may have been chosen because the color was considered a good mosquito repellent.
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Burano
The story goes that the buildings in this tiny island near Venice, Italy, were painted bright colors so that fishermen returning home in the fog could recognize their houses.
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La Boca
Many of the immigrants to the La Boca neighborhood in Buenos Aires, Argntina, were from Genoa, Italy and they brought one custom with them: painting the outside of their homes with leftover paint from the shipyard. The houses in La Boca were not only painted with leftover paint, but built from leftover shipyard scraps.
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Bo Kaap
The Bo Kaap neighborhood of Cape Town, South Africa, is famous for its colorful buildings and large Muslim population. The bright colored walls are a new addition, perhaps born out of the optimism of the “Rainbow Nation,” or simply a need for cheap paint.
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